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Diary
By ucblockhead (Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 08:18:36 PM EST) (all tags)
Bored at home.


I felt like crap, so I went home early today. I fear I may have what kept a couple coworkers out for three days each last week. Dunno. As long as I sit down, I don't feel to spacey.

I haven't posted a diary in forever, so...

I got a new toy...annoyed at every keyboard I've gotten in the last few years, I splurged on a Das Keyboard. I've used it for about a week now, though at home, so that's only a few hours total. It's the best feeling keyboard I've used in decades. The keys actually go "clack" and they are in the right places.

Which is good, because they are all unlabeled. This is, of course, frightening, though so far I'm doing ok. The real fear comes when entering a password as you lose all feedback. I haven't locked an account yet, though I have had issues. Supposedly this will make me a better typist. We'll see. Worst case, I get some labels and label it myself.

The feel makes me want a couple for work. I have Microsoft Natural Keyboards there, and they feel quite nice, but no where near as nice as this.

In the personal life department, my wife and I actually managed to do "dinner and a movie" via the local gym's "date night" child care. Because of timing, we had only three choices and my wife actually agreed to see Cloverfield. It was...ok. It reminded me in a weird way of student films I used to see all the time...an interesting experiment that suffered from the contortions the filmmakers had to do in order to follow their self-imposed rules. In other words, it was an interesting and worthy film, though not necessarily a good or enjoyable one.

I shouldn't say that...I kinda enjoyed it. But it's not something I'd bother to see again.

My wife and I both had headaches after the film.

< More notes from Game Focus Germany, 2008 | 2008.01.30: Yerba Buena no more (1847) >
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Cinematic sea-sickness. by Christopher Robin was Murdered (2.00 / 0) #1 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 08:50:26 PM EST
After the post-MTV style wacky editing of the latest  recrudescence of the Saw franchise gave him vertigo, my amigo Dean actually put on some dramamine-laced chapstick before subjecting himself to Cloverfield. Helped him out.



yeah by ucblockhead (2.00 / 0) #3 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 08:57:36 PM EST
I heard doctors had been recommending that.
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Das Keyboard... by ana (2.00 / 0) #2 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 08:52:19 PM EST
I think I want one. The keyboard that came with the iMac is endlessly frustrating for both of us.

"And this ... is a piece of Synergy." --Kellnerin


My wife really digs her SMK-88 by lm (2.00 / 0) #6 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 09:26:22 PM EST
It's the clickiest clacketiest keyboard I've every heard

There is no more degenerate kind of state than that in which the richest are supposed to be the best.
Cicero, The Republic
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I am intrigued. by nightflameblue (2.00 / 0) #12 Thu Jan 31, 2008 at 09:39:45 AM EST
I adapt to about any keyboard pretty easily, but have been wanting to get rid of the big, bulky wireless keyboard I've been using as it eats up deskspace for no real reason. The wireless mouse it came with is awesome, but that keyboard? Monstrous and smothered with more keys than I'd ever want.

I like the looks of that tiny little thing, and it has mechanical switches? That may be making my list.

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Interesting by ucblockhead (2.00 / 0) #13 Thu Jan 31, 2008 at 11:46:54 AM EST
Though I want a separate keypad/numberpad in the configuration God intended. Maybe this?

I need to figure out if my boss will let me expense a keyboard.
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I don't if it makes a difference by lm (2.00 / 0) #16 Thu Jan 31, 2008 at 12:35:43 PM EST
That one just says `mechanical' rather than `Cherry mechanical.'

There is no more degenerate kind of state than that in which the richest are supposed to be the best.
Cicero, The Republic
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i still haven't gotten by StackyMcRacky (2.00 / 0) #8 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 10:00:42 PM EST
a good feel for the MacBook keyboard.  It's just....weird.

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the game Descent by cam (2.00 / 0) #4 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 09:17:26 PM EST
used to put me perilously close to hurling.

cam
Freedom, liberty, equity and an Australian Republic


Ever play GunBlade? by ammoniacal (2.00 / 0) #5 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 09:25:26 PM EST
That one'll make ya hurl.

