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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: garage_logician on Thu, 01 October 2015, 21:57:32

Title: Topre for a mac
Post by: garage_logician on Thu, 01 October 2015, 21:57:32
I am looking for a keyboard with Topre switches that will work with a MacBook Pro.  I was on mk.com and found a Leopold FC660 with Topre 45's.  I thought, perfect!  But it seems that it does not work with a Mac.  :-(   
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: raymogi on Thu, 01 October 2015, 21:58:52
HHKB Pro 2 :)
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: garage_logician on Thu, 01 October 2015, 22:00:22
I looked at that one but I need a dedicated arrow keys.  As a developer I use them a lot with Sublime (and other applications).  Having to access a separate layer would be awkward, I think.   
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: raymogi on Thu, 01 October 2015, 22:03:17
I hated it at first as well, but after a couple days of using it, it becomes second nature to hold down fn and access the arrow layer.

Although I understand if you need it constantly it's going to be annoying.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: tararais on Thu, 01 October 2015, 22:16:45
Do the 87/104U boards not work? If you need dedicated arrow keys and are happy with a 60%, you'd probably do well with an 87U.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: Axollott on Thu, 01 October 2015, 22:17:17
I use a Novatouch without any problems.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: garage_logician on Thu, 01 October 2015, 22:24:38
Do the 87/104U boards not work? If you need dedicated arrow keys and are happy with a 60%, you'd probably do well with an 87U.

I prefer a TKL board.  I never use the number pad and since this is for my laptop (mostly) it will travel easier if it is smaller.  I prefer to get as compact as I can but I do want dedicated arrow keys.   Just learning all the terms (seems that keyboard enthusiasts have there very own language, which I am eager to learn  :-)).  Is an 104U a Tenkeyless board and the 87U a 60% like the V60?
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: raymogi on Thu, 01 October 2015, 22:27:44
The 104 is a full board with numpad, 87U is the tenkeyless board, and hhkb is a 60% board :)
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: Air tree on Thu, 01 October 2015, 22:29:34
I'm 99% sure you can use a FC660C on a mac.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: tararais on Thu, 01 October 2015, 22:39:17
Do the 87/104U boards not work? If you need dedicated arrow keys and are happy with a 60%, you'd probably do well with an 87U.

I prefer a TKL board.  I never use the number pad and since this is for my laptop (mostly) it will travel easier if it is smaller.  I prefer to get as compact as I can but I do want dedicated arrow keys.   Just learning all the terms (seems that keyboard enthusiasts have there very own language, which I am eager to learn  :-)).  Is an 104U a Tenkeyless board and the 87U a 60% like the V60?
 
 
To make it simple, Topre uses numbering based on number of keys. A standard full size keyboard has 104 keys, so the 104U is fullsize, and a standard TKL has 87 keys, so it's an 87U. If the letter is U, it's white, if it's UB, it's black, and UG is grey.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: garage_logician on Fri, 02 October 2015, 00:58:23
Thanks, learned something new.  :-)
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: PrinsPils on Fri, 02 October 2015, 07:10:29
The only thing you have to adjust in OSX are the keys. You can do this by going in System Preferences -> keyboard and click on modifier keys

(http://static.tweakers.net/ext/f/bOM721KpUBHYggU52wGkgRDm/full.png)
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: saturnotaku on Fri, 02 October 2015, 09:00:35
The FC660 should work just fine on a Mac. There's even a DIP switch setting to swap the left alt with Windows so the command key would be in the "proper" place for OS X without needing to use a preference pane or 3rd-party software to change it. The HHKB is one of the most Mac-friendly keyboards out there - its meta key even has the command symbol on it. It's really not too bad getting used to not having dedicated arrow keys.

Realforce keyboards will work on a Mac, however, there is a bug in the firmware that causes the board to go dead if you try to use it to wake the system. There is no fix, but you can work around it by using an external mouse or your MacBook Pro's built-in trackpad or keyboard to wake the machine. The Realforce will work just fine after that. Here's a video I made to illustrate the issue:

Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: daerid on Fri, 02 October 2015, 14:03:03
I am looking for a keyboard with Topre switches that will work with a MacBook Pro.  I was on mk.com and found a Leopold FC660 with Topre 45's.  I thought, perfect!  But it seems that it does not work with a Mac.  :-(   

Dafuq? I had two FC660Cs that worked flawless on my MBP.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: ctm on Fri, 02 October 2015, 17:14:46
I used to think not having dedicated arrow key is a bad idea until I got a 60% board. I found using fn combination arrow key is much more convenient than moving my hands across the board to reach for dedicated arrow keys, especially if the fn layout is well-designed.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: rowdy on Tue, 06 October 2015, 00:27:06
HHKB Pro 2 JP has dedicated arrow keys.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: oasidasika on Sun, 09 April 2017, 19:24:27
I use a Novatouch without any problems.

Can you run fdsa on mac without any problems or program ???
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: Axollott on Sun, 09 April 2017, 19:28:21
I use a Novatouch without any problems.

Can you run fdsa on mac without any problems or program ???
I don't really use the Novatouch with the MacBook anymore. It's on my pc now. Still a great keyboard that I use everyday.

Sent from my SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: Hyde on Sun, 09 April 2017, 21:58:03
I'm 99% sure you can use a FC660C on a mac.

I am looking for a keyboard with Topre switches that will work with a MacBook Pro.  I was on mk.com and found a Leopold FC660 with Topre 45's.  I thought, perfect!  But it seems that it does not work with a Mac.  :-(   

Dafuq? I had two FC660Cs that worked flawless on my MBP.

I was gonna say my wife also uses FC660C at work on her MacBook and there's zero problem, she uses it on her iMac too and it's also fine.

You just have to swap the command and control key in the keyboard preference menu in OSX.

In fact once you do that ANY USB keyboard would work on Mac as far as I know.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: oasidasika on Mon, 10 April 2017, 18:42:04
I use a Novatouch without any problems.

Can you run novatouch on mac without any problems or program???
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: Sinzz on Mon, 10 April 2017, 21:31:15
I use an HHKB Pro 2 for coding as well. I was a guy looking for dedicated arrows as well because of how often I use them. I thought I would struggle with the FN arrow keys but I'm actually doing it without thinking now and it's been working out really well. I also love the fact that the modifier buttons are big and easy to hit as well as sparse, so I don't hit a button I didn't mean to hit when touch typing (like the many buttons on my Pure Pro). Also, having CTRL right next to A is amazing. I don't know why I never considered using it there instead of caps lock.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: Puddsy on Tue, 11 April 2017, 02:04:45
Most Topre boards should work fine on a mac. I used a realforce 87 on a mac with no issues.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: Axollott on Tue, 11 April 2017, 02:09:33
I use a Novatouch without any problems.

Can you run novatouch on mac without any problems or program???
I'll be as straightforward as I can. In all the time I used the Novatouch with the MacBook Pro I never ran into a compatibility problem at all. Only thing I did was swap a few keys in the OS X keyboard settings and that was all. Never had to look into it again.

Sent from my SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: rowdy on Tue, 20 June 2017, 22:14:00
The biggest issue I have with using HHKB on a Mac is muscle memory for Command-` (which cycles between multiple open windows for the current app).

On most keyboards, the `~ ket is top left.  On HHKB it is top right.
Title: Re: Topre for a mac
Post by: heyitsqi on Wed, 21 June 2017, 12:32:27
I use my 660C daily at work on my mac. Now that I have Hasu's controller in it, it's perfect.