International Keyboards

When I first arrived at Framestore, my computer had a British keyboard on it. It's very similar to an American keyboard with a few "key" exceptions (pun intended).

The @ and " are switched.

The # is £.

The ~ is on an extra key next to the return key.

And the | is on an extra key between z and the left shift.

I decided that rather than be a sore thumb and try to get a replacement, that I would try to be all international about it, and use the British one at Framestore.

But of course, my MacBook Pro has an American keyboard on it at home. So in the evenings I would spend the first half hour of working reminding myself that I was on an American keyboard and then the next morning I'd have to remember where all those fancy keys were.

I thought I'd get used to it, partly because Alex says that he's used to it and doesn't even have to think about it anymore. But he's been doing it for years. And I don't have to. I finally broke down and asked for an American keyboard at work. They brought me an old grey SGI keyboard. It has a nice nostalgic feel to it, and all the keys are in the right place.

It's amazing how the little things can make such a big difference. It's so comfortable to use an American keyboard again.

Oh well. I haven't picked up a British accent either.

Dave