March 2007 Archives

I bought an Airkey wireless keyboard from eBay; £11.50, IR, presents as PS/2, range of up to 30ft. Seems to do the job; the trackpad thingy isn't perfect, but good enough for basic X use which is all I want.

Surprisingly no one seemed to comment on my query about RF wireless keyboard security. It seems like the sort of thing someone like Adam Laurie would have had a look at, but I couldn't find anything obvious. Anyone got any pointers to research about these?

Oh, and tonight I had to fight interrupt conflicts to make the IR PS/2 mouse work - that machine hadn't had a mouse before and it turned out several things were sharing IRQ 12, leading to Linux not even finding the port. So I rejigged things around in the BIOS so it was saved for just the mouse port and that managed to make things work. SiS 630E chipset for anyone else seeing a similar issue. It felt like I was back in the 90s.

I need a wireless keyboard for the media box, suitable for use while sitting on the sofa. I currently have an RF Logitech device which I picked up for free at an ALUG meet. It lacks a mouse (it supports one, but as a separate device that I don't have) and the range is such that it's a bit flaky when I sit on the sofa. I'd like something that has a range of at least 4m and has a built in trackball (or I'm sure I'd cope with a trackpad). This seems easy enough to find, but everything seems to be RF and I'm a bit wary. How good is the security on these? Does it even exist? Or will my neighbours be able to sniff my every keystroke? I'd much prefer an IR keyboard, but finding one that's available in the UK for a reasonable price (I found one for £69.99 plus VAT + P&P) seems tricky. LinITX sell an MCE Wireless Keyboard that apparently I might be able to get working with lirc and my existing receiver, but something that just plugs into USB or PS/2 ports and means I can access the BIOS etc would be preferable. Anyone got any pointers?

A while back I decided that I needed my CD collection needed something for every letter. I've managed them all except X. Anyone any suggestions? My last.fm profile should hopefully give an idea of what I like.