🚀 go-pugleaf

I recently purchased a Northgate keyboard for only one reason - it has the
ESCape and control keys in the "standard place".  It seems that IBM plays
games with keyboard layouts (as they have with the typical 101 key AT style
keyboards available through them as well as clone manufacturers). I also have
an XT clone and a Zenith AT clone. Both have the control key next to the
letter A (common in the industry). The ESCape key is also in easy reach
(above the TAB key).

If you haven't had the pleasure ;-) of having different keyboard layouts
side by side, you can't imagine the grief you go through trying to switch
back and forth between the two systems. As far as tactile feedback or "feel",
that is indeed a religous issue. Layout, on the other hand, should be
the consistent in all places. If you want examples, try to do any real work on a
DEC LK-201 keyboard (Rainbow and others) and then go back to a PC keyboard.
DEC had the insight to put the backspace, ESCape and other keys up in row
of keys above the main keyboard :-( Not nice if you use screen editors which use
the ESC key or ever make typing errors and have to use the backspace key.
If you then go back to a PC, I find that you have to make a conscious effort
in order to be able to type. I haven't had these problems since switching over
to a common layout for the main keys on the keyboard (and dumping the DEC
keyboard).

-- norm --
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