Gateway Anykey Keyboards

polymaff wrote: »

Does anyone know of support software that runs under more modern operating systems then MS-DOS 6.2

Neil_Jones wrote: »

Aren't these just your bog standard keyboard at the end of the day?
Apparently the last version of these works fine under Windows 7, so I'm not sure why you're still using it on MS-DOS.

As for KVM switches - don't see why not.
Macros - Wiki says in theory unlimited up to the memory capacity of the keyboard.

The keyboard can have up to three distinct key-stroke sequences programmed onto any of its many, many keys (24 F keys, 12 cursor keys etc.) These "macros" are actually stored in the keyboard - so they are truly portable - and to support the significant investment in time in creating the macros and/or to allow different users to use their own macros on that keyboard, support software allows the uploading and downloading of the keyboard's macros. The support software appears to rely on unique functionality in the keyboard's microprocessor code involving undocumented PC -> keyboard op-codes. Support for that support software seemed to end many years ago.

Unless any one out there knows otherwise...:)

p.s. neither of my kvms permit the use of the support software. On the rare occasion that I need to restore the keyboard I have to pull it's plug out of the kvm and plug it directly into the MS-DOS6.2-capable machine.

p.p.s

Neil_Jones wrote: »

Wiki says in theory unlimited up to the memory capacity of the keyboard.

And how long IS a piece of string..?..:rotfl:

I've quite a few of these keyboards. They are all functional - and may well last me out. It's a while since I was 20 years old! I also want to keep the macros in the keyboard. Even when PS/2 connectors vanish off PCs, I've PS/2 to USB adapters.

I read people posting - why isn't there a modern version available? - and I wonder, too.

The only shortcoming they have is that power glitches make them do a complete factory reset. In practice this happens if you power down the PC and then switch on immediately - never a good idea, anyway - and that is when I have to reload the macros via MSDOS.

Definitely fit for purpose...:)


It is the support system that will probably be the killer issue. - hence me wondering if anyone had heard of a newer version.

wongataa wrote: »

You can buy new programmable keyboards. Logitech sell them for example.

Thanks for that. I haven't looked at the Logitech site for a while - but their current offerings are still very crude compared with the approx 300 macro capability of these Anykey keyboards. Not that I use 300 macros, but I do use far more than Logitech offer. Some of the Logitechs seem to require software to program them - unlike the Anykey which can program and erase macros stand-alone.

Incidentally, I've just taken one of my keyboards apart. The electronics includes an 8051 microcontroller, a latch and a 2Kbyte EEPROM.

So the answer to my second question is probably of the order of 2,000 total macro characters.


EDIT: Date codes on the above chips - mid-1993.