Microsoft Natural Keyboard any good for gaming?

[SOS]

Hi,

Anyone use this style of keyboard? Are they any good for games, or just in general?

Thanks

SOS

 

[Rigoletto]

I know that some don't like the arrow key arrangement much in games but it doesn't make much difference to me.
I never liked the Natural keyboard that much until I had to type for 6 hours a day. I was starting to hurt. Being able to rest and relax your hands on that curved plastic whilst typing is very good in the long term.
You get to appreciate it, in other words.

 

[FordLorider]

I use the number pad for Quaking...that is the same for all keyboards...I don't know about others.

 

[noxipoo]

its not as easy, but once you get used to it, (and lots of new key setups) its ok... not for 2 player neo geo emulation action though. sucks

 

[Celstar]

for games that has hotkeys on both sides of the keyboard i.e., Age of Empires and Age of Kings, all split keyboards such as the MS Natural suck.

For FPS, it is fine.

 

[dawks]

I noticed these keyboards need to be hooked up with USB, and standard keyboard cable. do they boot in safe mode alright?

 

[hans007]

if you have legacy usb emulation in your bios (most newer mobos have it) you can use it in dos on usb. The hub is pretty cool as are the media buttons. really useful for winamp

 

[SOS]

Thanks for the input.

Sounds like it's probably best to stick to standard keyboard then.

SOS

 

[AL77]

The Microsoft Natural Keyboard is by far and away the best keyboard I have ever used. It's comfortable for typing, and it's been perfectly fine for all the games I've played - FPS, strategy, etc.

The Microsoft Natural Keyboard Elite is 'ok'. For typing, it's great; for games where you're used to using the the non-numpad arrow keys, it's awkward (for some reason Microsoft thought people would be impressed by the smaller footprint of the keyboard while maintaining the split key layout; as a result, you get a smaller arrow cluster, function keys, and a rotated 'PGUP, PGDN' cluster which I find annoying)

The Microsoft Natural Keyboard Pro has the full key size of the original Natural keyboard, but comes with all those quick launch buttons on the top which you may not want.

 

[corkyg]

If you are a touch typist, it is cool. Otherwise, it is suck.

Many wrist problems are caused by the mistaken notion that a keyboard should be higher in the back than the front. This is simply a carry over of the old mechnical typewriter design . . . forced by linkages.

The best angle for a keyboard for hours on end is with the front higher than the back so that the wrists are not bent like so . . . \_/ Like a good piano player learns . . they should be straight or slightly down . . . ---\

So . . . to avoid CTS and other maladies caused by bent wrists the wrong way, always keep the legs folded in back, and slip a board under the front to the keyboard is at least level or tilting slightly away from you.

 

[Noriaki]

I have a logitech NewTouch Compact. I find it to be perfectly fine for both Starcraft and Quake style games. It does take a little getting used to, but once you are used to it it's much more comfortable. Get the Microsoft full elite pro or whatever, it has the arrow keys arranged normally.



<< I noticed these keyboards need to be hooked up with USB, and standard keyboard cable. do they boot in safe mode alright? >>



It doesn't need both, you have your choice. You can use USB OR PS/2. (Note if you use PS/2 the USB hub in the keybaord doesn't work).

But anyhow, my USB mouse works fine in Safe mode, I have legcay PS/2 emulation set and it's fine, and my room mate has the MS Keybaord plugged in USB only and it works in DOS mode and Linux (no USB support in either). Just remember to set legacy mode.




<< Many wrist problems are caused by the mistaken notion that a keyboard should be higher in the back than the front. This is simply a carry over of the old mechnical typewriter design . . . forced by linkages.

The best angle for a keyboard for hours on end is with the front higher than the back so that the wrists are not bent like so . . . \_/ Like a good piano player learns . . they should be straight or slightly down . . . ---\ >>



This is depandant on a lot of things.
My elbows are slightly lower than the table that my keyboard sits on, having the front higher is toture on my wrists.

But the general message is correct, you want your wrists to be straight depending on how tall you are, how high your desk and chair are, how close you sit to the monitor (if you have vision problems) will all affect what angle is the most comfortable for you. I have mine pretty much flat, my roommate likes his to be higher in the front because he sits higher than I do.

 

[arthurb1]

Daz, yo do not have to hook up USB for the keyboard to work, you need it for the USB ports on the back of the board (yes the natural elite (normal arrows and ins-del cluster) has a 2 port usb hub in the back, and I think that you need it for the buttons across the top, but that is it , I have never tried the top buttons without USB plugged in, but I have used this baord on my friends 200mhz Pentuim, that had no USB ports.

 

[Chriz]

Hmmm, why can't USB mice have PS/2 emulation also? Then you could use it in safe mode and in programs that reboot into DOS.

 

[arthurb1]

My intellimouse explorer did it with my ASUS A7V...wont with this KT7 though...you could always just use the ps/2 port adapter.

 

[SOS]

Thanks for the input.

I'm not really a touch typist, so it seems like a standard keyboard would be fine. Standard keyboards are obviously the same, if not better than Natural for all types of games?

Anyone recommened a good standard keyboard model? Not Logitech, damn store doesn't stock Logitch.

Thanks again.

SOS

 

[Base10]

It's a GREAT k/aboard. Well, it was GREAT intil i spilled a glass of Coke onto the left side...and now some of my keys no longer work. (o well)


Time a for a new one....neways. 8)