Buckling Spring Keyboards

[Gary W. Swearingen]

"OOzy Pal" <oozypal at gmail.com> writes:

> Since Linux heavily relays on keyboards rather mice, I am planning to
> purchase an old type real keyboard--I think they are called Buckling
> Spring Keyboards. I am not sure if they are called like this. Let me
> tell you what I mean: They are the old noisy keyboards that their keys
> are made of hard material--not plastic. Also, they have positive
> feedback.
>
> I have found one vendor and he has two difference Linux templates (png
> attached).
>
> Can someone tell me if these templates are really Linux keyboards
> templates? Also, do you know others vendors who sell these type of
> keyboards. Do you think key that they are practical.

I wouldn't pay a premium for a keyboard with "ctrl" in the correct
place, like those of your diagrams.  I don't even avoid those with
a Microsoft key or logo which are easily-enought scratched off.

In case you don't know, it's very easy to swap the action of
your caps lock and left-shift keys (X and non-X separately).
Search the web for instructions.


I've always wanted a keyboard layed out on a purely square grid,
and Dan found one and reviewed it at
http://www.dansdata.com/edkb.htm
The keyboard's home is/was at  http://www.scythe-usa.com/ and
a related link is  http://store.yahoo.com/atek/erke.html  .
I suspect that brains (and thus fingers) can work a keyboard with much
better facility, if it's mental map of key locations was much simpler.
I still can't hit the number row reliably when rusty.

As for good-clicking keyboards, Dan (see above) is a great believer
in the old IBM jobs and you might enjoy his writing about it.  IIRC,
he's written about non-IBM ones too.

My 25-year-old HP-41 with clicky-spring keys is still clicking away
and I'm still lovin' the feel.  But I have an IBM clicker which I
don't use, more or less by accident, because I don't care about
typing feel, even after learning on a manual typewiter.