Category Archives: Keyboard

A 100 Year Old Consul Typewriter?

Posted on January 9, 2026 by Michal Necasek

Spurred by a discussion about Polish keyboard layouts, I tried to find more about the history of Czech keyboard layouts. Unfortunately, finding actual documents turned out to be very difficult. What I did find is that prior to the current … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing History, Keyboard, Typewriter | 27 Comments

Learn Something Old Every Day, Part XV: KEYB Is Half of Keyboard BIOS

Posted on June 16, 2025 by Michal Necasek

Recently I had an opportunity to reacquaint myself with the DOS KEYB utility. KEYB is interesting in that it is designed primarily for international users, but one can also run KEYB US to load KEYB with standard US layout. It … Continue reading →

Posted in BIOS, DOS, IBM, Keyboard | 16 Comments

Like New

Posted on May 31, 2021 by Michal Necasek

About twenty years ago, I bought a used IBM Model M keyboard with a PS/2 connector. I believe it cost me around $5-$10 plus shipping at the time. A good investment, given that this sort of keyboard is probably worth … Continue reading →

Posted in IBM, Keyboard, PC hardware | 5 Comments

PC Keyboard: The First Five Years

Posted on September 3, 2019 by Michal Necasek

The vast majority of PC users today have no memory of what PC keyboards looked like before the standard 101/102-key layout arrived, even though various OEMs do their best to mangle the standard layout in order to minimize usability, especially … Continue reading →

Posted in IBM, Keyboard, PC hardware, PC history | 19 Comments

How Fast Is a PS/2 Keyboard?

Posted on July 23, 2018 by Michal Necasek

A few weeks ago, an interesting question cropped up: How fast is a PS/2 keyboard? That is to say, how quickly can it send scan codes (bytes) to the keyboard controller? One might also ask, does it really matter? Sure … Continue reading →

Posted in Borland, IBM, Keyboard, PC hardware | 14 Comments