3 ms·

The real ergonomics of the LispM were due to the wonderful Microswitch keyboards, which have never been equalled since. To use one was a kind of revelation into

by cpr 12y ago

The real ergonomics of the LispM were due to the wonderful Microswitch keyboards, which have never been equalled since. To use one was a kind of revelation into the the apotheosis of keyboard use. (The old, original Tom Knight AI Lab keyboards were even slightly more wonderful; the later Microswitch LispM keyboards never quite equalled the originals in terms of tactilely satisfying feel.) (For a long while after leaving MIT (ran the MIT-EECS LispM and DEC-20 machines) I used one of the custom-made Lawrence Livermore run of Microswitch keyboards, driving a custom 68K board which turned the up/down events into standard RS-232 for use with standard CRT terminals. I think I still have that keyboard somewhere in the now-long-abandoned kids' play junk.)

ScottBurson 12y ago
Those were nice keyswitches, but the modern Cherry MX is also excellent. I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite between the two of them. The Cherries have a lighter touch and a little "snap", both of which I like.
- seanmcdirmid 12y ago
  I'm still going on a vintage Model M. Heavy touch, satisfying clank on each stroke.
  - gcb0 12y ago
    model m is overrrated amd loud. cherry stopped in time. alps lowered standards to fight off bad income. ...good switches help you feel the key and avoid bottom out. i personally like old complex alps, but everyone will like something different.
    - hga 12y ago
      "good switches help you feel the key and avoid bottom out" To deal with bottoming out, using Cherry Blue switches, I've found that these red dampeners work very nicely: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZQ3966/ http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZQ3966/ There are also thicker ones that have better stocking: http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Rubber-O-Ring-Switch-Dampeners/dp/B00AZQ2OF8/ http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Rubber-O-Ring-Switch-Dampeners/... and the same company has a nice key puller: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZCGF7K/
      - gcb0 12y ago
        lol at mechanical keyboard related stuff prices. i bought the same orings (internal, external diameter. hardness) from a hardware store. paid $3.78. ...and you linked to the cheap ones :)
DonHopkins 12y ago
It was not just the hardware, or the software, or the culture, or the interesting problems you could solve, or the zeitgeist of that time in history, but a rich combination of all those things and more, that is so hard to capture, describe or reproduce -- or even believe, if you haven't experienced it first hand. Those giant keyboards, with all their wide special purpose buttons topped with hieroglyphic keycap labels, in combination with the huge screen, three button mouse, and of course all the great software turning on and off the little dots on the screen that you could dive into, explore and modify at will, the printed and online documentation, the networked developer support community, all carefully designed to work together seamlessly regardless of cost, gave you the feeling of being in control of a very heavy, expensive, well built, solid, powerful, luxury automobile, with rich Corinthian leather seats, a high fidelity sound system, cruise and climate control, power steering, windows and seats, a full tank of gas and an empty ashtray, a glove compartment stuffed with AAA maps, about to embark on a long and adventurous journey exploring far away places you've never visited before. It's hard to capture that kind of multi-sensory ergonometric computational Fahrvergnügen, just running it in an emulator on a MacBook Pro. (As luxurious and well designed as the MBP is, it can't hold a candle to a Lisp Machine.) Sitting down in front of one of those monsters with a big mug of coffee, an interesting task to work on, a rack of my favorite music on cassette tapes, many hours of free time to hack in the privacy of an air conditioned lab in front of me, and a bean bag chair for naps when I pass out from exhaustion behind me, will always be one of my cherished memories. Ricardo Montalban couldn't have expressed the luxurious feeling of power and control more eloquently: "I have much more in this small Chrysler than great comfort at a most pleasant price. I have great confidence, for which there can be no price. In Cordova, I have what I need." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsg97bxuJnc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsg97bxuJnc

by cpr 12y ago

ScottBurson 12y ago

Those were nice keyswitches, but the modern Cherry MX is also excellent. I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite between the two of them. The Cherries have a lighter touch and a little "snap", both of which I like.

seanmcdirmid 12y ago
I'm still going on a vintage Model M. Heavy touch, satisfying clank on each stroke.
- gcb0 12y ago
  model m is overrrated amd loud. cherry stopped in time. alps lowered standards to fight off bad income. ...good switches help you feel the key and avoid bottom out. i personally like old complex alps, but everyone will like something different.
  - hga 12y ago
    "good switches help you feel the key and avoid bottom out" To deal with bottoming out, using Cherry Blue switches, I've found that these red dampeners work very nicely: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZQ3966/ http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZQ3966/ There are also thicker ones that have better stocking: http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Rubber-O-Ring-Switch-Dampeners/dp/B00AZQ2OF8/ http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Rubber-O-Ring-Switch-Dampeners/... and the same company has a nice key puller: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZCGF7K/
    - gcb0 12y ago
      lol at mechanical keyboard related stuff prices. i bought the same orings (internal, external diameter. hardness) from a hardware store. paid $3.78. ...and you linked to the cheap ones :)

DonHopkins 12y ago

It was not just the hardware, or the software, or the culture, or the interesting problems you could solve, or the zeitgeist of that time in history, but a rich combination of all those things and more, that is so hard to capture, describe or reproduce -- or even believe, if you haven't experienced it first hand. Those giant keyboards, with all their wide special purpose buttons topped with hieroglyphic keycap labels, in combination with the huge screen, three button mouse, and of course all the great software turning on and off the little dots on the screen that you could dive into, explore and modify at will, the printed and online documentation, the networked developer support community, all carefully designed to work together seamlessly regardless of cost, gave you the feeling of being in control of a very heavy, expensive, well built, solid, powerful, luxury automobile, with rich Corinthian leather seats, a high fidelity sound system, cruise and climate control, power steering, windows and seats, a full tank of gas and an empty ashtray, a glove compartment stuffed with AAA maps, about to embark on a long and adventurous journey exploring far away places you've never visited before. It's hard to capture that kind of multi-sensory ergonometric computational Fahrvergnügen, just running it in an emulator on a MacBook Pro. (As luxurious and well designed as the MBP is, it can't hold a candle to a Lisp Machine.) Sitting down in front of one of those monsters with a big mug of coffee, an interesting task to work on, a rack of my favorite music on cassette tapes, many hours of free time to hack in the privacy of an air conditioned lab in front of me, and a bean bag chair for naps when I pass out from exhaustion behind me, will always be one of my cherished memories. Ricardo Montalban couldn't have expressed the luxurious feeling of power and control more eloquently: "I have much more in this small Chrysler than great comfort at a most pleasant price. I have great confidence, for which there can be no price. In Cordova, I have what I need." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsg97bxuJnc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsg97bxuJnc