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Adi Robertson writes at The Verge that next year, IBM's Model M keyboard turns 30 but to many people, it’s still the only keyboard worth using. Introduced in 1985 as part of the IBM 3161 terminal, the Model M was initially called the "IBM Enhanced Keyboard." A PC-compatible version appeared the following spring, and it officially became standard with the IBM Personal System / 2 in 1987. The layout of the Model M has been around so long that today it’s simply taken for granted but the keyboard’s descendents have jettisoned one of the Model M’s most iconic features—"buckling springs," designed to provide auditory and tactile feedback to the keyboard operator. "Model M owners sometimes ruefully post stories of spouses and coworkers who can’t stand the incessant chatter. But fans say the springs’ resistance and their audible "click" make it clear when a keypress is registered, reducing errors," writes Robertson. "Maybe more importantly, typing on the Model M is a special, tangible experience. Much like on a typewriter, the sharp click gives every letter a physical presence."
According to Robertson, the Model M is an artifact from a time when high-end computing was still the province of industry, not pleasure. But while today's manufacturers have long since abandoned the concept of durability and longevity, refurbished Model M's are still available from aficionados like Brandon Ermita, a Princeton University IT manager who recovers them from supply depots and recycling centers and sells them through his site, ClickyKeyboards. "For the very few that still appreciate the tactile feel of a typewriter-based computer keyboard and can still appreciate the simplicity of black letters on white keys, one can still seek out and own an original IBM model M keyboard—a little piece of early computing history," says Ermita. As one Reddit user recently commented, "Those bastards are the ORIGINAL gaming keyboards. No matter how much you abuse it, you’ll die before it does."
(Score: 3, Insightful) by nitehawk214 on Tuesday October 14 2014, @01:08PM
If you ask me... CLACKEYCLACKEYCLACKEYCLACKEY.
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: 1) by pnkwarhall on Tuesday October 14 2014, @07:21PM
it's more like....
CLACK-CLACK-CLACKITY-CLACKCLACK-CLACKITY-CLACLACLACKITY-CLACKCLACKITY-CLACK-CLACK
...Model M paradiddles...
Lift Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven
(Score: 2) by nitehawk214 on Wednesday October 15 2014, @01:57PM
I used to work at a company that had a lot of Dell servers. Dell made (still makes?) a decently noisy Model M knockoff that the sysadmins would horde for their personal desktops. You could always tell when the lead sysadmin was on a conference call. I think he knew just how loud it was and had done it as a sort of protest against being on useless conference calls when he actually had work he needed to do.
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: 1) by pnkwarhall on Thursday October 16 2014, @12:30AM
a sort of protest against being on useless conference calls when he actually had work he needed to do.
Keyboard Cowboys want to be on the range!
I have a loud mechanical keyboard (I'm too young for a model M, it's one that was slashvertised a few times in the late 2000s) that I really love. I think it's because
a) I wish that I had learned how to play snare drum
b) I really like this type of music [youtube.com]
Lift Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven