geekhack

geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: ch_123 on Fri, 31 July 2009, 08:15:28

Title: Orignal IBM 3278 keyboards
Post by: ch_123 on Fri, 31 July 2009, 08:15:28
(http://www.lunch.org.uk/wiki/_media/mainframes:19_3278-3.jpg)

According to bhtooefr on this (http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?t=4353) thread, these were early buckling spring boards. Anyone use them or have any information on them? Info is rather scarce on the internet about them. I've been able to get model numbers (1742700 for a model like the above, 1742705 for a model with 12 addition F-keys to the right of the keyboard) but that's pretty much it.

Some pics of it here. (http://www.recycledgoods.com/zoom.aspx?productID=7741) Note the G with the serial/model number. Bit of a wild guess, but maybe was this the Model G? (bare in mind that the letter assignment was not sequential, for example, the Model C came after the Model F.)

(http://www.recycledgoods.com/Images/s_p_7741_3.jpg)
Title: Orignal IBM 3278 keyboards
Post by: microsoft windows on Fri, 31 July 2009, 11:39:18
That is a very interesting keyboard but I've never seen anything like it before. I like the keys on it.
Title: Orignal IBM 3278 keyboards
Post by: Mercen_505 on Fri, 31 July 2009, 12:00:38
The partitions between key sets really throws me for a loop!
Title: Orignal IBM 3278 keyboards
Post by: D-EJ915 on Fri, 31 July 2009, 22:06:45
I want that terminal really badly.
Title: Orignal IBM 3278 keyboards
Post by: rdjack21 on Fri, 31 July 2009, 22:49:02
And it has those really nice cupped keys. Wonder if the keys attach the same as a Model M. If they do then you could swap them out that would be really cool.
Title: Orignal IBM 3278 keyboards
Post by: ch_123 on Sat, 01 August 2009, 16:33:21
Another nice pic -

(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/IBM-3279.jpg)

Complete with the IBM 3279 terminal. Any keyboard with a 'lamp test' key must be cool.

Another keyboard that may or may not be buckling spring -

(http://www.corestore.org/5251-1.jpg)

The IBM 5251 terminal. Released one month before the 3278. If it was buckling spring, it would probably the first such keyboard mass produced.