deskthority

Hello!

Totally fresh in the world of mechanical keyboards. So far I don't even own a mech keyboard, but that's about to change next salary

Got into this though researching ways of simplifying my computing experience. I have this vision of a small, battery efficient SSD laptop (maybe some linux tablet?), loaded with a custom linux build based on the Ubuntu Minimal CD install. Thinking I'll go with i3 window tiler, vim and some other bits and pieces. Add a customized mechanical keyboard to the keyboard driven system and voila!

I'm looking at buying a German Poker II PBT w/ MX Blue switches, order ~"WYSE" style keycaps (two-tone gray, yum) in Swedish/Finnish layout, 2mm o-rings.

Like the idea of JD40, a 40% board, but I need Å, Ä, Ö as standalone keys. Any other 40% boards out there?

Need to figure out what the best choice of computer would be. Really want to find some tablet which is possible to format and successfully run linux on. Portable, power efficient, minimal 'one thing well' computing without crumby laptop-keyboard in the way. Mainly for text editing, writing. If you know of such a tablet, please do share!

Robin

Caps are highly interchangeable. You can pull them off quite easily with the right tool, which reminds me: here's a good database of what's out there:

http://keypuller.com

So you could get a JD40 and use alternate, language appropriate, caps. The tricky part is making sure the mods (the larger sized keys like Shift) match the specific layout. A Poker is much more standard than the JD40, which really needs a custom set to match. Pokers take just about everything, as they are simply a cut down version of a standard full size layout trimmed to the bare 60% block.

As for keycaps , it's really not that easy to find German keypads in the group buys of the community. There were some GBs that offered them, like 7bit's round 5 and Matt3o's granite group buy, but most of them offer only US and UK caps.

As for the tablet question, there are quite a lot of tablets on the market today with Intel processors and Windows 8. This is good hardware, you just have to make sure you get at least something of generation Bay Trail, because Intel fundamentally enhanced energy efficiency with that generation. If the processor is Intel, you should have no problems installing Linux. You will have to disable secure boot in bios before you install it.

My German is pretty bad, but I found a few sites that offer German keycaps:

http://www.caseking.de/shop/catalog/Ein ... 22192.html

http://www.keyboardco.com/product/doubl ... keyset.asp

https://www.teraset.net/ducky.php

I'm not German, I'm Swedish But I'll need to buy the 'German ISO Poker II PBT'.

Been browsing for keycaps, will the WASDkeys full 88 ket set fit? (ofc leaving some keys out) http://www.wasdkeyboards.com/index.php/ ... p-set.html

If you are planing to spend money on keycaps, don't buy ABS caps. Try to get some nice PBT caps!

cookie wrote: If you are planing to spend money on keycaps, don't buy ABS caps. Try to get some nice PBT caps!

Hm, can't seem to find any full 60% ISO Swe PBT keysets Gonna keep an eye out for keyboards in the electronics section of our neighborhoods recycling room. Probably not gonna find any MX mount wyse, but you never know

ABS are those ones that become all shiny/glossy after time and usage right?

Exactely, and it is awefull! High qualty abs will stay rough a bit longer but they will all start to shine!
Even PBT will start to shine at one point but this will take a good while.

Linkert wrote:

cookie wrote: If you are planing to spend money on keycaps, don't buy ABS caps. Try to get some nice PBT caps!

Hm, can't seem to find any full 60% ISO Swe PBT keysets Gonna keep an eye out for keyboards in the electronics section of our neighborhoods recycling room. Probably not gonna find any MX mount wyse, but you never know

ABS are those ones that become all shiny/glossy after time and usage right?

Yup, ABS does develop shine with usage. You can get Ducky's engraved PBT sets from Inet in Swe. It's rather difficult to read the engraved legends though, effectively making it a blank set

Also, why do you get the german poker with PBT caps if you're not going to use them?

Specifically why I want the 'PBT' version of the Poker II is because it has no backlighting installed, which I perfer.

How do this thing with 'group buys' work on here? Make a thread with an idea, for eg. keycap set. If people want it they sign up on the idea saying 'Ill but it'. When enough people have bought it, the producer starts producing and shipping?

Must be tons(!) of people looking for complete ISO MX sets for their language? Anyone care to contact BSP Europe and strike a deal to produce ISO MX PBT wyse sets or any other classic type caps?
http://www.bspeurope.dk/contact.html

The way that group buys work is: 7bit.

You could try organising one yourself. But they are complex, tiresome affairs. We mostly use Signature Plastics in the US, because their MOQ (minimum order quantity) is dramatically less insane than GMK and the others out there. The trouble with language kits in particular is that you wind up needing 500 Danes, 500 Greeks, 500 Azerty, etc. or 5000 if you're unlucky. It's always a fight to get them through.

Or you can breeze by with ANSI US. Such is life…

Linkert wrote: Specifically why I want the 'PBT' version of the Poker II is because it has no backlighting installed, which I perfer.

How do this thing with 'group buys' work on here? Make a thread with an idea, for eg. keycap set. If people want it they sign up on the idea saying 'Ill but it'. When enough people have bought it, the producer starts producing and shipping?

Must be tons(!) of people looking for complete ISO MX sets for their language? Anyone care to contact BSP Europe and strike a deal to produce ISO MX PBT wyse sets or any other classic type caps?
http://www.bspeurope.dk/contact.html

The issue with launching a group buy is reaching MOQ. IIRC BSP have rather high MOQs, whereas SP have rather low ones and GMK is somewhere in between. Even with SP, there is an issue with MOQ for certain sets, hence the 7bit patented rolling deadline.

For an example, here's Ivan's recent GMK Dolch thread. The GB worked as a whole, but MOQ scuppered some of it:

http://deskthority.net/group-buys-f50/g ... t8084.html

Ivan's our point man with GMK. He managed to talk them down to a lower MOQ to achieve any of that.

