I couldn't find any board with color and icon coded keycaps for Vegas. Will there be such a board or will Vegas users have to do with stickers? I have tried stickers before (when I used Premiere) and they have a tendency to fall off after a while.

I asked this at he DMN forums too but wiil ask here:

What is the difference between the "DV Keyboard" and the "Professional Series" other than price and the color coded keys.

Also just wondering why with the "DV keyboard" you include free stickers for Pinnacle Studio, Sonic Foundry VideoFactory (Screenblast MovieStudio/Video Explosion Deluxe) and Final Cut Express but if you want VV 4 (or Premiere, Avid Xpress DV or Edition 5) you have to pay $14.95 extra? Wouldn't it be better to just sell the keyboard with the sticker set for whatever NLE the person will use it for? (Ie - the VV DV Keyboard, the Premiere DV keyboard, etc)

I'd buy one right away if the bottom of the keyboard was flat, or you could remove that curved section. I hate keyboards like that, they just don't work with the wrist pads that I use for my mouse and keyboard to prevent my hands from falling off due to many many hours of editing.

Currently we just have US versions of the keyboards - perhaps in the future...

>>What is the difference between the "DV Keyboard" and the "Professional Series" other than price and the color coded keys.<<

Essentially, that's it, however it's more about WHO is using the keyboard and HOW it is used that should be the deciding factors. With the DV Keyboard, as the keycaps are not color coded but instead can utilize our stickers, we imagine that this would be an excellent keyboard for a home user that may share the computer with other family members. For example, perhaps mom uses the computer to edit videos, dad balances the family checkbook, and kids do schoolwork and play games. With the DV Keyboard, all the family members will be able to use the keyboard (and can program some cool things with the jog/shuttle and Specialty Keys for their particular apps) without being "thrown" by color-coded keycaps.

So the Pro Series is targeted more towards a user that doesn't share the computer and uses that computer primarily for editing.

>>Also just wondering why with the "DV keyboard" you include free stickers for Pinnacle Studio, Sonic Foundry VideoFactory (Screenblast MovieStudio/Video Explosion Deluxe) and Final Cut Express but if you want VV 4 (or Premiere, Avid Xpress DV or Edition 5) you have to pay $14.95 extra? Wouldn't it be better to just sell the keyboard with the sticker set for whatever NLE the person will use it for? (Ie - the VV DV Keyboard, the Premiere DV keyboard, etc)<<

Something we have given some thought to, but the reality is that most of the pro apps contain significantly more stickers, so the cost becomes prohibitive.

Good questions! Let me know if you have any more.

>>I'd buy one right away if the bottom of the keyboard was flat, or you could remove that curved section. I hate keyboards like that, they just don't work with the wrist pads that I use for my mouse and keyboard to prevent my hands from falling off due to many many hours of editing. <<

Nope, can't remove our wrist rest, but I think if you gave it a try you'd find that you'd be just as happy as with your seperate wrist rest.

Nope, I bought a keyboard from Logitech wich had the same bottom, but it was removable. I used it for a while but I couldn't stand it, so I had to take it off.

The site says that the stickers by themselves "will not fit on a standard keyboard." Is this really true? Do your keyboards have non-standard key sizes? Won't that make it difficult to type?

Also, $100 clams is a bit much for me, especially since I'm not really interested in the jog shuttle. I really can't just buy the $14.95 Vegas 4 stickers and put them on my existing keyboard?

Has anyone ever tries something like this? Is it any good? :
http://www.hooleon.com/prod-diy-lbl.htm

>>The site says that the stickers by themselves "will not fit on a standard keyboard." Is this really true? Do your keyboards have non-standard key sizes? Won't that make it difficult to type?<<

It is true - we have desighed our keyboards and stickers together, they definately will not work on a standard keyboard.

>>Also, $100 clams is a bit much for me, especially since I'm not really interested in the jog shuttle. I really can't just buy the $14.95 Vegas 4 stickers and put them on my existing keyboard?<<

The stickers are the icing on the cake, so to speak - once you've tried the jog/shuttle, you'll never go back. BTW, with Vegas and VideoFactory, we have what I can only characterize as "amazing" control with the shuttle. Our control in Vegas and VideoFactory is better than any other app we have tested...

I was looking at that, too, Mark. I'd like to hear from others who have tried these as well. What do you print them on? A laser printer?

