Search found 1426 matches
- 15 May 2024, 04:36
- Forum: For sale
- Topic: WTS: IBM Model M industrial, Model M US/Cyrillic keycaps, MultiTech F&F AZERTY
- Replies: 8
- Views: 923
Re: WTS: Acer / MultiTech Accufeel DIN AZERTY board
Interesting! Sounds like there were two different versions of Multitech foam and foil. Definitely no click to the FKB-3, up, down, or otherwise: https://deskthority.net/viewtopic.php?p=486307&sid=5779394c8b3c5fb5e33e4cf35910ad91#p486307 Was comparing from memory and my impression was based mostly on...
- 14 May 2024, 17:37
- Forum: For sale
- Topic: WTS: IBM Model M industrial, Model M US/Cyrillic keycaps, MultiTech F&F AZERTY
- Replies: 8
- Views: 923
Re: WTS: Acer / MultiTech Accufeel DIN AZERTY board
Wow, having replaced the internals of an FKB-3 with those from a Futaba MA Chicony I can't imagine two switches more different in sound and feel. The F&F were linear and terribly mushy, while the Futabas are strongly tactile. Interesting to see the Multitech. Here's an old photo of a similar one (no...
- 04 May 2024, 18:18
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: IDENTIFY THE KEYBOARD thread
- Replies: 5324
- Views: 1570808
- 28 Apr 2024, 19:05
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Help me with recomendations
- Replies: 9
- Views: 7065
Re: Help me with recomendations
Interesting. As a poor consumer with a bad attitude I've been ignoring flowery language with no substance for decades now. I was rejecting such things long before I was ever online. But there are people who are fooled by these things. And it doesn't help that the whole global economy is based on tri...
- 27 Apr 2024, 07:13
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Help me with recomendations
- Replies: 9
- Views: 7065
Re: Help me with recomendations
I'll start worrying when (not if; when...) chat-GPT becomes aware that it's shameful to be identified as such, and dumbs itself down to the level of the average, illiterate human bean. It'll take considerably longer, but at some point actual meaningful content will appear, in the guise of fake, illi...
- 04 Apr 2024, 06:56
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Chicony KB-5160 Internals
- Replies: 1
- Views: 6917
Re: Chicony KB-5160 Internals
I can't answer your question about the internals swapping, but if for some reason the Mitsumi case won't work and a Futaba one would, I have a like-new Futaba 5160 case that I could be easily talked out of. Hey Guys, anyone know if the internals of a Chicony KB-5160 are interchangeable ? Meaning tha...
- 27 Mar 2024, 03:40
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: IDENTIFY THE KEYBOARD thread
- Replies: 5324
- Views: 1570808
Re: IDENTIFY THE KEYBOARD thread
Possibly a Focus FK-555 clone like this one:
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=27506
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=27506
textadventurer wrote: ↑26 Mar 2024, 11:54
Anybody recognise this keyboard, or know what switches it has? I can't find anything about the brand or the keyboard online.
- 19 Mar 2024, 05:46
- Forum: Other external
- Topic: Great/Interesting Finds
- Replies: 26266
- Views: 8737442
Re: Great/Interesting Finds
Thank you, I missed your reply with all the site issues lately. I don't know enough to tell from the photo whether those legends are printed. But from the others I've seen with the legends worn off I'm guessing they are. So far I haven't seen a 555 with double shots, and I haven't seen its successor...
- 12 Mar 2024, 04:12
- Forum: Other external
- Topic: Great/Interesting Finds
- Replies: 26266
- Views: 8737442
Re: Great/Interesting Finds
Nice, I'm a day late, but that's nothing new. Someone got a good deal. I don't really care for the case design on the 555 anyway. Did any of the FK-555s have double shot caps? This listing ends soon but thought I’d share since it’s pretty great. New old stock Focus FK-555: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1...
- 05 Mar 2024, 04:05
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Northgate Focus FK-555
- Replies: 6
- Views: 12011
Re: Northgate Focus FK-555
Thanks, A good lesson--we should *never* assume there were no changes over time for a given keyboard model. I logged this one previously from an ebay listing. At the time the glue from the paper label was still there, so at least we know there was one originally. This is an earlier 555 than the last...
