Keyboards, continued

[unixronin]

About two weeks back, I mentioned keycap wear issues with the Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000, and these keyboard stickers made by Meri Distribution, which I hoped would fix the problem.

Well, they did.  For about a week and a half.  They're wearing at an extremely rapid rate.  There is already severe wear (which is to say, large white patches where the letters were) on six keys, and moderate wear (small white patches not obscuring the letter) on three more.  So that, unfortunately, was a nearly complete waste of twenty dollars (for two sets, while I had a discount code to use with the vendor).

It's a shame, because they really are extremely clear and readable, even in dim light.

(Note:  I consider this in no part a failure of the vendor, "Baron Bob".)

Comments

[guppiecat]

Hmm. Two opinions, one snarky, one serious.

1) Have you considered that maybe you just type too strongly? ;)

2) Have you considered getting Braille keycaps? They're easy to see in low light and, as part of being Braille to begin with should be more robust than other options.

[glitch25.livejournal.com]

1) Have you considered that maybe you just type too strongly? ;)

Especially considering the pounding the poor keyboard has taken encoding rants about itself. :-D

[cymrullewes.livejournal.com]

I think it is more that he's secreting some sort of acid through his fingertips that just affects the keyboards.

I've noticed that there's a smooth spot on the space bar where my right thumb rests on it.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Well, considering I've never had this problem with any previous keyboard, some of which I've been using for ten years or so, I'm putting it down to shoddy merchandise. The keyboard has other problems in the first place, so I'm not really willing to spend more than the cost of a new (different) keyboard on heroic measures to try to save this one, even assuming I could find replacement keycaps to fit it. In fact, if I could GET replacement keycaps to fit it, just a decent set of double-shot keycaps would permanently solve the problem. But this damned thing is made in China for Microsoft and, honestly, it's complete crap.