Alps key stem orientation

[theferenc]

Does it matter which orientation the stems go back into the switch?

There's a notch out on one side. I only noticed after I'd reassembled about 60 of the damn things. I'm not noticing much in the way of a difference on any of the keys, but I did want to check.

Also, when I first pulled this used Dell out of the box, I absolutely loathed the keys. Gritty, nasty, and gross.

I decided to disassemble and clean the whole switch (using denture cleaner), since I was already cleaning the keys anyway. Made a HUGE difference. Now they are smooth, with just the right amount of friction. Admittedly, I prefer the topres, but I definitely enjoy the sound of the alps more.

$10 shipped, and about 2 hours of work later, it's a great board. Definitely worth the money. Just hope I don't have to pull everything off again to reorient those stems. Especially since I've already had to epoxy one keycap directly to its stem...oops.

[kps]

The notch on the stem doesn't matter, AFAICT. The orientation of the upper part of the casing matters, but if you get that backwards the casing won't close properly, so you can't do it by accident.

[RickyJ]

The notch goes towards the electrical switch, not the click/tactile leaf.  The angle/radius of the bottom edges of the stem can be different, and are important to the switching/tactility characteristics.  There's also a proper orientation of the top housing, narrow channel goes against the back of the electrical switch leaf.  Pulled a key and took pics just for this post!



Above the click/tactile leaf there should be some nubs that keep it captive.

[RickyJ]

The difference between the whites and blues doesn't come from the case in my findings.  Very slight angle/radius differences between the two variations make the difference.  The white is very slightly more tactile, and the stored potential energy from that makes the leaf hit the housing harder resulting in a higher pitched note.  I've got a complete keyboard's worth of each switch as spares, and the difference is consistent.

edit:  The coefficient of friction could be different between the two stems.  Take a look at the findings I posted in the Wiki thread.

[theferenc]

After I noticed the notch, I started doing it the proper way, as Ricky describes. As for the rest of the keys that I had already done, I'm not sure that I want to take the keyboard all the way apart again to check, as I can't tell any difference.

Admittedly, I'm pretty sure this is a simplified black board (at101w), which might have fewer (or no) problems with inverted sliders. Everything is actuating, and the keys all feel similar to my fingers.

Maybe it's just the sound causing illusions, but it seems that I can seriously fly on this keyboard, even compared to my HHKB. I also make fewer mistakes on this as compared to the HHKB, but that might be because of my frustration with the location of the backspace key.

Anyway, it might just be that I rather like Alps keys. Going to have to try more old Alps based boards to find out.

This really is becoming a disease. At least I can claim that I need a good keyboard for all of my computers. Being a computer scientist does have some advantages, I suppose. Now I just need to write an equipment budget into my next grant proposal, so that I can outfit my whole lab with good keyboards on the government's dime...

[msiegel]

good keyboards on the taxpayers' dime

*ahem*

fixed that for you.

however, i am in favor of you using good keyboards

[theferenc]

Well, since I am a taxpayer, than I can use my taxes appropriately, I suppose.

However, I still argue that it's on the government's dime, since we're running such a huge deficit, taxes only cover a small portion of it. Anyway, I really don't feel like getting in to a political debate over the issues.

Besides, with the type of hardware we use in my lab, it's actually cheaper to buy a Unicomp Model M or a Filco, and then reuse it with each new machine. Dell charges an arm and a leg for input devices when you buy their high end stuff (relative to their quality, anyhow). An extra $60 for a keyboard and mouse when you buy a workstation from them?

Also, it turns out Unicomp will even give custom layouts for only a small upcharge, which does us even more of a favor, since UNIX style keyboards are what everyone here wants.

[msiegel]

a lab full of unicomps would be awesome

i believe good keyboards make for better and more efficient work.

if we the taxpayers are not paying for them, i don't understand who will... but you're right, that's another story