The Northgate/Avant keyboards have the big old 5-pin connector cable, which you can run through a converter cable — but that still makes an about-to-fall-out-at-any time connection. What finally made me retire the Omnikey was my shoulder. The keyboard has huge girth; the long swing between home row and the mouse resulted in the development of tendinitis.

The solution came the form of the Happy Hacker keyboard. With a width less than 30 cm the mouse can nestle in close. There are two families of Happy Hacker keyboards and it is an important difference. The Lite models use a membrane switch. These are nice, and I have two, but Professional series are ones made for keyboard lovers. The finger feel of the Pro 2 is smooth and gorgeous. They ship from Japan, cost $250, and have very subtle embossed lettering. http://www.geekstuff4u.com/happy-hacking-keyboard-pro-2.html. For those that can fly blind (not me), they sell a model with blank black keytops. Operating a naked keyboard must be bragging point among the Tokyo hip.

One complaint: the absence of an inverted T arrow keypad is a sorely missed feature. I’m still trying to train my right hand’s minor fingers to master the Rt-Fn – [ ; ‘ / substitute arrangement.