I’m just as excited as everyone waiting for my red F77 order to ship later this year! I think that Ellipse is putting a lot of effort into making sure things are made to spec and as this is not a cheap keyboard, I feel like he’s doing a good job and staying very transparent to the ups and downs of the production process.
I have often felt frustrated with the right hand number block because on one hand I have very little need for numbers, and on the other hand the Home/End/pg up/pg dwn/insert option leaves a lot of blank unused keys sitting around the arrow cluster.
I use the markdown syntax to write, using pandoc to export directly to PDF or to LibreOffice or Ulysses to finish (and export). I only discovered markdown about three yeas ago, but I’m totally converted, love it.
So I was thinking about getting custom keys for symbols that I use all the time to format using the markdown syntax; these include: # * > \ (and a few others) and I though that this would be a perfect way to have a right hand block that would actually be really functional, using all the keys for stuff I use regularly. Instead of calling it a ‘right hand block’, it’d be a propper ‘writer’s block’… 😉
My question to everyone: Is Unicomp our only solution to buy custom keys? Does anyone know how good or bad their custom keys are? On internet forums some people say they are fine, and other people say they are junk–granted all the posts that I found where several years old, so I don’t know if things have changed at all since or not. I ask because I know some of you may have more knowledge about different suppliers and group buys that might be alternative solutions. I wish that Ellipse would make custom keys, but it sounds like he’s sticking to producing standard sets only, which is understandable.
Anyone have any thoughts about the matter?
kind regards
Hey Jean-Loup,
Sorry, I missed your earlier replies here.
Here are the responses I got from Unicomp:
In response to a question about whether they could print front legends (legends on the front side of key caps), the response I got was that “Unfortunately, we do not print on the side of the keys unless it is a key we already have on a keyboard.”
In response to a question about whether I could have them print and send me a combo NumLk + ScrollLk key (which is one that actually exists on some Space Saver models!), I was told “In order to print the one key ‘NumLk and ScrLk’ we would need to print the whole button set [for the keyboard model that the key is part of]. The cost for the button set is $30.00.” (Text in [] is not in their actual reply, just what I took as implied by their response.)
When taken together, their responses tell a story that they are not willing nor interested in doing custom keys. If they could, they would not have (as you correctly pointed out) a sentence on their web site saying that “We only print standard key legends”, they would have no problems doing custom front legends, and they would be able to print a single “NumLk ScrollLk” key without requiring that I purchase the entire set of keys (since it would make no sense that if they do custom keys, they wouldn’t be able to treat “NumLk ScrollLk” as a one-off custom key).
I’m really not interested in blank caps. Surely there has to be a solution / someone willing to print these for us!
Hello everyone,
As the deadline for orders is upon us I have come to an acceptable compromise concerning my own needs for my prefurred F77 layout. I’m not going the Unicomp route; I regret that Unicomps customer service is vauge and unhelpful and the reputation of the quality of thier manufacturing uncertain. I have just ordered a set of five black blank keys and four blank blue keys. Two black keys will be for between the Capslock and Alt (HHKb Capslock/Control configuration)–on both sides of the spacebar, if that makes sense. On the right side block I’m clustering four blue blank keys for markdown symbols, and three black keys for punctuation symbols. I’ll use the standard Home, End, Page Up, Page Down and arrow cluster as well. If I can’t get used to looking at a few blank keys, I plan to use small stickers placed on the side walls of the keycaps with the symbols drawn on them. I’m confident that Ellipse’s production keys will be of very high quality. Just wanted to share my own solution to my own inquisition. All the best!
I chased my original question to Unicomp with two follow up questions:
1. On your website you state that for custom keys you only print standard legends. Does this imply that if I want a 1U key with a greater than symbol I will get > Or does this imply that I will get a key with . > (period symbol with a greater than symbol above (as second layer)) like what you see standard on a regular US ANSI keyboard?
2. Can you confirm that the symbol on a custom key is printed centered on the key and not offset?
UNICOMP REPLY:
1) Your key will have the standard US ANSI legend.
2) The legend is printed on the key where is normally printed.
I personally still don’t understand either answer to both of my questions. Are my questions not clear? I invite anyone who does understand what they mean to try and clarify! 🙂
I wrote Unicomp a mail, they replied.
ME: I am interested in 1 unit keys, each one printed with one of the following symbols centered on the key :
# hash symbol
* star symbol
! exclamation point
? question mark
>\ greater-than sign
” quotation mark
\ backslash
Is this something that you are capable of doing?
UNICOMP: You can order the keys you are looking for here:
http://www.pckeyboard.com/page/product/PRK
On the product page they do state:
We only print standard key legends.
1. I don’t know why they told you, Nathan, that they don’t do custom keys, and they told me they do…?
2. When they say that they only print standard legends–Does this imply that if I want a key with greater than symbol I get < –OR does it imply that I will get a key with .> (period and greater than symbol) like what you see on a regular keyboard?
3. I get the sneaking suspicion that Unicomp’s definition of ‘centered on the key’ might actually mean printed on the upper left hand part of the key…
Unicomp will NOT do custom keys…I have checked with them. The only keys they will print are ones that have existed in some form on an actual past IBM keyboard part #, and if it is an unusual enough key that you are after, you will be required to purchase the entire set of keys from that keyboard part # to get that one key.
Are there any other leads? I’m also desperate for some custom keys myself in order to make my preferred layout work.
Confirmed, I will not be doing custom keys. I believe Unicomp will do custom keys and am not sure of other sources.
The best way to make your own custom key paper insert is to order the original IBM clear key top and stem, then you can print out any key design and insert the paper as IBM did on the original Model F’s. https://www.modelfkeyboards.com/product/clear-relegendable-cap-stem/