Author Topic: Hello from Southern California.  (Read 5295 times)

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Offline aptivaboy

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Hello from Southern California.
« on: Thu, 10 March 2016, 19:42:00 »
New member here. I'm really into old Model Ms and retro stuff from my high school and college days, plus my early work days - genuine IBM Thinkpads (not that Lenovo kludge), ZIP disks, and of course, Model M keyboards. I currently have a brand new Unicomp Model M with trackpoint,  a 1987 Model M, and an early '90s IBM Ambra Model M. Hey, you can never have too many clicky keyboards, right?

Any pointers toward customizing Model Ms would be greatly appreciated, especially colored keys and keys with different fonts on them.

Bob

Offline xtrafrood

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #1 on: Thu, 10 March 2016, 23:48:31 »
Lenovo was able to aquire IBM, you would expect more from them right?

Did you notice any blemishes on your Unicomp w/trackpoint? I'm torn between that one and the P122. Unicomp has a bunch of different keys for buckling springs, hmmm if I remember correctly.. the good keys are under the *Small Batch Limited Editions* submenu :)

Offline mOUs3y

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #2 on: Fri, 11 March 2016, 01:40:38 »
Hi welcome! I believe there's a lot of old model M's for sale as well as the old ibm thinkpads before they were bought by lenovo for sale here up in northern california. you should check out Craigslist; i just got me a x61s, x201s, and a x220. Wife is mad! I saw a few IBM keyboards at Goodwill when I was hunting for an 8-track player. I'll go take a look if they still have some there.

Offline aptivaboy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #3 on: Fri, 11 March 2016, 09:46:32 »
Hi csmertx,

Yes, you can tell the molds are getting a bit old. There are a few blemishes here and there on the undersides- not enough to make me not buy another, but if one is really concerned about cosmetics then something to be aware of. The big thing is that if one were to get the non-trackpoint Ultra Classic Model M from Unicomp, the cutouts where the mouse buttons are appear on the standard version. Its almost as if the molds for the original Model M were lost or damaged and had to be remade from the Endura Pro version (just speculation on my part). You can see it here by clicking on and zooming into the photo of the Ultra Classic: http://www.pckeyboard.com/page/product/UNI0P4A . Look right underneath the spacebar and you'll see the area I'm talking about. Its not a dealbreaker at all for me, but again something to be aware of. From the photos on the Unicomp site, it doesn't look like the PC-122 has this issue, but then its a different body so different molds.

The one issue I've had with the Endura Pro is that the trackpoint sticks up a little but too high above the level of the key caps and can sometimes interfere with typing. I'm toying with the idea of sanding or grinding down its mounting base a little bit to make it less obtrusive. 

I'm also interested in the PC-122, if for no other reason than you can never have enough function keys! I learned word processing on these keyboards back in the '80s and always wondered just what the heck all of those extra keys did! If possible, I'd love to make some of them into media keys for things like volume controls, if that's possible. I emailed Unicomp a few days ago to confirm if the PC-122 is Windows compatible since the IBM originals aren't, and the Unicomp rep confirmed that yes, they are Windows compatible.

Robert

EDIT: thanks for the pointer int he Unicomp keys. What I'd love to see also are more case/cover options, instead of the standard off-white and black. Combining those with colored keys would be amazing. Here's a really bizarre want - a backlit Model M. If a kit cold be made for that, I'd be all over it like my obnoxious cousin at a pancake house.


« Last Edit: Fri, 11 March 2016, 13:18:22 by aptivaboy »

Offline aptivaboy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #4 on: Fri, 11 March 2016, 10:36:32 »
Hi mOUs3y,

I've got four old Thinkpads that were purchased on the super cheap mostly as traveling machines - if they get stolen or damaged, then no great loss, right? Two have XP/Win 7 with wi-fi capability, the others are I-Series pads from the Win 98 era, so typing only for them. They still possess the best laptop keyboards I've ever used, and I've used a lot. IBM really got things right wayyyyy back in the day with their keyboards, both laptop and Model M.

Our school had a room full of Model Ms just sitting there and I asked if I could acquire a couple for actual use in the classroom but was told no, all technology (even unused stuff) needs to the properly audited and accounted for and then sold off to the highest bidder. Actually, what really happens is that old stuff gets tossed in the trash because no one wants to deal with it, at least that's what the computer guys here privately told me. The thought of those nice Model Ms hitting the dumpster makes me sad.

