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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: quadibloc on Fri, 05 February 2010, 11:36:27

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: quadibloc on Fri, 05 February 2010, 11:36:27

I came across one of those. It looks like it has mechanical key switches, and yet the price is listed as only $29.99 in the US, which would be pretty amazing for a USB keyboard with mechanical switches.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: Oqsy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 00:56:26

If i understand what I've read about it correctly, it's a scissor switch board.  If your not familiar with them, read up on them.  
   
   Most keyboard aficionados rate them above cheapo rubber domes, but nowhere near buckling spring, ALPS, Topre, or Cherry mechanicals.  Many laptops are using scissor switches, so expect the feel of the keyboard to be similar to a Dell, Gateway, HP, or other big name laptop, ie not awful, but low profile = early bottoming out.  It's fine for some, inexcusable for others.  
   
   If you've read an advertisement or review that just says "mechanical keyswitch" then technically I suppose its right (but then again, a rubber dome is mechanically depressed to contact the membrane / pcb, making it just as mechanical as any other switch, but i digress into semantics).
   
   Don't expect to find any new board with sought after mechanical keyswitch for $30, especially a USB board with a built-in USB hub.  As long as the cheaper to manufacture rubber dome boards are beating the dung out of mechanical boards in sales, it will remain a niche market, and as such mechanicals will demand much higher prices.  Maybe one day we'll see something along the lines of Cherry increasing its presence in the US market with lots of blue, clear, black, brown, and red switch boards available at your local big box retailer, but I wouldn't hold my breath.  

   In any case, I'm sure that it kicks the snot out of any logitech mooshboards, and at $30, that does mean something.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: microsoft windows on Sat, 06 February 2010, 10:32:01

Would you mind separating that into paragraphs and using the old Shift key a little more? That would make it much easier to read.

Thanks!

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: kishy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 11:41:42

Quote from: ripster;156755

I think he said that Obama did fine in his first year.

It's not OFTEN that a Geekhack post makes me literally "LOL", but this one did.

You, sir, are the winrar.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: Oqsy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 13:41:57

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._E._Cummings

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: Oqsy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 13:48:22

Quote from: microsoft windows;156744

Would you mind separating that into paragraphs and using the old Shift key a little more? That would make it much easier to read.

Thanks!

Hmm...  have you ever thought about petitioning the designers of vBulletin to get a simple indent function added?

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: quadibloc on Sat, 06 February 2010, 15:12:47

And in any case, you provided useful information, and answered my question. That counts for more than style, although I see that you've now edited your original post.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: hyperlinked on Sat, 06 February 2010, 16:03:05

thx 4 trnsl8in Oqsy. it was gr8. ty & cya.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: microsoft windows on Sat, 06 February 2010, 16:25:10

Quote from: Oqsy;156789

Hmm...  have you ever thought about petitioning the designers of vBulletin to get a simple indent function added?

I usually just use 5 spaces since the tab key changes fields on the web page.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: kishy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 16:42:24

Quote from: microsoft windows;156818

I usually just use 5 spaces since the tab key changes fields on the web page.

Typically whitespace not following a character is stripped by vBulletin.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: Oqsy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 19:33:38

There's no way at all to indent on vBulletin?
What on earth will the grammar Nazis do?

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: kishy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 19:58:57

Quote from: Oqsy;156844

There's no way at all to indent on vBulletin?
What on earth will the grammar Nazis do?

There is, in fact, an indent button (below font colour) in the full editor.

See?
   See?
See?

Title: Re: The macally iKey
Post by: microsoft windows on Sat, 06 February 2010, 20:16:34

Interesting. I never noticed it before.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: Oqsy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 21:07:59

That's a pretty inconvenient feature, and I am quite surprised it's there.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: kishy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 21:22:53

Which reminds me...why don't we have tables here?

To be fair most forums don't have them; I think it's a custom-defined tag but regardless it's a useful feature to have.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: hyperlinked on Sat, 06 February 2010, 22:16:42

VBulletin uses BB code and there aren't tags in BB code for tables.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: kishy on Sat, 06 February 2010, 22:17:50

Quote from: hyperlinked;156856

VBulletin uses BB code and there aren't tags in BB code for tables.

Yeah there are, just not pre-supplied, it's a custom one you have to provide yourself but examples do exist.

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: quadibloc on Sat, 06 February 2010, 22:22:16

Hey, because it's vBulletin, I keep expecting to be able to do this: Tarmogoyf (http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=136142)

just by doing [noparse][c]Tarmogoyf[/c][/noparse].

Title: The macally iKey
Post by: elservo on Sat, 06 February 2010, 22:52:32

I'm snowed in and can't get to work to rescue my cherry blue Filco.  I'm upset here!