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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: mr626 on Mon, 23 April 2012, 19:01:35

Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: mr626 on Mon, 23 April 2012, 19:01:35: So, I took a punt on ebay and won something potentially interesting:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&_trksid=p4340.l2557&rt=nc&nma=true&item=251043835058&si=O23oOZMeyArKqGUCdg5bNpyOx%252Fg%253D&viewitem=&sspagename=ADME%3AB%3AEOIBSA%3AAU%3A3160&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

Seller has it listed as a 1391401, and then revised the listing:

"This keyboard, is actually Model #1395072. Sorry for the mix up"

Now, maybe my googlefu is weak, but I can't find any information about '1395072' anywhere. There wasn't time to ask the seller, so I just took a chance. The plug looks like it is an AT plug? Or is it a terminal board? (I know these can have plugs that look like AT but aren't compatible).

The seller claims that he has tested it and its working, so maybe it isn't a terminal board?
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: REVENGE on Mon, 23 April 2012, 19:30:17: Terminal board, 5 pin DIN 270 degrees plug, needs Soarer's Teensy converter.
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: fohat.digs on Mon, 23 April 2012, 19:36:59: I saw the listing and sent him a message that it was not a 1391401.

After that, he made the edit.

Looks like a decent board. Looks like it has a full set of keycaps. That alone is something.

I did not ask him how he had tested it, maybe he has a Teensy or Hagstrom converter for testing.
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: mr626 on Mon, 23 April 2012, 19:54:50: Ah, thanks guys. I thought it was probably a terminal board.

There's a chance I may not get it anyway- I only bid because the postage was listed at $15US to me in Australia, which is about $45US cheaper than any other IBM keyboard I've seen. I've already paid via paypal, so it will be interesting to see what happens.
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: fohat.digs on Mon, 23 April 2012, 20:26:41: the last 2 keyboards I sent to Australia (1 to NSW and 1 to Tasmania) were $53-58 via US Post Office, without tracking or insurance, and they were definitely smaller and lighter than this board!
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: mr626 on Mon, 23 April 2012, 23:12:21: Yup, that sounds about right. I paid $60US for Unicomp to ship me one of those Wildcat boards, for example. I doubt that even surface mail would be as cheap as $15US for something as large/heavy as a terminal board.

Well, if I get this board it might just be the motivation I need to build Soarer's Teensy converter for myself. Would potentially give me access to a larger range of buckling spring boards, which isn't a bad thing :clap2:
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: fohat.digs on Tue, 24 April 2012, 17:05:30: Absolutely.

And, the Teensy is truly teensy and weighs only a few grams. I got mine in padded regular-sized envelopes via regular letter-type mail.
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: mr626 on Tue, 24 April 2012, 19:27:58: Ah well, seller refunded me the paypal transaction. I guess it was to be expected.
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: fohat.digs on Tue, 24 April 2012, 19:55:22: Bummer.

I think I actually lost about $5 on one of those keyboards to Australia - I guessed shipping at about $35 and the actual keyboard only sold for $10-15.

Although I could have probably justified it as an "honest mistake" I went through with the sale to guard my 100% positive ebay rep.

Among ebay's many problems is that "worldwide" shipping does not allow for the fact that from Atlanta, Georgia, shipping to England is half that of shipping to Australia.

Or Toronto, for that matter, which is closer than Boston.
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: mr626 on Wed, 25 April 2012, 18:36:44: One door closes, another opens:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lexmark-NEW-Computer-Keyboard-Model-M-C3229A-PN1428260-/260718881126#ht_2583wt_1163

The question is- will a '4 pin mini din' plug work on PS/2 out of the box?
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: ch_123 on Wed, 25 April 2012, 18:54:41: On the Lexmark-branded one you linked, yes. I do recall reading that they may need some special driver to get the lock lights working, although I'm not 100% sure about that.
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: mr626 on Wed, 25 April 2012, 18:56:06: Quote from: ch_123;582261
On the Lexmark-branded one you linked, yes. I do recall reading that they may need some special driver to get the lock lights working, although I'm not 100% sure about that.

So just to clarify- you are saying that 'yes, it will work on PS/2 but the lock lights may not work without a special driver' ?

Sorry, not meaning to be thick, I just want to be sure that it will work before I buy one.

EDIT: looks like this guy purchased one and had no problems on PS/2 or via blue cube

http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?29365-This-Lexmark-Model-M-Terminal-board-is-Blue-Cube-compatible

I've PM'd him for confirmation about the lock lights though.

EDIT 2: and confirmed- it works out of the box on PS/2. Apparently one of the three leds doesn't work (he thinks numlock).
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: ch_123 on Thu, 26 April 2012, 04:53:35: I think Ripster was the one who had issues with the lock lights. Again, it was a long time since I read it, so my memory is a bit hazy.

If you use it with a USB adapter, you'll be able to use all the PC keys, but the terminal keys may not be usable (if you hook it up via PS/2, you can use software to map those extra keys to whatever you like)
Title: Help identifying IBM 122 key board
Post by: mr626 on Thu, 26 April 2012, 04:58:32: Thanks for the reply. I'll be using it via PS/2 so should all be good there. Will use autohotkey or similar to map the extra keys to something useful.