Robert

Offline xtrafrood

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #5 on: Fri, 11 March 2016, 11:27:28 »
If you use a third party key mapping program, pretty much any key on any keyboard can be a media key  ;)

Strange spacebar gap, I see it now, and I too started on a 122 key keyboard  :thumb:

Offline aptivaboy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #6 on: Fri, 11 March 2016, 12:16:22 »
Nice. Anything custom or just a stock 122 if you get the Unicomp 122?
« Last Edit: Fri, 11 March 2016, 13:19:43 by aptivaboy »

Offline demik

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #7 on: Fri, 11 March 2016, 22:42:44 »
what part of socal?
No, he’s not around. How that sound to ya? Jot it down.

Offline xtrafrood

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #8 on: Fri, 11 March 2016, 23:07:43 »
Nice. Anything custom or just a stock 122 if you get the Unicomp 122?
I would probably grab the geekhack F-key row and media keys for it but idk about painting the case. 

Offline aptivaboy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #9 on: Sat, 12 March 2016, 00:14:25 »
what part of socal?

Orange County, east of Mission Viejo towards the hills.

I brought my Unicomp Model M to my students last semester and they were ANNOYED by its noise. I loved every second of it.  :) Actually, after trying it most grudgingly admitted that it was a better typing experience than the kludge they type on today.

Offline demik

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #10 on: Sat, 12 March 2016, 00:38:28 »
dope, there are a couple OC GHers on here.
No, he’s not around. How that sound to ya? Jot it down.

Offline rowdy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #11 on: Sun, 13 March 2016, 20:06:29 »
Welcome to Geekhack!

The only way you can have too many Model M keyboards is if your desk is not big enough.  I only have five.

Have you ever had a click of death in Zip drives?  A very good idea, especially the external units with the parallel port interface.  I had a couple of internal units as well, a few years back, but one by one they all died.
"Because keyboards are accessories to PC makers, they focus on minimizing the manufacturing costs. But that’s incorrect. It’s in HHKB’s slogan, but when America’s cowboys were in the middle of a trip and their horse died, they would leave the horse there. But even if they were in the middle of a desert, they would take their saddle with them. The horse was a consumable good, but the saddle was an interface that their bodies had gotten used to. In the same vein, PCs are consumable goods, while keyboards are important interfaces." - Eiiti Wada

NEC APC-H4100E | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED red | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED green | Link 900243-08 | CM QFR MX black | KeyCool 87 white MX reds | HHKB 2 Pro | Model M 02-Mar-1993 | Model M 29-Nov-1995 | CM Trigger (broken) | CM QFS MX green | Ducky DK9087 Shine 3 TKL Yellow Edition MX black | Lexmark SSK 21-Apr-1994 | IBM SSK 13-Oct-1987 | CODE TKL MX clear | Model M 122 01-Jun-1988

Ị̸͚̯̲́ͤ̃͑̇̑ͯ̊̂͟ͅs̞͚̩͉̝̪̲͗͊ͪ̽̚̚ ̭̦͖͕̑́͌ͬͩ͟t̷̻͔̙̑͟h̹̠̼͋ͤ͋i̤̜̣̦̱̫͈͔̞ͭ͑ͥ̌̔s̬͔͎̍̈ͥͫ̐̾ͣ̔̇͘ͅ ̩̘̼͆̐̕e̞̰͓̲̺̎͐̏ͬ̓̅̾͠͝ͅv̶̰͕̱̞̥̍ͣ̄̕e͕͙͖̬̜͓͎̤̊ͭ͐͝ṇ̰͎̱̤̟̭ͫ͌̌͢͠ͅ ̳̥̦ͮ̐ͤ̎̊ͣ͡͡n̤̜̙̺̪̒͜e̶̻̦̿ͮ̂̀c̝̘̝͖̠̖͐ͨͪ̈̐͌ͩ̀e̷̥͇̋ͦs̢̡̤ͤͤͯ͜s͈̠̉̑͘a̱͕̗͖̳̥̺ͬͦͧ͆̌̑͡r̶̟̖̈͘ỷ̮̦̩͙͔ͫ̾ͬ̔ͬͮ̌?̵̘͇͔͙ͥͪ͞ͅ

Offline aptivaboy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #12 on: Fri, 18 March 2016, 13:52:11 »
Nope, no click of death from Zips. From LS-120s, yes! Those things more often than not just enter and endless read/write loop. Sad, as I have a TON of old data on them (lesson plans, school calendars ad organizers, etc.) from my work.

