geekhack
geekhack Community => Off Topic => Topic started by: bigpook on Tue, 24 March 2009, 20:18:25
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over time the rubber feet on the bottom of the keyboard get dirty or whatever and no longer stick so well to the desktop. For the heavier keyboards its not so much of a problem but for the smaller ones it is.
So how do you keep your keyboards from moving around your desk?
Is there some special rubber compound that retains it stickiness that I could use?
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I use keyboard drawers from Ikea that have a rubber pad on them. Keeps the keyboard from moving around...even if I was to remove the keyboard's rubber feet.
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I use a sticky lint roller thing to clean the feet.
Not sure what you would call it over in the ol US.
Its like sticky tape on a roller thing... I dont know.
It works well anyway. Makes the feet like new again.
Worth a shot.
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On the full sized Model M's I can't stand the rubber feet so I place a piece of sticky tape over them so I can slide the keyboard around a bit with more ease when needed. The sheer weight on the board is enough to keep it stable enough for me. I guess on a space saver/lighter board it might be a different story.
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On the two space savers I have the board is slightly bowed in the middle and the feet do not make proper contact. They both slide about a bit on the middle of the board which is a bit irritating.
I just use some rubber feet of something else to make IBM boards stable.
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I use a sticky lint roller thing to clean the feet.
Not sure what you would call it over in the ol US.
Its like sticky tape on a roller thing... I dont know.
It works well anyway. Makes the feet like new again.
Worth a shot.
Yup, they're called lint rollers in the States as well.
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You could use some of that shelf liner that is kinda rubbery. Nothing slides around on that stuff.
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You can buy replacement little sticky feet from electronics suppliers.
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You can buy replacement little sticky feet from electronics suppliers.
I have done that and when they are new they work great. Over time, dust collects on them and they start to slide. You can clean them off but they seem to lose their stickiness.
I like the idea of a rubber mat though. That may do the trick. This way it doesn't matter what keyboard I am using at the time. The rubber mat will be common to all of them.
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I have a mousepad with that shelf liner stuff on it, and it doesn't move for anything.
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I have a mousepad with that shelf liner stuff on it, and it doesn't move for anything.
Yeah, I do have some rolls of that at the house. I will give it a try. I have used shelf liner in the refrigerator and cabinets, and your right, nothing moves on that : )
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I used to have one of these when my desk was a 6' x 3' conference room table. I used it as a mouse pad, though. :)
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Pook, I'd wash them off with dishwashing soap. That sould get rid of all the gunk for you and bring back the stickyness to your feet.
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You might even be able to use some light sandpaper (maybe a 220 grit) to roughen them up a bit. I would liken this to siping tires (or tyres, for those in the UK :P). This should create extra surface area (and fresh rubber) to grip with.
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Pook, I'd wash them off with dishwashing soap. That sould get rid of all the gunk for you and bring back the stickyness to your feet.
While those are good ideas, the refrigerator liner is actually even a better way to go. I have a bit of it in beige that I am using right now for the HHKB and it really does work. The keyboard does not move.
I need to go to the dollar store and see if I can get it in black.
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you're a stange dude.
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Sticky feet on the bottom of the keyboard, and lets throw in trackball mice are easy subjects to deal with.
Economies collapsing, inept governments officials that are in way over their heads are attempting to fix issues that have no easy solutions, the rich and powerful, wether they be bankers or movers and shakers that have overspun the ball and stare agape as it shreds before their very eyes, yeah, we can fix that.
Sorry, but these events transcend the actions of any individual.
If we are on the Titanic and it is sinking it doesn't really matter what we talk about. Its all just talk and we will die anyway.
Let society collapse and let the mass of people take to the streets and riot. It won't be long before you wish you could have inane conversations about sticky feet on the bottom of keyboards.
Sorry for the rant.
But back to the shelf liner and keyboards. I wasn't able to get it in black but got some in green and it works excellent for the keyboard. It simply does not move anymore.
I went one step further and cut out a piece for the kensington orbit mouse and that is now STUCK to the desk. Prior to using the liner my hand was always moving it around.
Now it just sticks. Way cool stuff.
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Shelf liner is like glue, but without the, uhh... glue? :)
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Shelf liner is like glue, but without the, uhh... glue? :)
right : )
I never thought of using shelf liner before. Has anyone else here been using it?
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has anyone mentioned egrips(.com) yet? Best stuff on earth to prevent sliding. I usually just buy the 'large sheet' and cut it as i like. adhesive on one side, incredible soft dimpled silicon rubber grip on the other. The stuff you could put on your dashboard and then throw your cell phone on it and take the pacific coast highway and your sell phone would still be on your dashboard when you reach seattle.
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Egrips looks pretty cool, but I think shelf liner would be better (and cheaper!) for keyboards, though. I might have to see if they have anything for my cell phone, though.
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the shelf liner is way cheaper but the egrips stuff looks good for the hand held stuff like cell phones and mp3 players.
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Another cheap option I use for all sorts of applications are anti-slip pads for rugs. Cheap enough to be disposable, grippy enough to prevent movement. Watch out on the mouse pads, she (who must be obeyed) had one on her desk for a time and when finally moved revealed a dark permanent stain on the oak. My fault of course....
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Another cheap option I use for all sorts of applications are anti-slip pads for rugs. Cheap enough to be disposable, grippy enough to prevent movement. Watch out on the mouse pads, she (who must be obeyed) had one on her desk for a time and when finally moved revealed a dark permanent stain on the oak. My fault of course....
: ) I can relate to that.