                       Microsoft Natural Keyboard

                             by Tony Curro


To enter anything, or to use our computers, we need a keyboard. Someday
we will do away with them. We will use voice commands, which we can
do now to some degree, or even telepathy; until then we do need a
keyboard. Keyboards are not the plain objects they were in the
past. With the appearance of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome they are
becoming ergonomically correct.

The MS Natural Keyboard is one of this new breed. At first glance it
looks futuristic, When I first installed it, and tried typing, if felt
awkward I did not think I would like it. The major reason is that I type
with two fingers, and when I am on a wild spree use three or four
fingers. The keyboard, I felt, was designed for the touch typists out
there. However, after I started using it for a while all my fears
subsided. It is a great piece of equipment.

Installation is simple. It has a PS/2 connector on it, and comes with a
standard 5-pin DIN connector in the package. Once plugged in you are
ready to go. MS includes IntelliType software with the keyboard that
adds sound and several other options to enhance the keyboard further.
The software requires approximately 1.2MB of hard disk space.

The keyboard has three keys that you have not seen before. There are two
Windows Logo Keys, and one Application key. Pressing either of the logo
keys brings up the Start menu in Windows 95, or the Task Manager in
Windows 3.1 or NT. Pressing both together, in Windows NT only, will log
you on or off NT. The IntelliType OnLine User's Guide provides many "key
combinations" that you can use in Windows 95. You press the logo key and
another key for a variety of functions that simplify your daily
activities. Use the Application key with Windows 95-based applications
to provide quick access to shortcut menus and help assistants. The F1
key, while providing its normal function, will pop up the help file for
current Windows 95-based applications.

Underneath the keyboard is a wrist leveler. This is designed to
accommodate various body sizes and work station heights. It will provide
a comfortable and straight wrist position while typing. There is also a
palm rester jutting out from the front of the MS Natural Keyboard.

When Bill Gates started out computers were costly. They also did not
have operating systems as we know them today. So he concentrated on
developing operating systems. By the time he thought about keyboards
there were many on the market. So he bided his time and created the next
generation keyboard.

I ran into one problem after installing the keyboard software. I started
to receive many failures. Some were recoverable, while with others I was
forced to reboot the system. This happened with many programs including
WordPad, which is a part of Windows 95. I uninstalled the keyboard
software and the problem went away. I only have 8MB of RAM on my system.
This could have caused the problem.


System Requirements

To use Microsoft Natural Keyboard, and to take advantage of IntelliType
Software and Windows function keys, you need:

* 386 DX/25 or higher
* MS-DOS v3.1 or later
* Windows operating system v3.1 or later (including Windows 95) or
Windows NT v3.51 or later.
* One 3.5" or 5.25" high density disk drive.
* One PS/2-compatible or one 5-pin DIN Keyboard port.
* MDA, CGA, EGA, VGA, SVGA, XGA or VESA VCI-compatible video adapter.

To use just the keyboard, you need:

* 286 or higher
* MS-DOS v2.0 or later
* Same keyboard ports as above
* Same video adapters as above.