Muirium wrote: The way that group buys work is: 7bit.

You could try organising one yourself. But they are complex, tiresome affairs. We mostly use Signature Plastics in the US, because their MOQ (minimum order quantity) is dramatically less insane than GMK and the others out there. The trouble with language kits in particular is that you wind up needing 500 Danes, 500 Greeks, 500 Azerty, etc. or 5000 if you're unlucky. It's always a fight to get them through.

Or you can breeze by with ANSI US. Such is life…

Oh god.. I see.

Guess I could remap {:" to be accessible via fn and replace the caps with åäö. Probably a better option as ISO keys are a pain.

I don't know what your profession is or what are you going to do with your keyboard but you could try to get used to ansi layout! This makes searching for aftermarked caps so much easyer, you can get almost everything for a ansi poker these days

cookie wrote: I don't know what your profession is or what are you going to do with your keyboard but you could try to get used to ansi layout! This makes searching for aftermarked caps so much easyer, you can get almost everything for a ansi poker these days

A carpenter with a strong passion for objects designed with a goal to last, be simple and do one thing well. The safety-razor, film cameras, bar soap, dutch oven, single speed/fixed bicycles, old stereo systems and so on. And now it's time to create a simple, small imprint computing experience.

As a bike rider who snaps chains like breadsticks, I wish there were more shaft drive bikes out there. But I digress!

There's always going for an internally geared bike and running a heavy duty single speed chain, although I switched my recumbent trike to a lighter multispeed chain to take a pound or so out of the driveline (it uses about 2.5 chains to get the power from the very front to the rear wheel).

True. I've had no luck finding them here, though. There's not much diversity in bikes in this place. Just a matter of how many grand you've got to plunk down and how much carbon fibre you want for it (my answer: zero!)

The only "epicyclics" (non exposed sprockets and derailler) I've seen were in a junk shop. And unlike old keyboards, they really were knackered.

Chains are so 1878!

You guys need this:

Correct. I hunted and failed to find anything like that already!

Also, I use a lot of ratios (hill climber and urban biker) so I'd need something close to 1:1 and 4:1.

Got any idea on any place (pref. in europe) with ancii poker II PBT currently in stock?

edit:
"The Vortex Poker II PBT is currently not being produced.." - mechkb.com - gaah.. blah..

Muirium wrote: Correct. I hunted and failed to find anything like that already!

Also, I use a lot of ratios (hill climber and urban biker) so I'd need something close to 1:1 and 4:1.

Further OT: I guess a Rohloff hub should have you sorted then. Rather expensive piece of kit though.

Back on topic, t!ng has two poker x for sale in the marketplace

The trick is to order online or get your LBS to order it in for you. Then you can get a new IGH.

(I lucked out, my trike came off the showroom floor, with a 8-speed IGH, at a recumbent-specialist LBS a couple miles from me. My folding bike I got used with a worn out single-speed coaster brake, and I ordered a refurbished Sachs 2-speed kickback-shifting coaster brake IGH from a guy in Germany, and had the other LBS in town lace it into a wheel.)

As far as getting that kind of ratio spread, really, Rohloff is the only game in town, unless you also use a bottom bracket IGH.

Why not waiting for the pok3er? It looks promising but it will sure be more expensive than the poker2 I believe

The older type of Ducky Mini (before they got two-colour backlighting and metal on the case) was a rebranded Poker II if I am not mistaken.
If you are lucky there could be one still in stock somewhere.

Linkert wrote: Hm, can't seem to find any full 60% ISO Swe PBT keysets

60% is a subset of full-size. Most new sets for a full-size keyboard should work. Ducky's for instance. However.... Swedish is still rare. Most keyboards these days have "Nordic" layout, where Swedish legends are foremost but where a few of the keys got Danish and Norwegian letters also.

The only way to get proper Swedish layout is to harvest the keys from a vintage keyboard or to combine keycaps from different sets. German has Ä and Ö as their own legends, but Y and Z in the wrong places.

Linkert wrote: Gonna keep an eye out for keyboards in the electronics section of our neighborhoods recycling room.

I once met a guy who was lucky to find a Cherry G80-3000 with Swedish layout in the recycling room. The bastard...
Don't expect to.

BTW. I see pictures on your web site from Stockholm... Are you from there?
So am I, Tlt, Bpiphany and a few other guys.

Findecanor wrote: The older type of Ducky Mini (before they got two-colour backlighting and metal on the case) was a rebranded Poker II if I am not mistaken.
If you are lucky there could be one still in stock somewhere.

Linkert wrote: Hm, can't seem to find any full 60% ISO Swe PBT keysets

60% is a subset of full-size. Most new sets for a full-size keyboard should work. Ducky's for instance. However.... Swedish is still rare. Most keyboards these days have "Nordic" layout, where Swedish legends are foremost but where a few of the keys got Danish and Norwegian letters also.

The only way to get proper Swedish layout is to harvest the keys from a vintage keyboard or to combine keycaps from different sets. German has Ä and Ö as their own legends, but Y and Z in the wrong places.

Linkert wrote: Gonna keep an eye out for keyboards in the electronics section of our neighborhoods recycling room.

I once met a guy who was lucky to find a Cherry G80-3000 with Swedish layout in the recycling room. The bastard...
Don't expect to.

BTW. I see pictures on your web site from Stockholm... Are you from there?
So am I, Tlt, Bpiphany and a few other guys.

I'll go for a ascii US and do some remapping, probably keep the US ketcaps for a while, just to get used to the layout as is.

Jo tack, I am Norrortsknegersh

Seebart has an ISO Poker II for sale:

http://deskthority.net/for-sale-f55/kbt ... t9157.html


Edit: had…