- 03 Mar 2024, 18:37
- Forum: Deskthority wiki talk
- Topic: Pruning of unlicensed pictures
- Replies: 7
- Views: 1479
Re: Pruning of unlicensed pictures
Just one of the reasons I've never posted anything in the wiki.
- 02 Mar 2024, 02:17
- Forum: Other external
- Topic: Great/Interesting Finds
- Replies: 26266
- Views: 8737442
Re: Great/Interesting Finds
Interesting to see a 555 with Northgate badging and Omron switches. Northgate claimed in one of their ads that they used ALPS switches in their "C/T" keyboards (FK-727/747 and FK-555) as well as in the Omnikeys: https://deskthority.net/wiki/images/3/32/Omnikeygen1ad.jpg Apparently that wasn't always...
- 27 Feb 2024, 18:05
- Forum: Deskthority wiki talk
- Topic: Opinions
- Replies: 17
- Views: 515621
- 26 Feb 2024, 00:00
- Forum: Other external
- Topic: Great/Interesting Finds
- Replies: 26266
- Views: 8737442
Re: Great/Interesting Finds
Maybe if every seller did that ebay would go back to showing us what we were actually searching for. Both buyers and sellers are complaining that business is down, and cramming more crap in our faces for some reason isn't helping. Maybe more sellers should try this strategy to get more views. https:...
- 03 Feb 2024, 05:38
- Forum: Deskthority talk
- Topic: Future of DT
- Replies: 449
- Views: 7002378
Re: Future of DT
140 words or less is more than you need if you're inclined to small thoughts, which apparently is a growing percentage of what gets posted online, and probably humanity in general. Does anyone know why DT went down for several days, and if it's going to disappear for good? I'd hate to lose touch wit...
- 21 Jan 2024, 17:55
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Alps Appreciation
- Replies: 4210
- Views: 1175537
Re: Alps Appreciation
Thanks, it's easier to see in that photo. I haven't seen a guide for the smaller pin that snaps into an Alps switch opening, but there may be one out there. The Cherry style stabilizers keep the spacebar from rotating, so a guide post isn't needed. On Focus and Northgate keyboards the spacebar guide...
- 21 Jan 2024, 02:06
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Alps Appreciation
- Replies: 4210
- Views: 1175537
Re: Alps Appreciation
Looking at your photos I'm wondering if a guide post socket would be too tall to work with your BAE key? Those stick up fairly high from the plate, and there might not be clearance on the keycap for it to work. I just measured some guide posts. These were done with cheap digitital calipers, so not i...
- 20 Jan 2024, 05:13
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Alps Appreciation
- Replies: 4210
- Views: 1175537
Re: Alps Appreciation
There were U.S. keyboards sold with an ISO Enter key. The Focus FK-2002 in the link below I bought new back in the '90s. It had a Macro key next to the small left shift, instead of the 102nd ISO key. https://deskthority.net/download/file.php?id=54704 Some Mac clone Alps keyboards also had an ISO Ent...
- 20 Jan 2024, 03:21
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Alps Appreciation
- Replies: 4210
- Views: 1175537
Re: Alps Appreciation
Thank you Polecat! As far as I know the spacebar has the more common Cherry type stabilizer. The BAE key stabilzer appears to be a Costar type. It has the Costar cross-type hook to attach under the keycaps. Tai-Hao however used the smaller Alps type bottom hook to snap in to the switch plate instea...
- 19 Jan 2024, 05:02
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Alps Appreciation
- Replies: 4210
- Views: 1175537
Re: Alps Appreciation
Thank you for the information on the stabilizers. Early Focus (and Northgate) keyboards had a BAE key with a horizontal Alps-style (rectangular inserts) stabilizer wire, and a guide pin on the upper part of the key. Later Focus (but not Northgate) keyboards had two stabilizer wires on the BAE--one v...
- 18 Jan 2024, 17:10
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Alps Appreciation
- Replies: 4210
- Views: 1175537
Re: Alps Appreciation
Sure, it's here, about 1/4 of the way through.
https://archive.org/stream/apc_1987_har ... e_djvu.txt
edit: I've copied the exact quotes to the reply above.
https://archive.org/stream/apc_1987_har ... e_djvu.txt
edit: I've copied the exact quotes to the reply above.
