19 Oct
2018
19 Oct
'18
3:34 p.m.
Anybody else notice that all the buyers for that keyboard on ebay are under
10 feedback?
The only Digital keyboards I have are a pair of LK411-AA that go with my
VT-525's. The recycler kept a stack of VT-525s for a while but the stack of
LK411 that went with them got their cords cut and chucked into the plastic
pile the day after they arrived (luckily I snagged a pair before then).
I have a small hoard of IBM model M's purchased from a recycler years ago
for a few bucks each. I use one on my main rig (has PS/2 adapter connected
to a Belkin SOHO 4 port KVM), same setup in the basement. I would dig though
the incoming pallets looking for the IBM keyboards and passing on the
Unicomp ones. Used to use a Northgate Omnikey 102 but the layout difference
between the Model M (which I used in multiple places) made me retire it. My
other Northgate is connected to an Amiga 2000.
My first use of a terminal keyboard was in college (IBM terminals connected
to a mainframe for Fortran programming) and I loved those keyboards. They
are kind of hard to find locally (I do have an IBM 1390702 missing a PF
keycap and its cable plus a small chunk on plastic in the rear) and a shitty
Unicomp model DCI0952 that is complete with a PS/2 cable.
I think you need to pay a decent amount of money for a good clicky USB
keyboard these days (most like a gamer style keyboard). Everything else is
kind of mushy cheap crap. So I can see somebody who does a lot of typing
wanting a vintage keyboard with a good feel to it. Since I have enough Model
M's to last a lifetime I don't see paying $150+ for a new keyboard.
Not that many people need a terminal these days, so the terminal either gets
trashed or at least somebody saves the keyboard. I know collectors will
bitch about that but what can you do? A $1000 keyboard will make a scrappers
year, same keyboard connected to a CRT screen might get $100 and be a pain
to ship.
-----Original Message-----
From: Bill Gunshannon via cctalk
Sent: Friday, October 19, 2018 4:54 PM
To: cctalk at classiccmp.org
Subject: Re: Selling keyboards without the terminal
On 10/19/18 1:18 PM, Daniel Seagraves via cctalk wrote:
So, are you telling me I shouldn't have thrown out all those
old keyboards whether they worked or not? All I have now
are a lot of DEC keyboards/
bill
---
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On Oct 19,
2018, at 10:34 AM, Bill Degnan via cctalk
<cctalk at classiccmp.org> wrote:
Here is a great example of why the keyboards and terminals are getting
separated
Keyboard fetishists are vermin; They are destructive and have no redeeming
qualities, and should be treated as such.
I had one of them spend the better part of an hour going on about how I
had achieved ?the holy grail of collecting? by having more than one ?Space
Cadet? keyboard, fawning about how superlatively perfect they?re supposed
to be and everything else pales in comparison. They?re a status symbol in
keyboard fetishist circles. According to him they auction north of $5000
for even non-working examples. I have no idea why. GNU Emacs can't use
most of the ?special? keys - The Lisp Machine itself doesn't even use most
of them - and control is in the same relative place as modern keyboards
instead of being where the caps lock key is which was the "mostest
hacker-est? thing last I heard. I think it?s just conspicuous
consumption - Having one proves you?ve got the dosh to waste things other
people must work hard for a chance to get.