I guess you could compare short cuts for both apps. Or maybe drop EditorsKeys an email and ask. But i have no clue. Maybe someone out there uses both and can comment.

Paul.

Have not used or seen one of the editorskeys boards from the UK.
It appears to have chicolet keys which I would not want.

On the other hand I have used Bella Keyboards from the US which are made to a high standard with real keys and can be remapped depending on the version of driver software and NLE software you are using.

i use an 'old' logitech 110 gaming keyboard - it has 12 programmable keys. better than the dedicated keyboard (ie. labeled) i used to use.

+1 for the Logitech keyboards.
I have a G110 with the 12 extra keys on the left hand side and they are great for programming shortcuts.

That Vegas keyboard does look good for learning the shortcuts, but have to disagree with their spiel-

"So whilst saving time and money, you’ll also impress your clients by transforming your standard room into a professional video studio. Each key also contains the shortcut text as well as your keyboards standard letter for easy typing."

I imagine it as.....
a client walks in, looks at your keyboard, and he says,
"O ok, you're still learning your software. I hope you work cheap!
And without that keyboard in here this would just look like a bedroom with a PC in it.
Now it looks like an edit suite!"

:)

Hmm, somewhere in the wayback room I have a genuine CMX 340 dedicated keyboard.

The Bella keyboard looks interesting, except for that silly mouse/jog thingummy that is useless for cack-handers like me.

I volunteered to check the keys on the Editors Keyboards for Vegas before they went into production (a sort of proof read, if you like), and made a few suggestions. For my troubles I received a keyboard which I also promised to review for a couple of magazine's/newsletters in the UK. (Which I haven't done because of a niggle yet to be sorted)

How useful such aids are depends very much on how you work. I don't think it is very useful on a "needs driven" basis (eg if I wonder if there is a keyboard shortcut for a particular function, scanning the keyboard is not a very efficient way of finding it). On the other hand when you know what you're after is somewhere around a particular area of the keyboard it can be useful. Similarly, having all these shortcuts in front of o might be useful to browse whilst waiting for a short render or any other "down time" whilst at the computer.

Of course this applies to any keyboards of this sort. As for this particular keyboard:

It is a 105 key Mac type keyboard. It has reasonable weight with ruber feet and stays put on the desk. The top is plastic, sprayed and textured to look like brushed aluminiun. The keycaps are coloured - they appear to be made of different coloured plastics so the. I'm not entirely sue of the logic behind the colour groupings, but I guess that helps navigate. On each key the shortcut commands are printed in black (keystroke only), green (shift+keystroke), blue (ctrl+keystroke) and red (alt+keystroke). There are also icons reflecting the Vegas icons in black. - to my mind a mistake as it clutters up the keys though I understand there are many who prefer this visual approach.

The letters/commands appear to be printed rather than etched but I've used this keyboard for a couple of months now as well as tried to scratch the printing with my fingernail and there is no sign of the printing wearing off.

The keys are scrabble type tiles and it feels like there's a positive movement when pressing them. However, I'm no touch typist, but I suspect this isn't an ideal keyboard for one who is.

My biggest problem is that I cannot get a backslash out of the keyboard. The backslash character is printed on the key to the left of the enter and above the shift but no combination of keystrokes seems to achieve this (or the concatenate symbol - vertical line) that also adorns this key.

Unfortunately my contact at Editors Keys has not been able to resolve this.

Note I am using the UK version of the keyboard on Windows 7 Pro (UK regional settings etc)

Have I used the keyboard for finding short cuts? Only once or twice - as stated earlier this is more down to my way of working.

Is the backslash problem a major issue? Yes (I open up WIndows Explorer and copy a backslash from the address bar if I need one)

Why have I not swapped back to my old keyboard? (1) I live in hope the backslash problem will be resolved (2) I rather like the minimal size.

Thanks Tim for posting your findings. I was half tempted to get one of these so it was good to read more about it. Also being in the UK, I think we generally get a bad deal on the hardware side for video and accessories. Most products that we see getting advertised seem to be from the states and we get hammered for import taxes and shipping if we buy them. Thats why i always look to UK products first. Its also way easier to contact them (same time zone) and less hassle to return in the event of a fault.
But after saying all that, the backslash issue is a bit of a show stopper for me. Would not be so bad if the keyboard was only going to be used for Vegas, but in real world use i use it all the time for other applications. And it seems a bit silly to have multiple keyboards on the desk or copying from a URL or something like notepad.
So yes, hope that gets fixed. What happens when you press the key? Any code generated at all? Thinking if there is a way to remap it as a work around.
Also, i kinda like the idea of it being similar to Mac keyboard. I know that may not appeal to some, but i actually like the feel of Mac keys. And its faster to type once you get the hang of it (feels weird at first). Basically less noise typing and less distance to push down. Small points that add up to a better experience imo.

Paul.

I bought one of the Bella keyboards, but most of the "feature" labeling has worn off. I can go through a lot of cheap keyboards for $100.

Paul W:
The key with the backslash has four characters printed on it: backslash, "pipe", hash and tilde. The key on its own produces # and with shift produces ~. In combination with other modifiers it appears to produce nothing.

Don't misunderstand my comment about the "Mac" keyboard. It has that look in terms of layout, but from what I remember of Mac keyboards it is not as quiet. More like the scrabble keys so popular on laptops.

Anyway this discussion has prompted me to make contact with Editors Keys again and see if they've made any progress. I did say that I'd mentioned it here and that for one contributor at least it was a deal breaker!

Nice, will be interesting to hear if they can sort it.

Paul.

Is this a programmable keyboard, or just a keyboard with Vegas keyboard functions printed on the keys?

What's a cack-hander?

I have a Bella DV Keyboard 3.0 with the Vegas key set. Once you have it set up its pretty handy with the shuttle wheel as part of the keyboard. Pretty good option and a few more features than the one you are looking at.

http://www.bella-usa.com/dv-keyboard/dv-keyboard-3-0-with-vegas-keycaps


Mike

What's a cack-hander?

UK slang for left handed...

( Didn't know that till my friend Google told me about it ... )

I bought a set of EditorsKeys stickers a few years ago to put on my KeyTronic keyboard, turns out that I never actually use them. It only cost me $20, so it wasn't a big deal. As far as keyboards go, I'm much more interested in the feel of the keyboard itself, I'm going to get my hands on this one:

http://codekeyboards.com/

If Western Electric made those keys the letters would be as thick as the key itself. You couldn't wear them out in 20 years. And they did test their stuff.
JJK