Offline -musubi

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #13 on: Fri, 18 March 2016, 19:53:23 »
Welcome to the forums! Ah so you're into the retro stuff... personally I'm not into any of the older keyboards but I can appreciate why people find them interesting and rare, and into all that vintage stuff

Offline rowdy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #14 on: Sun, 20 March 2016, 04:14:56 »
Nope, no click of death from Zips. From LS-120s, yes! Those things more often than not just enter and endless read/write loop. Sad, as I have a TON of old data on them (lesson plans, school calendars ad organizers, etc.) from my work.

Ouch!

With hindsight keeping a copy on several different types of media is a good idea.
"Because keyboards are accessories to PC makers, they focus on minimizing the manufacturing costs. But that’s incorrect. It’s in HHKB’s slogan, but when America’s cowboys were in the middle of a trip and their horse died, they would leave the horse there. But even if they were in the middle of a desert, they would take their saddle with them. The horse was a consumable good, but the saddle was an interface that their bodies had gotten used to. In the same vein, PCs are consumable goods, while keyboards are important interfaces." - Eiiti Wada

NEC APC-H4100E | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED red | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED green | Link 900243-08 | CM QFR MX black | KeyCool 87 white MX reds | HHKB 2 Pro | Model M 02-Mar-1993 | Model M 29-Nov-1995 | CM Trigger (broken) | CM QFS MX green | Ducky DK9087 Shine 3 TKL Yellow Edition MX black | Lexmark SSK 21-Apr-1994 | IBM SSK 13-Oct-1987 | CODE TKL MX clear | Model M 122 01-Jun-1988

Ị̸͚̯̲́ͤ̃͑̇̑ͯ̊̂͟ͅs̞͚̩͉̝̪̲͗͊ͪ̽̚̚ ̭̦͖͕̑́͌ͬͩ͟t̷̻͔̙̑͟h̹̠̼͋ͤ͋i̤̜̣̦̱̫͈͔̞ͭ͑ͥ̌̔s̬͔͎̍̈ͥͫ̐̾ͣ̔̇͘ͅ ̩̘̼͆̐̕e̞̰͓̲̺̎͐̏ͬ̓̅̾͠͝ͅv̶̰͕̱̞̥̍ͣ̄̕e͕͙͖̬̜͓͎̤̊ͭ͐͝ṇ̰͎̱̤̟̭ͫ͌̌͢͠ͅ ̳̥̦ͮ̐ͤ̎̊ͣ͡͡n̤̜̙̺̪̒͜e̶̻̦̿ͮ̂̀c̝̘̝͖̠̖͐ͨͪ̈̐͌ͩ̀e̷̥͇̋ͦs̢̡̤ͤͤͯ͜s͈̠̉̑͘a̱͕̗͖̳̥̺ͬͦͧ͆̌̑͡r̶̟̖̈͘ỷ̮̦̩͙͔ͫ̾ͬ̔ͬͮ̌?̵̘͇͔͙ͥͪ͞ͅ

Offline aptivaboy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #15 on: Sat, 30 July 2016, 11:58:03 »
I got most of it back, actually. I have an IBM Thinkpad A30 from 2002, or thereabout, with two Ultrabays in it. One is for an LS120 so in the disks went and out came most of my data. The LS120 is notoriously finicky and often stopped working, but in the end it all came right. Mostly, anyway.

Offline rowdy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #16 on: Sun, 31 July 2016, 05:55:03 »
I got most of it back, actually. I have an IBM Thinkpad A30 from 2002, or thereabout, with two Ultrabays in it. One is for an LS120 so in the disks went and out came most of my data. The LS120 is notoriously finicky and often stopped working, but in the end it all came right. Mostly, anyway.

Hooray!

Better luck than I had a while back.  I was going to reinstall, so I did a full backup to tape, and verified it.  Then I did another full backup to a different tape and verified it.  Reformatted and reinstalled.

