Author Topic: A4 & 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checkers (ANSI)  (Read 11118 times)

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Offline samwisekoi

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A4 & 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checkers (ANSI)
« on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 18:57:49 »
A while back, someone asked for a keycap checker that would fit onto an 8.5 x 11" sheet of US paper.  I had some time to put one together for ANSI keyboards, and there was enough room left over to add 1.5-1-1.5 1.5-1-1-1.5 for an alternative spacebar row.

Below are pics of the sheet and a test of the sheet using a set of Rosewill keycaps (that I replaced with a WASD set.)

I will also try to attach a pdf version.

I made this in Visio 2007, and would be happy to provide a source copy to anyone who wanted to make other versions.

Enjoy!

 - Ron | samwisekoi


* ANSI Checksheet 121023b.pdf (34.98 kB - downloaded 416 times.)
« Last Edit: Thu, 25 October 2012, 11:23:46 by samwisekoi »
I like keyboards and case modding.  Everything about a computer should be silent -- except the KEYBOARD!

'85 IBM F-122/Soarer Keyboard |  Leopold FC200 TKL (Browns) + GH36 Keypad (Browns/Greens) | GH-122 (Whites/Greens) with Nuclear Data Green keycaps in a Unicomp case

Offline sth

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #1 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 19:01:41 »
nice :)
11:48 -!- SmallFry [~SmallFry@unaffiliated/smallfry] has quit [Ping timeout: 245 seconds] ... rest in peace

Offline hashbaz

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #2 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 19:02:54 »
Well done, many have tried to achieve this before.



They tried and died.

Offline jcrouse

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #3 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 19:18:59 »
I'm curious, why not do 8.5 x 14 and include the Tsangan kit and numpad. It WILL all fit and it's still 8.5 wide so it will run through standard home printers.

Offline samwisekoi

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #4 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 19:22:52 »
I'm curious, why not do 8.5 x 14 and include the Tsangan kit and numpad. It WILL all fit and it's still 8.5 wide so it will run through standard home printers.

There is already one of those.  Someone had requested this topology, and I thought it would fit.

It did.

 - Ron | samwisekoi
I like keyboards and case modding.  Everything about a computer should be silent -- except the KEYBOARD!

'85 IBM F-122/Soarer Keyboard |  Leopold FC200 TKL (Browns) + GH36 Keypad (Browns/Greens) | GH-122 (Whites/Greens) with Nuclear Data Green keycaps in a Unicomp case

Offline samwisekoi

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #5 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 19:26:26 »
nice :)

Well done, many have tried to achieve this before.

They tried and died.

Thanks.

 - Ron | samwisekoi

p.s.  According to Google Translate, "מהר שלל חש בז" means "Booty quickly felt Beige".

I like keyboards and case modding.  Everything about a computer should be silent -- except the KEYBOARD!

'85 IBM F-122/Soarer Keyboard |  Leopold FC200 TKL (Browns) + GH36 Keypad (Browns/Greens) | GH-122 (Whites/Greens) with Nuclear Data Green keycaps in a Unicomp case

Offline hashbaz

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #6 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 19:41:09 »
It's a long, not very interesting story.  Short version: it's a reference to the book of Isaiah and means "he has made haste to the plunder". ;)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maher-shalal-hash-baz

Offline SmallFry

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #7 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 19:51:36 »
Nice! I don't like the angled corners at much, but still mucho useful! Thank you! I like the red better than the other sheet however... :P

Offline samwisekoi

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #8 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 20:18:10 »
Nice! I don't like the angled corners at much, but still mucho useful! Thank you! I like the red better than the other sheet however... :P

Well, I am in the US, and apparently Apple owns the patent on rounded rectangles, so I didn't use them.   :'(

Did you mean you liked the red background on the alternate lower row keys?  I used red to distinguish them from "normal" keys.

I'm happy to make a more colorful version.  It would be good to segregate the numpad keys, etc,. anyhow.

 - Ron | samwisekoi
I like keyboards and case modding.  Everything about a computer should be silent -- except the KEYBOARD!

'85 IBM F-122/Soarer Keyboard |  Leopold FC200 TKL (Browns) + GH36 Keypad (Browns/Greens) | GH-122 (Whites/Greens) with Nuclear Data Green keycaps in a Unicomp case

Offline SmallFry

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #9 on: Tue, 23 October 2012, 20:38:28 »
I lol'd at the patent joke...I do like how you used the red to differentiate. Very useful...

Offline samwisekoi

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #10 on: Wed, 24 October 2012, 12:19:00 »
Another version, this time with the keycap groups consolidated better (e.g. numpad all together.)  Also, more color-coding and I've improved the look with pseudo-3D rounded rectangles.

 - Ron | samwisekoi

* ANSI Keycap Checker v2.pdf (51.08 kB - downloaded 380 times.)
« Last Edit: Wed, 24 October 2012, 12:42:17 by samwisekoi »
I like keyboards and case modding.  Everything about a computer should be silent -- except the KEYBOARD!