- 18 Jan 2024, 04:54
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Alps Appreciation
- Replies: 4210
- Views: 1175537
Re: Alps Appreciation
That is a great find and a beautiful keyboard. The weird curved case threw me the first time I saw one in person. I had to look at it a long time to convince myself it was actually built that way on purpose. The stabilizer on the spacebar looks like an early Focus one, but the stabilizer and guide p...
- 08 Jan 2024, 17:53
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Northgate Focus FK-555
- Replies: 6
- Views: 12011
Re: Northgate Focus FK-555
Thank you. It is of interest and I had not seen that one. The blue labels identify it as an earlier version. I keep a database of Northgate, Focus, Monterey, and a few other selected keyboards. The "inspection numbers" were not necessarily in chronological order, and the format of those numbers chan...
- 07 Jan 2024, 23:13
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Northgate Focus FK-555
- Replies: 6
- Views: 12011
Re: Northgate Focus FK-555
Absolutely true. I have 8 Northgate-badged Focus keyboards in my database counting this one, and the other 7 have the badge on the upper left. Early ones had a square badge like this one; later ones were rectangular. I'm guessing that this one got moved for whatever reason the upper left part isn't ...
- 06 Jan 2024, 03:11
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Northgate Focus FK-555
- Replies: 6
- Views: 12011
Northgate Focus FK-555
A Northgate-badged Focus FK-555 was just posted (and sold) on ebay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/305340877559 And it has a Northgate paper label in additional to the usual Focus one. I had speculated a while back that the Northgate boards from Focus originally had such a label, but it has taken this lon...
- 22 Nov 2023, 05:14
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Omnikey Ultra Gen4 - programming software? Way to reset?
- Replies: 18
- Views: 22624
Re: Omnikey Ultra Gen4 - programming software? Way to reset?
That's cool... I wouldn't have thought to attempt to take apart one of those chips myself, but I guess it's possible... I feel like long-term though, since PS/2 ports are already effectively dinosaurs, the best solution for these keyboards is going to be to come up with a PS2-to-USB adapter that in...
- 19 Nov 2023, 14:22
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Omnikey Ultra Gen4 - programming software? Way to reset?
- Replies: 18
- Views: 22624
Re: Omnikey Ultra Gen4 - programming software? Way to reset?
There were at least two different versions of the Avant PC boards. Probably the easiest way to tell them apart is the LED window in the up-arrow keycap. One version has the window towards the upper part of the cap, the other towards the lower. I can take some photos of the board in my Avant for comp...
- 19 Nov 2023, 03:37
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Omnikey Ultra Gen4 - programming software? Way to reset?
- Replies: 18
- Views: 22624
Re: Omnikey Ultra Gen4 - programming software? Way to reset?
Just an aside--I searched again and came up with a Geekhack build log which shows a couple photos of a Northgate Gen4 PC board:
https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=95097.0
It appears the controller is an 80C52. The PC board is markedly different than the one in my Avant Stellar.
https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=95097.0
It appears the controller is an 80C52. The PC board is markedly different than the one in my Avant Stellar.
- 16 Nov 2023, 04:05
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Modern switch closest to the Alps Salmon or Oranges switches in the AEK
- Replies: 49
- Views: 79882
Re: Modern switch closest to the Alps Salmon or Oranges switches in the AEK
Thread hijack I don't mind simplified alps or Matias. I want a clicky full size or AT layout alps board with clean switches (ideally new, but I'll take what I can get) for $150. What do we reckon I can get? My upper limit on price is based on the fact that I know I can get NOS Acers for like 50 buc...
- 16 Nov 2023, 04:00
- Forum: Keyboards
- Topic: Modern switch closest to the Alps Salmon or Oranges switches in the AEK
- Replies: 49
- Views: 79882
Re: Modern switch closest to the Alps Salmon or Oranges switches in the AEK
Ok, here is what I am looking for: 1. ALPS Orange or Salmon or similar tactile switches 2. 100% full size with Windows/Super keys. 3. Programmable, so either USB with QMK/VIAL or PS/2 with a Soarer's Converter 4. Separate left and right modifier keys, so I can program them individually One possible...