Then couldn't read either tape.  I lost pretty much all my data :(
"Because keyboards are accessories to PC makers, they focus on minimizing the manufacturing costs. But that’s incorrect. It’s in HHKB’s slogan, but when America’s cowboys were in the middle of a trip and their horse died, they would leave the horse there. But even if they were in the middle of a desert, they would take their saddle with them. The horse was a consumable good, but the saddle was an interface that their bodies had gotten used to. In the same vein, PCs are consumable goods, while keyboards are important interfaces." - Eiiti Wada

NEC APC-H4100E | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED red | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED green | Link 900243-08 | CM QFR MX black | KeyCool 87 white MX reds | HHKB 2 Pro | Model M 02-Mar-1993 | Model M 29-Nov-1995 | CM Trigger (broken) | CM QFS MX green | Ducky DK9087 Shine 3 TKL Yellow Edition MX black | Lexmark SSK 21-Apr-1994 | IBM SSK 13-Oct-1987 | CODE TKL MX clear | Model M 122 01-Jun-1988

Ị̸͚̯̲́ͤ̃͑̇̑ͯ̊̂͟ͅs̞͚̩͉̝̪̲͗͊ͪ̽̚̚ ̭̦͖͕̑́͌ͬͩ͟t̷̻͔̙̑͟h̹̠̼͋ͤ͋i̤̜̣̦̱̫͈͔̞ͭ͑ͥ̌̔s̬͔͎̍̈ͥͫ̐̾ͣ̔̇͘ͅ ̩̘̼͆̐̕e̞̰͓̲̺̎͐̏ͬ̓̅̾͠͝ͅv̶̰͕̱̞̥̍ͣ̄̕e͕͙͖̬̜͓͎̤̊ͭ͐͝ṇ̰͎̱̤̟̭ͫ͌̌͢͠ͅ ̳̥̦ͮ̐ͤ̎̊ͣ͡͡n̤̜̙̺̪̒͜e̶̻̦̿ͮ̂̀c̝̘̝͖̠̖͐ͨͪ̈̐͌ͩ̀e̷̥͇̋ͦs̢̡̤ͤͤͯ͜s͈̠̉̑͘a̱͕̗͖̳̥̺ͬͦͧ͆̌̑͡r̶̟̖̈͘ỷ̮̦̩͙͔ͫ̾ͬ̔ͬͮ̌?̵̘͇͔͙ͥͪ͞ͅ

Offline aptivaboy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #17 on: Sun, 31 July 2016, 13:13:14 »
Ouch... Yeah, I'm starting to think that actually using the CD/DVD burners in my PCs just might be the way to go...

I still lost a ton of stuff, but I'd say I've gotten about 50% of it back. Fortunately, most of what was lost wasn't work related so I can live without it.
 

Offline rowdy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #18 on: Tue, 02 August 2016, 05:58:07 »
Ouch... Yeah, I'm starting to think that actually using the CD/DVD burners in my PCs just might be the way to go...

I still lost a ton of stuff, but I'd say I've gotten about 50% of it back. Fortunately, most of what was lost wasn't work related so I can live without it.

Also bear in mind that a CD/DVD won't last forever.

For our family photos (probably about 4TB and counting) I copy them to two separate external hard drives, and also burn them to DVD.

I should probably go back and re-burn the older DVDs, but there's too many now.
"Because keyboards are accessories to PC makers, they focus on minimizing the manufacturing costs. But that’s incorrect. It’s in HHKB’s slogan, but when America’s cowboys were in the middle of a trip and their horse died, they would leave the horse there. But even if they were in the middle of a desert, they would take their saddle with them. The horse was a consumable good, but the saddle was an interface that their bodies had gotten used to. In the same vein, PCs are consumable goods, while keyboards are important interfaces." - Eiiti Wada

NEC APC-H4100E | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED red | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED green | Link 900243-08 | CM QFR MX black | KeyCool 87 white MX reds | HHKB 2 Pro | Model M 02-Mar-1993 | Model M 29-Nov-1995 | CM Trigger (broken) | CM QFS MX green | Ducky DK9087 Shine 3 TKL Yellow Edition MX black | Lexmark SSK 21-Apr-1994 | IBM SSK 13-Oct-1987 | CODE TKL MX clear | Model M 122 01-Jun-1988

Ị̸͚̯̲́ͤ̃͑̇̑ͯ̊̂͟ͅs̞͚̩͉̝̪̲͗͊ͪ̽̚̚ ̭̦͖͕̑́͌ͬͩ͟t̷̻͔̙̑͟h̹̠̼͋ͤ͋i̤̜̣̦̱̫͈͔̞ͭ͑ͥ̌̔s̬͔͎̍̈ͥͫ̐̾ͣ̔̇͘ͅ ̩̘̼͆̐̕e̞̰͓̲̺̎͐̏ͬ̓̅̾͠͝ͅv̶̰͕̱̞̥̍ͣ̄̕e͕͙͖̬̜͓͎̤̊ͭ͐͝ṇ̰͎̱̤̟̭ͫ͌̌͢͠ͅ ̳̥̦ͮ̐ͤ̎̊ͣ͡͡n̤̜̙̺̪̒͜e̶̻̦̿ͮ̂̀c̝̘̝͖̠̖͐ͨͪ̈̐͌ͩ̀e̷̥͇̋ͦs̢̡̤ͤͤͯ͜s͈̠̉̑͘a̱͕̗͖̳̥̺ͬͦͧ͆̌̑͡r̶̟̖̈͘ỷ̮̦̩͙͔ͫ̾ͬ̔ͬͮ̌?̵̘͇͔͙ͥͪ͞ͅ