'85 IBM F-122/Soarer Keyboard |  Leopold FC200 TKL (Browns) + GH36 Keypad (Browns/Greens) | GH-122 (Whites/Greens) with Nuclear Data Green keycaps in a Unicomp case

Offline modulor

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #11 on: Wed, 24 October 2012, 12:38:08 »
Excellent work!

Offline rowdy

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #12 on: Wed, 24 October 2012, 18:21:16 »
I like this second one, and it just about prints on A4.  The top, say, 10% of the top row is cut off, but the rest fits on, including the accreditation at the bottom right.

Won't get much closer than that on A4 ;)
"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

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Offline samwisekoi

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #13 on: Wed, 24 October 2012, 18:48:43 »
I like this second one, and it just about prints on A4.  The top, say, 10% of the top row is cut off, but the rest fits on, including the accreditation at the bottom right.

Won't get much closer than that on A4 ;)

I am sitting here waiting for a YouTube upload to process. I can do an A4 version, easy.  I've attempted to do a UK keycap set in A4. I cannot really validate it. 
(I also did an A4 ANSI version because it was trivially simple.)

Are there any errors?  Does they print to A4?

 - Ron | samwisekoi

* A4-UK Keycap Checker.pdf (53.26 kB - downloaded 346 times.)
* A4-ANSI Keycap Checker v2.pdf (51.93 kB - downloaded 372 times.)
« Last Edit: Wed, 24 October 2012, 19:11:57 by samwisekoi »
I like keyboards and case modding.  Everything about a computer should be silent -- except the KEYBOARD!

'85 IBM F-122/Soarer Keyboard |  Leopold FC200 TKL (Browns) + GH36 Keypad (Browns/Greens) | GH-122 (Whites/Greens) with Nuclear Data Green keycaps in a Unicomp case

Offline demik

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #14 on: Wed, 24 October 2012, 20:08:44 »
you're a wizard harry! ron!
No, he’s not around. How that sound to ya? Jot it down.

Offline rowdy

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #15 on: Wed, 24 October 2012, 20:20:14 »
Brilliant!

Works perfectly :)

It is a tight fit.  I have only spare WASD key caps lying around, but these have to be touching each other to fit on the paper.  The previous chart allowed about 1/2mm between each key.  This is not a problem (unless there are key caps with slightly wider than usual bases).
"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 samwisekoi

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #16 on: Wed, 24 October 2012, 20:37:29 »
Brilliant!

Works perfectly :)

It is a tight fit.  I have only spare WASD key caps lying around, but these have to be touching each other to fit on the paper.  The previous chart allowed about 1/2mm between each key.  This is not a problem (unless there are key caps with slightly wider than usual bases).

I'll scoot the keycaps apart by 2mm or so in the (my) morning.

 - Ron | samwisekoi
I like keyboards and case modding.  Everything about a computer should be silent -- except the KEYBOARD!

'85 IBM F-122/Soarer Keyboard |  Leopold FC200 TKL (Browns) + GH36 Keypad (Browns/Greens) | GH-122 (Whites/Greens) with Nuclear Data Green keycaps in a Unicomp case

Offline SmallFry

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Re: 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checker (ANSI)
« Reply #17 on: Wed, 24 October 2012, 20:38:38 »
You keep making it better and better so that I must keep printing more sheets! LoL! Great work. Thank you.
You should add the keys units for the stabilized keys.
« Last Edit: Wed, 24 October 2012, 20:40:40 by SmallFry »

Offline samwisekoi

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Re: A4 & 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checkers (ANSI)
« Reply #18 on: Thu, 25 October 2012, 11:28:49 »
Okay, I scooted the keycaps apart a bit.  It worked fine on the US paper, but I had to sacrifice something for print margins on A4, so some the "extra" modifiers will get clipped a bit, but should still be useable.

Re indicating units; if someone wants to send me a definitive list of key lengths (e.g Tab =1.25U). I'll try and include that on the grid.  Somehow.

Please advise how the A4 turned out when printed.

Thanks!

 - Ron | samwisekoi

* ANSI Keycap Checker v3.pdf (51.71 kB - downloaded 342 times.)
* A4-ANSI Keycap Checker v3.pdf (52.75 kB - downloaded 371 times.)
I like keyboards and case modding.  Everything about a computer should be silent -- except the KEYBOARD!

'85 IBM F-122/Soarer Keyboard |  Leopold FC200 TKL (Browns) + GH36 Keypad (Browns/Greens) | GH-122 (Whites/Greens) with Nuclear Data Green keycaps in a Unicomp case

Offline SmallFry

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Re: A4 & 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checkers (ANSI)
« Reply #19 on: Thu, 25 October 2012, 12:08:03 »
Just put the units on the keycaps, like the other ones floating arround... *rummage for PDF for you*

Offline rowdy

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Re: A4 & 8.5 x 11" Keycap Checkers (ANSI)
« Reply #20 on: Thu, 25 October 2012, 16:20:03 »
The A4 one is fine.  It is still a tight fit horizontally, but vertically there is now a slight gap between each row.

Tight fit = the key caps have to be touching the ones on the left and right, but the few spare ones I have lying around here fit perfectly.
"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?̵̘͇͔͙ͥͪ͞ͅ