OT: A Bandsaw and a Keyboard

Greetings! I have been too busy to spend time in the wreck but here is a link I think some of you may appreciate. ;-)

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-- Mark

Reply to
Mark Jerde
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Geez. He might as well have cut the cord to the computer also. I would have a very hard time drawing with out a keypad.

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Reply to
Leon

Like any tool, the 10 key appears useless to anyone who doesn't know how to use it.

Reply to
A.M. Wood

Aye, but what if you don't need it? In college I had a job entering cloud particle sizes into a database from microfiche filmed in real time by planes flying through rain clouds. I got *really* fast on a 10-key. (Why in the h*ll Ma Bell decided phone keys should be the opposite is beyond me!) But that was 25 years ago. The majority of my income since then has come from writing software. The keypad on the keyboards has been less useful than anything the Handyman club of America has sent. It's just 4 more inches I have to reach to get to the mouse.

I'm thinking of getting one of these to get the keypad entirely out of the way.

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'd still like the "jkl;" pad to have the cursor keys, though.)

-- Mark

Reply to
Mark Jerde

What software are you using that makes good use of the keypad?

-- Mark

Reply to
Mark Jerde

time. Now an article on rearranging those stupid new keyboards so they have the same layout as the old ones from the early '90s, that's worth doing. :)

Reply to
Silvan

In the MS-DOS era programs tended to make good use of function and special keys. In WinDoze few programs do. It's extremely rare to be able to control a WinDoze program via simple simple scripting such as a .BAT file.

Of the gazillion Windows programs installed on my 7 computers at home, the only one I can think of that makes special use of the keypad is Quicken (2002?) and that's only the keypad "+" and "-" for incrementing and decrementing dates.

-- Mark

Reply to
Mark Jerde

A couple of URLs you may be interested in.

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"life" has been happening but the keyboard will be sent... ;-)

-- Mark

Reply to
Mark Jerde

AutoCAD LT

Reply to
Leon

So do you not use the 10 key pad? I think clicking the mouse on the little drop down calculator in Quicken or using the numbers across the top would be a PIA and would make the entry Slooooow. Spread sheet data entry would be a PIA also. Or data entry in Sheet Layout or Cutlist Plus would be a PIA with out the keypad. Or data entry in Fund Manager would be a PIA without a key pad. Geez lets go ahead and throw in TurboTax. And again, AutoCAD would be a PIA with out the 10 key pad. Wow lets go ahead and throw in the Calculator too. I would HATE to be restricted by the number keys across the top when using the calculator. Do you feel you are hunting pecker when using the 10 key pad? :~)

You know you could also use the Windows on screen Keyboard and click on the buttons but that would be a PIA also. Which programs do you use that work easier and let you enter data faster by using the number keys across the top?

Reply to
Leon

Mark,

That's an easy one. They had to make it different to keep 10 wizs from out dialing the DTMF receivers. DTMF tones must be minimum 50ms on and 50ms off to meet spec for the receivers. A 10 key operator can dial way faster than that, but their calls wouldn't go through.

No the bigger quiz is why are the area codes layed out the way they are? What is the pattern?

Bernie

Snip

Reply to
Bernie Hunt

You complain about moving your hand four more inches to get to the mouse, and you use a mouse that requires the same 4 inches of movement? Have you ever tried a stationary track ball?

Reply to
Leon

Some people will go a long way to get the Microsoft logo of their keyboard.

What really surprised me was that he destroyed the first keyboard, AND THEN TRIED IT AGAIN!

Rob

Reply to
Rob Mitchell

.Just get this and fold the 10 key pad under.

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this

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and finally this after you realize that removing it was not such a good idea.

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Reply to
Leon

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codes were designed in 1940's, with dial phones which used pulses. Each pulse was a fixed duration. When you dialed, those pulses caused relays to click into place as the purses were sent through the lines.

the digit "1" was shortest and 0 was longest.

In those days, area codes either had a 0 or 1 in the second digit.

So the busiest codes were shortest in number of pulses.

Area Code "Clicks" to dial

New York City 212 5 Los Angeles 213 6 Chicago 312 6 Detroit 313 7 Dallas 214 7 Pittsburgh 412 7 [snip] Montana 406 20 Wyoming 307 20 Idaho 208 20 Vermont 802 20 South Carolina 803 21 Eastern Washington 509 24 Alaska 907 26 Hawaii 808 26

Reply to
Bruce Barnett

Excel and Quicken.

Barry

Reply to
B a r r y

Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!

Bernie

Reply to
Bernie Hunt

What, you've never screwed up a project then tried again?

Tim Douglass

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Reply to
Tim Douglass

35ms, actually.

The 'pattern' for the _original_ area-code assignments was related to the population of the area served. Places with higher populations (thus more incoming calls) got codes that were "shorter" (in terms of the number of dial *pulses* required) to dial. To wit: NYC (212) -- 5 pulses, Chicago (312), and Los Angeles (213) -- 6 pulses, Dallas (214), and Pittsburgh (412) -- 6 pulses, Then there are Alaska (907), and Hawaii(808), both of which are TWENTY SIX pulses. With 'traditional' 10 pulse/second dialing, that is a *minimum* of an additional 2 seconds to dial a number in those locations.

There was also an effort made to ensure that 'numerically close' codes were _geographically_ diverse. This helped to reduce the frequency of 'wrong number' area-code dialings.

When areacode 'splits' became necessary, 'pulse' dialing was *mostly* dead, and the additional codes were assigned _mostly_ based on trying to maintain geographic diversity -- i.e. something that was *not* 'similar' to anything already in use in -that- vicinity.

Reply to
Robert Bonomi

What do you mean "had?" My grandmother still has one of those. I used one in a furniture store in North Carolina once to dial a 1-800- number. Wow, that sucked. I had to try three times before I got it right.

We had a rotary dial until the phone company stopped charging a $3 surcharge for touchtone, even though by then our last phone with a real rotary on it was years in the past.

Reply to
Silvan

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