Choosing a tough, used keyboard (interested to hear experiences)

[cdtidy]

Hi folks,

I just found this site today and thought perhaps people could help me choose a keyboard. For a long time I have used Sun computers with the Type 5c keyboard, which I love. I like it more than any keyboard I've ever used. However, I need a good keyboard I can use with a PC (probably PS/2) and it also needs to have a German layout (QWERTZ). I find most PC keyboards extremely poor.

I had a look on eBay and found a few options. Buying a used keyboard is fine with me. The Type 5 is an awkward option, because it's not PS/2 and I don't want to have to modify it. But I found suitable IBM Model M, Hewlett Packard and Silicon Graphics keyboards. Here are some links:

http://www.ebay.de/itm/IBM-Tastatur-Model-M-1391403-/170774330623?pt=M%C3%A4use_Tastaturen&hash=item27c2f17cff
http://www.ebay.de/itm/HP-Tastatur-deutsch-HP-X-Windows-/350427696331?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_77&hash=item51971e4ccb
http://www.ebay.de/itm/SGI-SP-Keyboard-Deutsch-062-0002-002-/350427696335?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_77&hash=item51971e4ccf

And here's the Sun Keyboard that I love:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sun-Type-5C-DIN-PS2-Keyboard-P-N-3201234-02-Sun-Compact-1-mouse-/250921585564?pt=PCA_Mice_Trackballs&hash=item3a6c178b9c

I think I remember the Hewlett Packard, if it's the one that was used with HP-UX and the Entria terminals. Fairly nice, but the keys were a bit stiff for my liking. The IBM keyboards I never used much, but I vaguely remember that I still preferred the Sun Type 5c. The Silicon Graphics keyboard I have never used, although it looks a lot like a Sun Type 5c.

Can anyone tell me if the Silicon Graphics keyboard feels like the Sun Type 5c? It even looks like it might have been made by the same company? I just want a tough, reliable keyboard that I can use without being reminded of how crap it is. For reliability, the IBM sounds good, although I only ever had a problem with the Sun when it got really dusty. Possibly any of these keyboards would do, but I'd be very interested to hear people's opinions.

Many thanks,

Chris Tidy

[alaricljs]

If the 5c is really what you like you might think of going through the trouble of putting together a dongle to adapt it to USB, non-invasive since it's just a smart adapter.  This was talked about here not that long ago, I'll see if I can dig up the thread.

Here's the thread.

[rhizo]

if you dont mind loud keyboards, the model m is rugged, everlasting, and it will feel great

[cdtidy]

Thanks for those thoughts. One problem with the Type 5c is that I can't actually find one with a German layout at the moment, and I really need that.

Does anyone know if these PS/2 and USB conversions allow the Cut, Copy and Paste keys on a Type 5c to work with other operating systems? Or perhaps there's a way to program F-keys to do the same thing? I miss those special keys on a normal PC (although, interestingly, I have seen a couple of poor quality German keyboards that have them).

Chris

[alaricljs]

A couple of those conversions had support to at least assign a usable keycode (for whichever OS you're using) which you could then tell the OS how to handle using it's own key assignment tools.

[alaricljs]

Damn, he needs that segway or he might gain muscle mass.

Oh yeah, and if you use a converter as long as you find a 5c that has keys in all the right places and you don't mind them having the wrong labels you can make the thing have a German layout via the converter.  I have no idea what a German KB looks like.

[cdtidy]

Thanks for the thoughts. In the end I found the SGI board cheap, £10 + delivery, so I've taken chance on it.

The same model as this:
http://www.sgistuff.net/hardware/other/images/key_granite.jpg

Chris