I guess that a lot of us already have the Contur Shuttle Pro (or a similar device) and thus only need the keyboard. I would buy a keyboard if it came with color coded keys but not if it only comes with a sticker set (bad experience since earlier with those). So will there be a color coded keyboard for Vegas 4 (the "classic" as the one for Premiere, AE and FCP)?

>>I guess that a lot of us already have the Contur Shuttle Pro (or a similar device) and thus only need the keyboard. I would buy a keyboard if it came with color coded keys but not if it only comes with a sticker set (bad experience since earlier with those). So will there be a color coded keyboard for Vegas 4 (the "classic" as the one for Premiere, AE and FCP)?<<

First, our stickers are of excellent quality - unfortunately, the FCP ones gave the whole notion of a sticker set a bad name. Regarding us making a color coded version for Vegas, it always possible - we'll have to see what the demand is like. At this point, it's not in the near term.

My guess is that the stickers will work on any keyboard. The statement that they "definitely will not work on a standard keyboard" sounds like a crock to me. Look at their keyboard! It's a keyboard! Bella is obviously wanting to sell their keyboards and not just sticker packets.

>>My guess is that the stickers will work on any keyboard. The statement that they "definitely will not work on a standard keyboard" sounds like a crock to me. Look at their keyboard! It's a keyboard! Bella is obviously wanting to sell their keyboards and not just sticker packets. <<

Well, you are right and wrong. You are right in the fact that we are more interested in selling our keyboards, and wrong about thinking that our DV Keyboard stickers will work on other keyboards: they will not - we have purposefully designed them that way (sorry).

As helpful as the stickers are, I think that once you start using the jog/shuttle and specialty keys, you will wonder how you ever lived without it. We have a 15 day return policy for the keyboards, so try it - if you don't like it, return it. BTW, speaking of the sticker sets, they are on a pre-order status currently, but should be available in a couple of weeks.

I don't care for the wheel placement on the keyboard.
Being natrual lefty, I had to become ambidexterus when learning to mouse around computers with right hand. I would have to go with Contour Shuttle Pro because I could use the jog wheel with my left hand and mouse in right. [Also use tablet pen with left...] talk about multi tasking.

I had written Bella an e-mail a couple of months ago and specifically asked if the DV keyboard worked with Vegas 4.0. I was told then that it didn't, just Video Factory. What's changed?

>>I had written Bella an e-mail a couple of months ago and specifically asked if the DV keyboard worked with Vegas 4.0. I was told then that it didn't, just Video Factory. What's changed?<<

Hmm. Not sure why someone would have said that, except perhaps that was prior to us having a copy to test with. Either way, I can assure you that it works perfectly with both applications - actually, (as I've stated before), the best by far of any software we have tested.

Well, two options:

1) Let me know when your keycaps will work on my fine paid-for keyboard; or,
2) Let me know when you have a color-coded professional keyboard with standard key size, placement, etc. that I can try for a reasonable length of time, with a money-back guarantee that I will like it.

Your sticker set is a STICKER set, right? Please explain to me in DETAIL why your stickers won't stick on MY keyboard. What specific "design" elements did you incorporate into your sticker set that makes it incompatible with keyboards other than yours? And please don't say key size and shape, because I'm looking at photos of you keyboard an your key layout and size are not any different than my keyboard. Thanks.

Oh come on guys and gals, give the Bella people a break. It was just information. They obviously want to sell both stickers and keyboard as a package deal. I personally would just want the stickers myself, but could see how others might benefit from this keyboard. Its just easier to say the stickers fit a certain keyboard instead of handling customer service complaints if they dont fit. My keyboard happens to have funky oval shape buttons for a lot of the keys. Even though my keyboard has a standard layout the stickers probably wouldnt work. They however might work on yours.

I agree entirely with Starixiom...I for one thank Bella for making the keyboard "available"/adapted to Vegas. IF I hadn't bought the Shuttle Pro and IF there was a Keyboard available for Spanish, I would definitely buy one: in fact I called the dealer in Spain to ask for a quote (he didnt mention the keyboard wasn't european/spanish).

Soooo...if there was a coloured keyboard with no shuttle/jog wheel, AND had the keys needed for Spanish/EURO, I would buy today...come to think of it, make that yesterday...