keyboard

Running rodent measures typing speed

Instead of the boring words-per-minute (wpm) rating when talking about typing speed, how about going by revolutions per minute (rpm)? Seen here is the USB Mice Wheel (that's the product name, though there's only one mouse there), which responds to your typing speed. The faster you go, the faster it turns.

The product requires you to install some software, and it works only for Windows XP. If you'd rather not plug it in, you can put in some batteries and it'll still work, except the speed will be controlled by a knob and not your keyboard. … Read more

Originally posted at Crave

By John Chan

Logitech keyboard lights up the night

Night owls, boogey monsters, and vampires rejoice: the Logitech Illuminated Keyboard is here to help you work in darkness, away from the harsh light of the sun. The underside of each key houses a tiny microlight that emits a soft blue glow in low-light conditions, effectively letting you work in the dead of night.

Like the Logitech diNovo Edge, the Illuminated Keyboard incorporates Perfect Stroke to help you type faster and more accurately. The system allows for a wide 3.2mm stretch spanning each letter and an even amount of vertical depression across the the flat of the keys, so … Read more

Five quick-and-simple Microsoft Word timesavers

You can use Microsoft Word for years and still find new ways to get more work done in less time. Here are a handful of fast-and-easy productivity boosters.

Create outlines out of lists Word 2007 adds a handy outline list to the standard bullet and numbered lists available on Word 2003's Formatting toolbar (the Paragraphs section under the Home tab of Word 2007's ribbon). You can create an outline from an existing list in either version by placing the cursor in the line you want to indent (or outdent, as the case may be) and clicking the Increase … Read more

Press Enter to get into the house

Designer Li Jianye has come up with a great twist on the typical humdrum doorbell: the Enterbell, which riffs on a keyboard's Enter key. We bet many a computer user would be tickled to come upon a ringer that honors this everyday key in such a creative way.

Hopefully it won't be long before this one moves past the concept stage.

(Via Designzen)

Use your keyboard to select text in Microsoft Word

Dragging a mouse to select text in Microsoft Word requires the precision of a diamond cutter, or seems to, anyway. I prefer to press the Ctrl, Shift, and arrow keys to make my text selections. Throw in a couple of function keys, and I can use my keyboard to select text faster than any mouser can.

To select a word at a time, press Ctrl-Shift and the left or right arrow key. Ctrl-Shift and the up and down arrow keys select a paragraph at a time. If you get tired of holding down the Shift key, simply press F8 to … Read more

Logitech unveils ergonomic Cordless Desktop Wave Pro

It's the end of the workday, and my hands hurt from typing. I suspect I'm not alone on this one--thus the proliferation of ergonomic keybords and mice. On Tuesday, Logitech announced its latest contribution to the genre, the Cordless Desktop Wave Pro.

Like its predecessor, the Cordless Desktop Wave Pro features both a varied key height to accommodate the different lengths of your fingers and a gently curved layout designed to keep your wrists and arms at a more natural angle. A cushioned palm rest gives your hands a comfortable landing spot between paragraphs.

The desktop set also … Read more

A mini OLED keyboard: Optimus Pultius

If the Optimus Maximus keyboard is a little too over the top for you, the upcoming Optimus Pultius may be more suitable. Instead of a full keyboard, this one has only 15 keys, each sporting an individual OLED display which can be customized to show whatever graphic you want.

So, if you like what you see in the image above, you will be able to launch certain applications quickly or use some Photoshop shortcuts without memorizing the key combinations. The value of something like that is you'll have something cool on your desk--a great way to one-up your colleagues. … Read more

Gaming keyboard meets manual typewriter

Hard-core gamers are always looking for gear that will survive the most merciless abuse under their sweaty palms. So needless to say, tough keyboards are frequently at the top of the list.

But it isn't often that a new version borrows a technology from the distant past. The first gaming keyboard in OCZ's new "Alchemy" series features keys made from "100 percent rubber-coating for no-slip comfort," according to PClaunches. And in doing so, the "Elixir" is taking a tack used by old Royal and Underwood manual typerwriters, which occasionally sported rubber caps … Read more

Logitech's new cordless Wii keyboard

Logitech cuts the cord on its new keyboard for the Wii. The Cordless Keyboard for Wii (as it's called) is officially licensed by Nintendo, so you can be sure it'll be compatible with your Wii games as well as the Wii Internet Channel. The keyboard comes with dedicated Wii-centric keys, including Zoom In/Out, Forward/Back, Quit and Ok, and features a full-sized keyboard. And weighing in at only 1.5 lbs, it should be light and compact enough to fit comfortably on your lap. The keyboard goes on sale soon for $50.

I like my computer accessories with whipped cream, strawberries

Sometimes kitchen gadgets are expensive and innovative, and sometimes they're truly useless.

More often than not, the truly useless kitchen gadgets I come across end up on my "tell all of your friends not to waste their money" list. But sometimes, I find a useless kitchen gadget that tugs on my heartstrings just hard enough for me to really appreciate them.

We've all seen some variation on the heart-shaped waffle maker , but designer Chris Dimino took the idea a step farther to create a waffle iron that makes waffles shaped like--wait for it--keyboards.

I'm totally … Read more