My Keyboard Is Fixed!

FingerWorks TouchStream LP and Kinesis Freestyle for Mac

My FingerWorks TouchStream LP keyboard is fixed! Now I am happy beyond words!

2 weeks ago, it broken down on me and forced me to hunt for a new keyboard. Since the right panel still worked, I suspected that it could be just the ribbon cable that connected the two panels. However, I didn’t know its part number or if it was replaceable. And because FingerWorks already went out of business, I thought my only choice was to find a new keyboard while using the working right panel as my trackpad (until it broke down, too).

The elegant Apple keyboard didn’t work for obvious reasons, although its keys felt superb. Then Kinesis Freestyle for Mac showed up on 09/23/2008; I thought finally it would put an end to my suffering. Strangely, when it did resolve my wrist pain from using the Apple keyboard, it actually intensified all the other problems:

1. The keys required more force than I liked. They were soft and high; my fingers got tired pretty quickly and my finger tips started having tinkling feelings.
2. Due to the key layout, too many actions required my pinkies and my pinkies are my weakest fingers.
3. The high keyboard made serious tenting unrealistic. Even the mild 10 degree angle required me to raise my chair, which made my lap very uncomfortable. (BTW, I have a short torso, so others might not have this problem.)
4. By trying the two panels at different angles and positions, I could not find one as comfortable as my TouchStream LP. For some reasons my shoulders and arms just got tired very quickly. Eventually I found one setting that was least painful but still uncomfortable.

With Freestyle, I just did not want type if I could avoid it. Maybe it was ergonomic, but it didn’t work out for me. (Apparently it worked out great for many people; just did a Google search and you’ll see a long list of names.) Bummer.

But my blog readers, Ivan Wellesz and Torben Gundtofte-Bruun told me that maybe I could fix my TouchSream LP! I printed out the document and ordered the ribbon cable HF26U-03 from Digi-Key. When it showed up this afternoon, David volunteered to replace it for me as follows:

1. The back of TouchStream LP. It was a little tricky to figure out how to take out the cable. At first we thought we needed to remove the plastic frame to get to the cable, but very soon David realized that it was impossible and went Googling seeking advices from others. Some people mentioned that the frame was actually superglued to the front keyboard panel, so instead he just pulled it out sideway and the cable slid out without difficulty.

2. Sliding the cable out might be easy; sliding it in turned out to be more hassle than he liked. So we decided to just plug the cable in and see if it worked first.

3. It worked! I didn’t want David to waste time figuring out how to slide in the cable, so I asked him to tape it for me and call it the day.

I’m so glad that I have my old keyboard and life back again!