Just discovered an interesting keyboard encoder

[yagni01]

http://www.piengineering.com/xkeys.php

Pretty expensive, but the X-Keys stick would work real well as MFD edge keys. I added a reference to it in the wiki, along with this guy http://www.chproducts.com/retail/mfp.html

I can envision the MFP as holding the simulation controls. . .

 

[unknown_orbiter]

Wow! Amazingly cool! Thank you for this link!

 

[Hielor]

They're really cool, but ridiculously expensive. Take the 20-key "X-Keys USB Desktop," for example. $120. Compare to this keypad for nearly $100 less. You could probably find a program (maybe Pinnacle?) to allow you to map those keys wherever you want.

The X-keys stick: also really slick, but for $100 I could buy:
-USB keyboard, $5.00 (local goodwill)
-Dremel rotary tool (includes cutting attachment and 49 others), $45 (Lowe's)
-Sandpaper, paint, etc (to make it all look good), $cheap

and still have plenty of $ left over. Plus, if I decide I want more of the things, at that point they're only $5 each. Just take the keyboard and cut off everything but the function key row. Or whichever row pleases you.



For those prices, those things had better have full n-key rollover. One review I saw said they had pseudo n-key rollover. Translation: no better than your average keyboard.

Thanks for the links though. If nothing else they're good for ideas!

 

[unknown_orbiter]

Thanks for the links though. If nothing else they're good for ideas!

Very true, I have about 7 keyboards lying around my house I could cut up and paint.

 

[yagni01]

Yes, cutting up a keyboard is cheap, but its not very easy. I've done it, and its a pain in the you-know-what. After you cut out the keys you want, you have to wire them all back into the main board. Which has to be mounted somewhere. Or to a $40+ encoder, same deal. Then make a respectable looking cover for it. These products are cool, fast, and good looking, but since I'm looking at at least four rows of keys, I'm sure I'll also find a different solution. But if you have the budget and need a quick build, its a definite option.

 

[Hielor]

If you just wanted to pull a single row (or the keypad, for that matter) off and use that, that in itself wouldn't be all that difficult I think. The function keys, for example, are usually offset a bit already, and you could even use the original wire sheets if you were careful. No extra wiring required.

The advantage of the keyboard method is that it's way cheaper and infinitely more customizable if you've got the time. If the pre-built stuff fits your needs though and you've got the resources for it, then that's the way to go.

Side note about keyboards, something I discovered today: the "Pause | Break" key on my (and probably most) keyboards doesn't repeat. That is, if you hold it down, it doesn't actually stay down. If only I had more keys like that, they'd be perfect for toggle switches.

 

[TSPenguin]

Just throwing in an idea, haven't verified if it is actualy doable.
Wouldn't it be possible and easier to do than cutting up a keyboard, to unmount the actual key and solder a wire to it?
This greatly depends on how the keyboard is built, it would work with my 30 year old IBM keyboard for sure.

 

[Urwumpe]

If you have skills with a soldering iron, it should be no problem building your own USB Keyboard encoder for about 4 € (the most expensive item would be the USB port)... of course, this takes a lot more time instead of just buying it.

 

[Hielor]

Just throwing in an idea, haven't verified if it is actualy doable.
Wouldn't it be possible and easier to do than cutting up a keyboard, to unmount the actual key and solder a wire to it?
This greatly depends on how the keyboard is built, it would work with my 30 year old IBM keyboard for sure.

Won't work with 99% of modern keyboards, since the key itself has no electrical anything; it's just a solid piece to press down on the layers of "wiring" and make a connection.

You should take a modern keyboard apart sometime. It's kind of interesting.

 

[unknown_orbiter]

Hrm... I have no more budget after I bought my alienware desktop comp ($$$$$$$$$$$$)
I would go to goodwill and find the oldest 3rd world keyboards that use the electrical keys.

 

[Hielor]

Hrm... I have no more budget after I bought my alienware desktop comp ($$$$$$$$$$$$)
I would go to goodwill and find the oldest 3rd world keyboards that use the electrical keys.

You'll be very hard-pressed to find keyboards that have an individual electrical connection per key, considering that almost everything made in the last 20 years has used the thin-plastic-sheet method. Goodwill might be your best bet, maybe also browse local garage sales/estate sales.