30+ key keypad (USB or PS2)

[lordsnipe]

Hey All,

Currently on my jukebox machine I'm using a normal USB numerical keypad, but have found there not to be enough keys to do what I want.

I've found some numerical keypads with extra keys (http://www.esis.com.au/Adv3Acc/M8319_8169_8353data.jpg) however this current one is $125 AUS + tax + freight. Does anyone know if such a product exists for cheaper? I've been looking on ebay and the like and have come up with nothing.


Cheers

Alex

[JackTucky]

I've found some "gaming" usb keyboards before.  Try searching for those

I think Woot had one once.

Jacktucky

[lordsnipe]

I'm sorry ... woot? is that a user on the forum?

[Chris]

Here is a truly bizzare thought that gives new meaning to the term "keyboard hack":

If the keyboard controller is a separate daughtercard, as it usually is, the rest of the keyboard is just traces and switches with no electronics.  So theoretically, if you had a keyboard with an actual circuit board and switches (as opposed to a membrane with rubber actuators), you might be able to cut off the keypad and utility keys (Insert, Home, End, cursors, etc.) with an xacto saw.  You'd have to plan ahead and follow the traces you would be cutting, as you'll need to solder a jumper wire from those traces to the spot on the keyboard controller matrix where they're destined (and possibly back to the piece you're keeping if the trace doubles back).  If you cut off the end of the ribbon cable that goes to the keyboard, separate and strip the lines and run them to barrier strips, it should be pretty easy.  If you really carefully mapped out the whole thing, you should be able to cut off the function keys too and you have nice little sets of four keys to play with.  And if you accidentally map the wires to the wrong place on the controller, odds are the worst that will happen is that it reads as a different key.

The trouble is doing this in USB; most keyboard with actual circuit boards and switches are likely to be standard keyboards, as I don't know of any recent keyboards that use real circuit boards under the keys.

Am I being an idiot, or should this work?

[Space Fractal]

I might ask, why you need use extra keys?

None jb software out here on BYOAC using fullsize keyboard as controll (as I know). They rather use arcade controller, touch screen or keypad.

Or do I take fool?

Otherwice, You can hack a cheap keyboard, wich some did for some cabinet. You dosen't need to hack all keys, but only them, you actuelly would use. You may even try to hack a game controller and use autohotkey to remap them to keys.

[Chris]

30 keys isn't all that much... 10 for the keypad and 20 for other functions.  Most of DOSCab/WinCab's buttions are optional, but you can eat a lot of buttons using most of them:

Volume Control: 5 buttons (Up/Down/Min/Max/Mute)
Page navigation: 6 buttons (Next Page/Prev Page/Next Alpha/Prev Alpha/First Page/Last Page)
Track/Queue Control: 5 buttons (Pause/Skip Track/Skip Last/Clear Queue/Clear All)
Status and Mode: 3 buttons (Popular/Radio/Freeplay)
Selection controls: 3 buttons (Select/Clear/Backspace)

Plus of course an exit button.  And with the next version of DOSCab/WinCab, the number of potential functions could double.

--Chris

[Space Fractal]

Ahh, ok. I see that,  I may oversaw that.

But I may said it, because I only use few inputs for full operate for my own software (joystick + 2 buttons). It still support some most important shortcuts (volume up/down and so on).

Basalliy I dosen