I like my Boox, but I want to type and charge at the same time.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by Quoth

This model of USB Keyboard is the best one I've had. About €12 in local Limerick, Ireland shops.
Sold under many brands.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/402395541936

I've used a utility on Android to do more extensive remapping of keys than the stock layouts.
I couldn't find any decent UK (or USA + extra key) BT keyboard in nearly 20 years of looking. The one linked works fine on Android phone, tablet and android Mars eInk and Linux laptop, except for being one key short (common on USA layouts).

Also it works on the Kobo Sage and Elipsa for text any time the onscreen keyboard is active. Sadly in the Notebooks it only works to enter the New Notebook Name and scroll the notebook pages. You can't type in the Advanced Notebook. Doesn't stay connected, but that's because BT on the Kobo is really only for audio playback. People have had trouble with BT clickers to turn page on Kobos with BT.

[Renate]

The Model 33 Teletype was one of the first to support 8 bit ASCII in 1963 although it lived alongside the older 5 bit Baudot Teletypes (like the Model 15) until at least the late 1970's. The wire services (AP, UPI) had the 75 Baud receive-only Model 15's in use until they died. I can still hear that "ding-ding-ding-ding" from the bell. It was either the start of World War III or else, "Sport correction: It was not his third hole-in-one of the year."

[MarjaE]

I have coordination problems, and have trouble finding keyboards which I can use without having to coordinate 2 hands, and rarely having to coordinate 2 or 3 fingers on 1 hand.

I also need nav keys to page down.

I also found larger keyboards worsened my rsi.

So I need a moderately-sized keyboard, with nav keys, preferably without keypad keys, which either mirrors mod keys on both sides, or makes mod keys sticky.

A couple years ago I tried a Bluetooth keyboard which used Function to convert Down Arrow into Page Down, among other substitutions. But it had Fn on one side, and the Down Arrow on the other side, so I couldn't press both at once, and Android Sticky Keys doesn't work on Function, so I couldn't use that as a workaround.

Earlier this year, I had a lot of trouble finding one which was compact or mini, and had physical nav keys, and had mirrored mod keys. I got the Wireless version of my current wired keyboard, and then found out it used a dongle.

P.S. I ordered a Nulea iPad keyboard which is supposed to be bluetooth and is supposed to be compatible. It has a tablet slot, but too small for the Boox Max3, so I'll still need my tablet stand.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by MarjaE

I also need nav keys to page down.

I also found larger keyboards worsened my rsi.

So I need a moderately-sized keyboard, with nav keys, preferably without keypad keys, which either mirrors mod keys on both sides, or makes mod keys sticky.
.

On the link I posted the main buttons are about 10 mm x 10 mm on a 18mm pitch.

It's 285 mm long and 120mm "vertically".

Only Home, PgUp, PgDn and End are using Function on the Arrow Keys, a keyboard mapping utility could put those on direct function keys
F7 Home, F8 End, F9 PgUp and F10 PgDn

As long as you can use a USA layout the keycaps are OK.

Loads people sell it. The local shop has it in white from the Dutch Trust Brand.


Every other BT keyboard i've tried was either unreliable pairing, poor typing action, too small or a combination of those faults.

Bottom row (Apple mode):
Special Function select, Control, Alt (Option), Maybe Win or Menu (Command), SPACE, Maybe Win or Menu (Command), Alt (Option), Left, Up, Down, Right.

The Left, Up, Down, Right are shared with Home, PgUp, PgDn, End via the first Fn key.

But a decent Keyboard remapping tool would allow the F7 to F10 to be those.
You can also make Shift, Alt, Control, AltGr all "sticky" with a suitable utility.

It's almost regular keyboard size, but without the bits past the Enter key.

Top row is Esc, F1 to F12 and Del. The Fn options on the top row are not needed and are like a multimedia keyboard.

