deskthority

I will be receiving a vintage Dolch PAC 64 computer and keyboard next week, and rather than simply harvesting the Dolch keycaps, I am interested in the possibility of using the keyboard with a modern computer. The problem is, it has a RJ11-type connector, and there do not seem to be off-the-shelf adapters or converters available. If anyone knows of off-the-shelf solutions, I would be glad to hear of them. Otherwise, if you have good step-by-step instructions, preferably with clear illustrations, this would be helpful as well. I would prefer solutions that keep the RJ11-type connector intact so that the keyboard could be used with the Dolch computer and the adapter would be used when the Dolch keyboard is used with a contemporary computer. However, if the best way to go is to solder a new cable directly to the keyboard PCB, I would like to look at those solutions as well.

I have also posted on GH, where I found some previous solutions emphasizing direct soldering to the PCB, but I thought I would post again to see if there might be new approaches to this problem.

Thanks.

Hey RJ, welcome to the collectors club! That's the spirit! Much better to adapt the classics than scavenge them for their tasteful caps. 

I've a Wyse ASCII keyboard with an RJ10 jack on it I'd like to similarly adapt if possible;


And a rather dashing keyboard with one of these:

I'm about to post some pics of that one now several honourable gurus have helped me identify what it actually is! Hint: no ordinary switches here. 

These diagrams are from kbdbabel's classic connector list:
http://kbdbabel.org/conn/index.html

That's the best thing about classic keyboards: much more than any other part of a computer, they are timeless. There's no fundamental barrier between them and the modern world. Not when we have Teensies and a global network of crafty minds!

Hi again, Mu. Thanks for the pin-out for an RJ10. I do recall seeing a pin-out for an RJ11 that I think was specific to the Dolch PAC 64, so it appears that it is eminently possible to make an RJ11 --> PS/2 adapter, and PS/2 --> USB adapters, both active and passive, are readily available.

This is making me feel a bit like a character in a post-apocalyptic SF novel, cobbling together bits and pieces of salvaged old technology in order to survive.

Pinouts are only part of the story. The signals need to be right too. XT and AT are a fine example of that: same four pins but a different protocol. (Fortunately Soarer's converter speaks them both.)

I dare say your solution will involve an RJ11 socket and a Teensy (might as well go straight to USB), but the trick is in finding someone who's done the hard part first: programming the thing! Once you've got the firmware file, it's total child's play.

RJ11 is a phone standard for connector and signals. The correct name for the connector is 4P4C.

You don't need to replace the controller with a Teensy. The Dolch keyboard's existing controller should have a 4P4C socket soldered to the circuit board, and talk the AT protocol (which is the same as the PS/2 protocol). So, what you need is a new PS/2 cable with a 4P4C plug crimped to the end. The pins are GND, +5V, kb data, kb clock (in order on the keyboard's side). (It's in the Wiki, people! )
I crimped my cable using a flat screwdriver. There has been an illustration posted, but I don't have it right now as I'm posting from Eindhoven and not from my home computer.

Be careful when you close the case again: The screws have different lengths. Short screws in in the front and long screws in the back.
I am also using the Dolch keyboard with just a new cable and a PS/2-USB "active" adapter/converter. (It will not work with a passive adapter!)
I much prefer the flat keyboard to the inclined Cherry G80-1800.

Aha! I wish all of my weird old connectors were just AT in disguise…

I am still going to verify, but I strongly suspect the detachable cable on an olivetti RD that I have has the same pinout AND a PS2 on one end already. I know I'd be able to use it for something!

Findecanor, thanks for the additional comments. Glad that things are not as complicated as initially feared.