General rules are: All skirts no lower then [sic] two inches below the knee (unless it's for Church) --Travis Frey
[ Parent ]

I think I want a Das Keyboard by fluffy (2.00 / 0) #7 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 09:46:57 PM EST
I've been a complete touch-typist for many many years (which is a big part of why I always have so many wrist problems).  But then at work everyone will be able to hear how little typing I actually do.  Plus, I hear my team lead is considering getting one and the dueling keyboard sounds might drive everyone berserk.

(Also, assuming it uses Windows-style meta key placement, it'll add to the annoyance of my MacBook since OSX isn't smart enough to let you have different meta key profiles based on which keyboard is connected, so it'd swap meta and alt on the internal keyboard too.)
busy bees buzz | sockpuppet revolution


Maybe I'll bring it in by ucblockhead (2.00 / 0) #14 Thu Jan 31, 2008 at 12:01:21 PM EST
I should try one all day before I try to get one for work.

I mostly touch type. I have no trouble typing text. (Other than getting used to the positioning as I've gotten very used to the 'natural keyboard' configuration. The main trouble I have is the rarely keys, like '^'. Though I'm sure I'll get used to it.

I don't touch type 100% correctly. I learned to type in 8th grade, on real type writers, but then had little keyboard practice for three years. This left my hands confused. My left hand touch types correctly, but my right hand floats all over, pressing with the wrong fingers. it's too ingrained to change now.

The keyboard does use the windows-style meta key placement, though I have never in my life gotten used to using the two 'windows' keys. The only time I ever press them is by accident while playing some online FPS...usually followed by much swearing.
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Clearly you need to do more bit-fiddling by fluffy (2.00 / 0) #17 Thu Jan 31, 2008 at 12:55:32 PM EST
Or anime-style emoticons like ^_^ or whatever.

OSX actually makes effective use of the multiple meta keys.  Actually it mostly just uses cmd (meta) rather than alt (which is usually there for secondary functions), but the position of the keys is switched (cmd is next to the space bar, rather than one key away).  Where the cmd key goes makes for easy pressing with a thumb.

I could never understand why Windows made the meta key so goddamn disruptive.  It's basically a big honking system interrupt key which just happens to also have a couple of arbitrary 'meta'-type uses which are more or less useless.  The only single key son the Apple keyboard which could cause major problems (exposé and power) aren't likely to get hit by accident.  (Although for some reason the Mighty Mouse binds middle-click to exposé by default, though that's at least easy to change.)
busy bees buzz | sockpuppet revolution
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most bizarre thing with keyboards ever by aphrael (2.00 / 0) #9 Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 11:18:17 PM EST
so you sit down in a strange country
and have some wierd local keyboard attached
so you hunt and peck and find keys
only to discover that the software is arbitrarily remapping it to some other wierd local keyboard

feh.


If television is a babysitter, the internet is a drunk librarian who won't shut up.


how much for one of those? by alprazolam (2.00 / 0) #10 Thu Jan 31, 2008 at 12:13:53 AM EST
roughly. ridiculous, or reasonable?



Moderately high by yicky yacky (4.00 / 1) #11 Thu Jan 31, 2008 at 06:18:34 AM EST

especially when you bear in mind that it's using higher-end Cherry mechanical keyswitches, not ALPS keyswitches and definitely not Model-M-style buckling-springs.

That's not to say it's not a good keyboard -- it is -- but you'll get [exactly] the same level of quality and feel from a good mech-switched Cherry (which are often cheaper). There's an awful lot of 'geek badge' going on with it, basically.


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Mr Murdoch can take substantial credit for the tide of vulgarity that now floods the UK. - Martin Wolf, FT
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$125 (nt) by ucblockhead (2.00 / 0) #15 Thu Jan 31, 2008 at 12:02:07 PM EST

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