[JSWolf]

That keyboard might not do as you need two hands. One for the FN key and one for the arrow keys.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

That keyboard might not do as you need two hands. One for the FN key and one for the arrow keys.

Arrows don't need the Fn, but Home, End, PageUp, PageDown do, so solution is to remap them for F7 to F10, 3 of which already have arrow symbols.

All the separate keyboards I've seen without a numeric pad put Home, End, PageUp, PageDown on the arrow keys and all the 2/3rds size keyboards do, so you need a utility to remap and also need to make shift, control and alt be sticky keys (all built in on Linux, sticky is built in on Windows and certainly up to Win7 the MS Keyboard editor free from MS lets you remap). The only Android program I ever bought was one to edit keyboard because Android 6 had limited support.

[Renate]

If you do lots of PgDn you might consider foot pedals. Onyx has one but there are also lots of generic ones.

[MarjaE]

So they bluetooth keyboard I ordered because the images seemed to show nav keys... they're not nav keys.

*facepalm*.

I hate trying to find usable keyboards.

[Renate]

Mmm, you may have a point, but you're going to have to be more specific.

I went to look at my Anker Bluetooth keyboard.
The "triangle pointing keys" nicely generated DPAD_DOWN etc.
With the "Fn" they generate PgUp, PgDn, Home, End, but only if you had put it in Android mode.
You have to hold down Fn and hit an S (which has the notation Android).

My other Bluetooth keyboard doesn't have this setup aspect but generates (Android) standard keypresses all the time.

If we're talking keyboards, you should really download UsbMode.apk from my sig. It will show you what key you are generating.

Maybe you should look for "full size bluetooth keyboards"?
https://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-QSZ...dp/B07Y3ZS47V/

If you want to stick with the smaller keyboards and don't want to use the Fn key you'll have to remap some keys.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by MarjaE

So they bluetooth keyboard I ordered because the images seemed to show nav keys... they're not nav keys.

*facepalm*.

I hate trying to find usable keyboards.

Yes, I agree!

I found some really nice typing action keyboards in my attic, but they use the large size 5 pin DIN. At least they are PC-AT protocol and not XT mode, so they do work with mini-DIN (some PC towers I have still use that) and a USB Y-adaptor that takes mouse and/or keyboard and works with any PS/2-MiniDIN plugged mouse or keyboard.

Oddly the Microsoft keyboards and mouse I have (USB or proprietary wireless with USB adaptor) beat all the others I have for nice typing action, including two models of Logitech, except for the early 1990s Mitsumi models I found in the attic. I type a lot.

[Renate]

Originally Posted by Quoth

I type a lot.

Me too! It really puts some wear and tear on my forefingers.

[MarjaE]

Any keyboard which requires me to stop, hold down or put a clamp on one side of the keyboard, and then return to the other side is going to give me trouble.

It'd be worse if I were 1-handed instead of just clumsy.

And due to an old arm injury, keyboards which require me to go too far back and forth also give me trouble.

[pazos]

Originally Posted by MarjaE

Is there an adaptor that would let me charge and type at the same time?.

Nope. Boox devices with a Qualcomm SoC are incompatible with USB Power Delivery. They use the non compliant QuickCharge instead.

You'll need to use a bluetooth keyboard.

Some devices, like this logitech include both a usb dongle and a true bluetooth module (and 3 keys to pair with different devices) so you can use the same keyboard on different computers (2 bluetooth and 1 dongle / 3 bluetooth ...)

[MarjaE]

I can't see much in the screenshot, but I don't think that keyboard has the keys I need.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by MarjaE

I can't see much in the screenshot, but I don't think that keyboard has the keys I need.

It does. The numeric pad has Home, End, PageUp, PageDn if numlock is off.

BUT you seem to have missed that you can reassign otherwise unused top row keys to be Home, End, PageUp, PageDn instead of any of 12 Function F1 to F12 on top row, for ANY keyboard with a key remapping utility.