Identifying an IBM keyboard

[andrewjoy]

ahh i remember that such a shame , my 122 was a little different it went on the other corner during postage . its bloody tragic is what it is . Just think the things they have lived through 30 years and they get broken during shipping by some lazy shipping worker who just throws stuff around. Thats another reason to love the beam spring its hard to smash the metal case .

By the way, how should the jumper switches be set on the bottom of the keyboard?

i never found out ether they all tie to ground when switched on ( at least mine did ) but i could see no change at all . possibly its something to do with layout ?

Be VERY mindful of the ribbon cable they can disconnect from the board very easy and its not as fun as you would think replacing them .

Other advice i can give as a 122 owner is that plastic is very very brittle don't drop it or twist it or anything treat it like antique porcelain.

Its painted don't rub too hard when cleaning my usual advice applies a good soak in warm to hot water with washing powder ( the bio kind works best)

Stabilisers are very fragile consider switching to model M style stabilisers where possible.

The foam matt may not be as bad as it look the edge is made of a thinner different foam the insides may be ok.

When bending back the tabs to open the plate do it very slow don't just bend it in one go slowly move it the metal is starting to age now.

use your extra number pad button for a tab key its so useful.

[Muirium]

I'd blame this squarely on Britain's awful national parcel carrier: Parcelforce. I have literally never had a heavy parcel delivered to me, via their dodgy hands, that wasn't deformed. They lob them around good and proper. Bastards! Really expensive too. And DHL transfers to them, so my beamspring from Halvar was given the roller coaster crash treatment too. Fortunately it was so tough it survived unscathed, even though the outer box was unrecognisable! The well padded beer bottles inside weren't so lucky.

One time, I shit you not, I had a 21 inch monitor sent through these clowns. This was 1999 or so, and it was a big high end CRT. What arrived at my door was a heap of glass. Bundled up in shards of cardboard, marked "fragile".

Use UPS or Fed Ex whenever you can folks. Ripoff Britannia strikes again.

[fohat]

The last couple of times that I shipped an F-122, I took the case shell off and wrapped it in bubble wrap, still in the same box, but dis-attached. At least that way, if it is dropped, all that momentum from the weight of the steel internals will not be transferred into the outer shell.

[andrewjoy]

DPD are ok we use them in old work and never usually have a problem don't know how expensive they are.

UPS at least the last time i used them where terrible. It was 2006 and i had just spent a decent sum of money ( education discount and warrantee ) on a then band new macbook core2duo. Then sent an email saying when it would be delivered. i was waiting for them in the living room of our terrace house right next to the window . there is no way i could have possibly missed the oversized van it was summer and the windows where open, next thing i know there is a "you where out " card on the floor. The only possibly way this could have happened is if he parked around the corner and crawled under the window. Ether that or he never even tried to deliver it and got his mate the postman to post the card through.

[Muirium]

True, they can be dodgy too. This afternoon I came home via a diversion to pick up something from them. There was definitely someone at home when they tried to deliver, but apparently some of their drivers are shy!

Usually, though, they're all right. Same with DPD. Hermes is a bit hit or miss. But everyone's better than dreaded Parcelforce!

[andrewjoy]

A good thing about DPD at least in Liverpool is the driver is uauly on the same route so if you use them quite a bit they usually know you and if and when you are there, i have had them call my mobile and say i am in reception come and get it. Very good service .

Anyways back on topic . We are looking forward to the finished 122 they are one of my favourite boards . if only the nav cluster had a invited t and all 9 nav buttons.

[fohat]

if only the nav cluster had a invited t and all 9 nav buttons.

If you set the center arrow key to Down Arrow, then it will "feel like" an inverted-T when you ignore the regular Down Arrow.

[andrewjoy]

if only the nav cluster had a invited t and all 9 nav buttons.

