descenterace on 8/5/2006 at 11:45

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Computers are expensive things and they're obsolete so quickly. Keyboards are cheap things and don't become obsolete.
WHY would I spend nearly a thousand pounds on something that will be crap in two years' time, but only spend ten quid on a device I'll be using until it breaks?

Because the ten quid keyboard is a piece of crap, of course. It'll break in a couple of years. BUT NOT THIS ONE.

Witness the IMMORTAL, INDESTRUCTIBLE, IBM MODEL M KEYBOARD:
http://www.descenterace.co.uk/pics/model_m.jpg
Only £90 including import duty.

None of those fancy schmancy rubber-dome springs that break when you hammer on them for six hours straight. The Model M uses REAL METAL keysprings! Cold, hard, reliable METAL. They make a really solid clicking sound when you type on them.

The first Model M was made in 1984. There are keyboards out there that have been used constantly for over 20 years and they still work. These things are impossible to break. Spill your drink on a pansy-ass Dell keyboard and it screws up, but NOT THE MODEL M. Some of these even have drainage holes to let the worst of the liquid out, so you can just keep on typing after knocking over your mug of coffee or Jolt cola, without having to break out the cleaning equipment and look like a little girl cleaning up the spillage.

The Model M's traditional cable is one of those spirally ones, which is its ONE CONCESSION to safety; it's hard to strangle an annoying luser with your spirally keyboard cable. However, inside the Model M is a big thick sheet of solid steel, so you can still hit the luser over the head with it. The keyboard won't even notice.

This is a keyboard for a REAL MAN. Go out and BUY ONE, DAMMIT, if you think you can handle it! Otherwise the Model M will HUNT YOU DOWN and slaughter you messily!

DC on 8/5/2006 at 11:55

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I have a few of these knocking around at home. All still working perfectly, though none are still in daily use. I still love the sound of them, though it might get a tad annoying for people around you.

I didn't realise people actually still buy these. I just collect old ones from work... :erm:

Jenesis on 8/5/2006 at 12:04

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Ah, the Model M. I know a CompSci student who has one of the original 1984s, of which he is very proud.

So, descenterace, what do you think of (http://www.daskeyboard.com/) Das Keyboard?

Jenesis on 8/5/2006 at 12:18

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I converted to Dvorak and learned to touch-type at the same time. I popped the keys off, re-arranged them (handily I have one of those keyboards where the keys all have the same slope regardless of row) to get the layout straight in my head and in case I was ever totally stumped from then on, and steadfastly refused to look down except in complete emergencies. It was far easier than my attempts at QWERTY touch-typing had been, as I didn't have anything to unlearn. I was typing painfully slowly for the first half an hour, but I quickly picked up, and I reckon in all seriousness that I was above my QWERTY hunt-and-peck speed within about three hours.

I do still look down from time to time, which isn't ideal, but I'm way faster than I used to be.

Low Moral Fiber on 8/5/2006 at 19:18

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Hah, I ripped mine out of the dusty engineer shop in my old TV station station a few years ago when my SLEEK, HIP keyboard crapped out. This bad boy is missing an F5 key, and it's loud as hell, but shit, who cares? Works like gangbusters.