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From: lum@osupyr.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: Flat Portable Keyboard
Message-ID: <23@osupyr.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 24-Feb-87 12:50:53 EST
Article-I.D.: osupyr.23
Posted: Tue Feb 24 12:50:53 1987
Date-Received: Fri, 27-Feb-87 02:49:07 EST
References: <275@netxcom.UUCP> <1249@ucbcad.berkeley.edu> <197@osupyr.UUCP> <654@crlt.UUCP>
Reply-To: lum@osupyr.UUCP (Lum Johnson)
Organization: The Ohio State University, IRCC/CIS DEC-2060
Lines: 36

In article <654@crlt.UUCP> michael@crlt.UUCP (Michael McClary) writes:
>In article <197@osupyr.UUCP>, lum@osupyr.UUCP (Lum Johnson) writes:
>>
>> [H]ow about .. a notebook-size clamshell that unfolds .. and can be locked
>> open at various angles.  The keys would still be cramped or small in an
>> 8 1/2" x 11" format, though, so I'd prefer 9 2/3" x 12 1/2".
>
> My keyboard is 11" by about 4" ...  [I]t would fit in the lower half of
> one 8 1/2" by 11" clamshell segment.  (This keyboard, .. has standard key
> spacing.  [This] doesn't include the .. cursor keys and .. keypad - but
> there's room past each end of the spacebar for about three more keys.)

Hmm...  the width of the VT100 keyboard from CTRL to "\" (below DELETE),
inclusive, is 11 3/4".  I'm sure we can move the BREAK key, but I don't want
to move either CTRL or DELETE.  I guess we could shrink things slightly.

>> We do have to lose the numeric keypad, or put it above the major keyboard
>> (rotated maybe?).
>
> You can map [it] onto the standard keys [with] a "keypad shift" key .. to
> the left of the space bar.  (Pity you [can't eliminate] the top row of keys
> in favor of such a shift system.)  .. [M]oving your left hand off the home
> position to operate the shift would be less of a hassle than moving your
> right to a keypad, though it is a weaker mnemonic and might promote typing
> errors.

That sounds good - I might actually _use_ such a keypad!  The real reason the
top row can't go away is punctuation (!@#$%^&*()_+~-=`) not numerals; I (and
I'm sure others) would get upset if those were moved!  However, it might be
nice to offer a punctuation shift key option _as_well_as_ top row punctuation,
and provide a programmable keymap for that shift key.  After all, we already
have talked about a programmable keymap to support QWERTY and DVORAK layouts.

Lum Johnson

lum@ohio-state.arpa  lum@osu-eddie.uucp  ..!cbosgd!osu-eddie[!osupyr]!lum