If you set the center arrow key to Down Arrow, then it will "feel like" an inverted-T when you ignore the regular Down Arrow.

i have done that and put super key under the cluster but it would be so much better if it was a real inverted t one row lower as then we could fit 9 nav buttons above it .

ahh well first world problems i guess

[seebart]

The last couple of times that I shipped an F-122, I took the case shell off and wrapped it in bubble wrap, still in the same box, but dis-attached. At least that way, if it is dropped, all that momentum from the weight of the steel internals will not be transferred into the outer shell.

that´s a good tipp I´ll have to remember, thanks.

By the way this how lax that guy (who andrew me and halvar) bought from dropped them in a big box and nothing happend!

This is actually what it looked like right when I opened the box :

IMG_20140909_133422.jpg (974.12 KiB) Viewed 5420 times

[fohat]

I have seen much worse.

[komodo]

Hi guys, sorry this is a bit of an odd question, and i know people have said use the extra numpad key as a tab button, but i would really like the numberpad to be like a standard keyboard as i enter a lot of numbers and calculations for my work. Does anyone know where I can get a number pad plus key from so that it will take up 2 places? I know I'll need a "supporter" too (I'm not sure what they're called(. I've swapped the Model m and F large keys over already as they can be pressed anywhere and still work (done for right hand shift, enter and backspace.

[andrewjoy]

i would get one from unicomp , you will have to take the spring and hammer out also

you can also get them from clickykeybords it may batch better

[Halvar]

... or just ask in the marketplace forum, someone might be able to help you out with a + key and a stabilizer insert from a Model M.

[fohat]

double post, sorry

probably my abysmal internet connection

[Muirium]

Right. Bear in mind that those inserts don't like to share a barrel with a spring. It's possible to remove a spring without taking apart the keyboard (using a "chopstick") but on a Model F you have much better access to the insides anyway, and can take out the flipper yourself.

[fohat]

Remember that the plastic barrel insert stabilizers come in "centered" and "off-center" and that the vertical keys require the "off-center" kind.

[komodo]

ah yes, I wondered about the different colours but didn't look closely enough to spot the difference! My biggest pain so far has been the lack of an escape key, another thing to sort out when I've figured out the remapping

[fohat]

Escape is easy.

My F-122 has 2 "Escape" keys: (1) in the old classic position: top left of numpad where "NumLock" now resides (NumLock is irrelevant with arrow keys and should be disabled entirely) and (2) top left of function keys (ie re-mapped F13) the upper-most left-most key on the keyboard.

[komodo]

Hi, it's me again!

I'm afraid i have another question. I've been using the keyboard for a couple of weeks now, and it works well for gaming. I'm considering getting some other caps for it for the pg up and down keys etc so they say what they actually do on the key! however I've got a question about the difference between the model F and the model M. The Keys feel more secure on the M and they seem to be giving better feedback, as well as being slightly harder to mis-type on. Is this a standard difference or is my Model F in need of maintenance of some kind?

Thanks in advance!

[Hypersphere]

@komodo: I use an IBM Model M SSK and an IBM Model F XT keyboard. The XT has a somewhat lighter touch and feels more precise to me than the SSK. The XT has a crisp, sharp, metallic click. From what I have heard about the F122, it should have similar responsiveness and feedback as the XT. The typing experience on both Model M and Model F keyboards is excellent, but some people, including me, find the Model F experience to be even better than that of the Model M.

[komodo]

I was wondering if it needed maintenance because while on the M the key can only travel directly downwards, on the F there seems to be a fair amount more "play" in the keys and they move slightly as i type, and dont look all square while on the M they stay aligned quite well. This sideways play on the key makes the whole keyboard feel more "rattley" and less solid than the M, which wasn't what i was expecting. Of course I haven;t had a wide experience with Ms or Fs, but it feels odd that typing on the F would feel LESS solidly built than the M. If thats actually how it is then fair enough.

[Touch_It]

I didn't read the whole thread but if the keys feel less secure its possibly due to the foam inside. It has probably degraded witch I imagine could make keys feel wobbly. If this is the case you would need to replace the foam. There are some good guides and recommended materials for this. I'm no expert though. I'm just preparing to work on my first Model F.

[derek]

The tricolored labels?