Offline xtrafrood

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #19 on: Tue, 02 August 2016, 09:51:47 »
Ouch... Yeah, I'm starting to think that actually using the CD/DVD burners in my PCs just might be the way to go...

I still lost a ton of stuff, but I'd say I've gotten about 50% of it back. Fortunately, most of what was lost wasn't work related so I can live without it.

Also bear in mind that a CD/DVD won't last forever.

For our family photos (probably about 4TB and counting) I copy them to two separate external hard drives, and also burn them to DVD.

I should probably go back and re-burn the older DVDs, but there's too many now.

5-20 years before they oxidize from what I've read so far. I guess it all depends on brand, where you store them, and what you mark them with

Offline rowdy

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Re: Hello from Southern California.
« Reply #20 on: Thu, 04 August 2016, 05:55:21 »
Ouch... Yeah, I'm starting to think that actually using the CD/DVD burners in my PCs just might be the way to go...

I still lost a ton of stuff, but I'd say I've gotten about 50% of it back. Fortunately, most of what was lost wasn't work related so I can live without it.

Also bear in mind that a CD/DVD won't last forever.

For our family photos (probably about 4TB and counting) I copy them to two separate external hard drives, and also burn them to DVD.

I should probably go back and re-burn the older DVDs, but there's too many now.

5-20 years before they oxidize from what I've read so far. I guess it all depends on brand, where you store them, and what you mark them with

My older ones are about 10 years old now.

I'm struggling to find time to burn new photos onto DVD, never mind going back and re-burning all the old ones again!
"Because keyboards are accessories to PC makers, they focus on minimizing the manufacturing costs. But that’s incorrect. It’s in HHKB’s slogan, but when America’s cowboys were in the middle of a trip and their horse died, they would leave the horse there. But even if they were in the middle of a desert, they would take their saddle with them. The horse was a consumable good, but the saddle was an interface that their bodies had gotten used to. In the same vein, PCs are consumable goods, while keyboards are important interfaces." - Eiiti Wada

NEC APC-H4100E | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED red | Ducky DK9008 Shine MX blue LED green | Link 900243-08 | CM QFR MX black | KeyCool 87 white MX reds | HHKB 2 Pro | Model M 02-Mar-1993 | Model M 29-Nov-1995 | CM Trigger (broken) | CM QFS MX green | Ducky DK9087 Shine 3 TKL Yellow Edition MX black | Lexmark SSK 21-Apr-1994 | IBM SSK 13-Oct-1987 | CODE TKL MX clear | Model M 122 01-Jun-1988

Ị̸͚̯̲́ͤ̃͑̇̑ͯ̊̂͟ͅs̞͚̩͉̝̪̲͗͊ͪ̽̚̚ ̭̦͖͕̑́͌ͬͩ͟t̷̻͔̙̑͟h̹̠̼͋ͤ͋i̤̜̣̦̱̫͈͔̞ͭ͑ͥ̌̔s̬͔͎̍̈ͥͫ̐̾ͣ̔̇͘ͅ ̩̘̼͆̐̕e̞̰͓̲̺̎͐̏ͬ̓̅̾͠͝ͅv̶̰͕̱̞̥̍ͣ̄̕e͕͙͖̬̜͓͎̤̊ͭ͐͝ṇ̰͎̱̤̟̭ͫ͌̌͢͠ͅ ̳̥̦ͮ̐ͤ̎̊ͣ͡͡n̤̜̙̺̪̒͜e̶̻̦̿ͮ̂̀c̝̘̝͖̠̖͐ͨͪ̈̐͌ͩ̀e̷̥͇̋ͦs̢̡̤ͤͤͯ͜s͈̠̉̑͘a̱͕̗͖̳̥̺ͬͦͧ͆̌̑͡r̶̟̖̈͘ỷ̮̦̩͙͔ͫ̾ͬ̔ͬͮ̌?̵̘͇͔͙ͥͪ͞ͅ