Re: hardened keyboard stickers?

bad sector <forgetski@postit_INVALID_.gov> wrote:

> I looked at the replacement caps and while I could maybe do that
> without breaking them they're the same (zero) quality painted
> material as the originals.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=asus+g73+parts&_sop=15

Looks like sellers want too much for just parts, or laptops that are
broken and they're selling for parts.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=asus+g73+parts&_sop=15

Those are cheaper just to get the keyboard alone.

As for the flimsy ribbon cable, the ones I see at the eBay search
already have the ribbon cable attached.  The mobo end should just be a
header into which you slide the ribbon cable.  That should be a
many-time reusable header connector.

https://youtu.be/Tp90M_N6dzs?t=196

From that video (and ignoring the rest of the video about a total
dismantle of the laptop), the keyboard is pretty easy to remove.  No
disassembly is required (the keyboard part of the video ends at the 4:29
time mark).  Just snap it out.

It's the double-sided tape that probably gets most wear with repeated
disassembly.  It looks to be thin, so it's not double-side foam tape.  I
would remove the tape, and apply new tape during reassembly, and see if
it could be positioned only at the bottom of the keyboard to give a bit
more leverage of peeling the keyboard from the tape.

Key caps are even easier to replace, and cheaper than doing the entire
keyboard.  So what if they're just as crappy as the originals?  You're
replacing them maybe every 3-5 years unless you're being physically
abusive.  Tires wear out, too, but not at extremely short intervals
unless you're getting super soft compound and scrubbing them off with
high-speed turns or takeoffs.

I thought replacing key caps on laptops would be more difficult than for
desktop keyboards.  Nope.  I've replaced key caps several times on
several keyboards.  One time was all key caps to put a cushion
underneath to help silence a clackity keyboard.  The hardest ones are
those with a bail to distribute keypress across the key (Enter, Back,
Enter), because you have to get the bail positioned correctly on
reassembly.  They key cap kits even give you a puller, so you're not
trying to wedge them off with a flat screwdriver.  I didn't see a puller
for the laptop key cap kits, but I didn't hunt around to look.

> Not liking black I replaced my keyboard with a white one, 1mm
> thick white plastic caps with barely a tenth of a mm dark bottom
> layer revealed through the engraved letter would be my idea of a 
> wear-resistant solution. The cover can get thicker bumpers to protect 
> the monitor.

I know there are laser-etched key cap replacements for desktop
keyboards. Desktop keyboards have caps that are taller than laptop key
caps.  However, laser etching requires a thicker plastic which would
probably lead to a fitment problem for key caps replacements in laptops.
Laser etching (to expose a differently color substrate, or allow for
injecting a different colored plastic into the impress) requires more
thickness.  Laptops can be pretty tight regarding dimensions.  They're
not like carrying around a 25-lb Osborne 1.

I didn't hunt around for laser-etched laptop key cap replacements.  They
may be around.  However, total replacement is going to get pricey for
all keys.  Likely you only have a couple keys that get highly used to
scrub off their printed character(s).  So, replace just those keys even
if no better than what was there before.  Several years is better than
hunt-and-peck typing style that has you constantly looking at the
keyboard wondering what that key did.

I have solar path lights.  They have plastic lenses/covers instead of
glass.  After a couple years, the lens gets cloudy.  So, I polish the
lens with 000 steel wool, and coat with a clear outdoor acrylic spray
paint.  I could replace them, or I could maintain them.  You don't want
to replace the entire keyboard.  Replace just the caps.  How long did it
take you to wear through the old key caps?

> Never having learned to touch-type I'm at best a two finger 
> keyboard pounder, it's mostly the corners of my nails that
> chisel the paint off. 

Hint: Dump having long nails for some style thing.  Use these:

https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&q=nail%20clippers
(wink wink)

When my nails get too long, my keypresses are more sloppy.  That's
because nails slide more easily on a key cap than fingertip flesh.  I
also play the piano, and cannot stand long nails.  Interferes with the
"feel" of my fingers on the keys.  Nails don't feel.  Flesh does.

> Clear covers might be a good idea too. I could rewrite the letters
> with marker and fix these with drops of caulking for easy removal.

The key cap covers will have their own non-permanent adhesive, so you
can replace them when they get ragged.  Instead of using marked key cap
covers, and you go with clear covers, you could rewrite the character(s)
atop the keycap, and then use clear nail polish to provide some wear
protection.  Then use the clear covers (not keyboard covers, but key cap
stickers as covers).

You could use an opaque key cap sticker (what's underneath doesn't show
through) instead of you trying to repaint the character on the key cap.
You will not be able to hand print a character atop the key cap as neat
as those for those on key cap stickers.  You'll keep noticing the sloppy
handiwork. Then apply a clear key cap cover over the sticker to take the
wear instead of the underlying key cap label.  Of course, why bother
repeatedly replacing a clear key cap sticker atop the lettered key cap
sticker instead of just replace the lettered key cap sticker.  The
lettered key cap stickers run about $5 for a complete QWERTY set.  Seems
pretty cheap to maintain the keys every few years to make the key caps
legible.  Plus fitment could be a problem with the key cap top getting
too thick where it contacts the screen when folded down when using both
a lettered key cap sticker and a clear key cap sticker.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wH_Z7WzVicI