- Something I expected - and something I didn’t!
- YMDK 9-key RGB hot-swap macro pad I’d ordered from their eBay store
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Commodore 64 salvaged and converted into a functional USB keyboard
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Complete with original dust and crust!
I’d been expecting the macro pad for a while, but was surprised to find a much bigger package next to it in the mailbox.
My dad had an old C64 that appeared not to function, so he’d long-ago salvaged the main board for components. Years later, he decided to make something really cool out of what was left: a fully-functioning driverless USB keyboard. I knew he’d been working on it in the background alongside his many other projects, but I’d basically forgotten about it. What a cool thing to open alongside my little macro pad!
For the curious, some keeb trivia:
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Mitsumi linear switches (used to feel awful and creak like an old bed, but now they are surprisingly passable - pops must have given them some love)
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Super-thick high-pro double-shot spherical ABS caps with pad-printed front legends for character-based graphics
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Caps are cross mount, but not MX
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Shift Lock is a physically-locking switch
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Uses a printer cable
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Appears to have old school joystick ports (now where did I put my Gravis Pro…)
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Made possible with the Keyrah V2 board from Individual Computers and lots of tinkering
Thanks, Dad!