Keyboards & Mice

Work, that four-letter word, has intruded again on the pleasures of life. My thanks to those of you that commented, I appreciate it.

As I mentioned earlier, I have an Apple IIe Platinum – the one with the keyboard and numeric pad built into the case. One of the problems for me was adjusting to the new keyboard arrangement after years of using a PC keyboard. (Some of this goes away by changing to the GS, but that is another story.) Even on the PC side I am a bit of a throwback since I use an Avant Stellar keyboard by Creative Vision Technologies, Inc. It has the function keys on the left with F11 and F12 on a separate top row and 12 programmable Special Function (SF1 – SF12) keys along the top. It is a great keyboard that allows me to type for hours without fatigue or strain.

The IIe keyboard is great, just different. I am past the period where I have to watch my fingers as they type although for some of the control escape Apple functions still give me pause. I do not feel a strong need for a mouse (yet) as most tasks I perform are text related and even in Windows on the PC I am keyboard centric and use the mouse very slightly. Since both hands normally stay on the keyboard, it takes a conscious effort to stop, use the mouse, and return to the keyboard. Perhaps as I start moving over some graphics and games I will find more need for a mouse.