Scott Muellers Upgrading and Repairing Laptops, Second Edition

One of the biggest influences on keyboard design in recent years has been the proliferation of laptop and notebook systems. Because of size limitations, it is obviously impossible to use the standard keyboard layout for a portable computer. Manufacturers have come up with many solutions. Unfortunately, none of these solutions has become an industry standard, as is the 101-key layout for desktop PCs. Because of the variations in design and because a portable system's keyboard is not as easily replaceable as that of a desktop system, the keyboard arrangement should be an important part of your purchasing decision.

Early laptop systems often used smaller-than-normal keys to minimize the size of the keyboard, which resulted in many complaints from users. Today, the keytops on portable systems are usually comparable in size to those of a desktop keyboard, although some systems include half- sized keytops for the function keys and other less frequently used keyboard elements. In addition, consumer demand has caused most manufacturers to retain the inverted-T design for the cursor keys after a few abortive attempts at changing their arrangement.

Although arrangements can vary, a typical laptop keyboard layout can be divided into the following sections:

• Typing area

• Cursor and screen controls

• Function keys

Figure 13.1 shows a typical laptop keyboard to illustrate these sections.

The cursor-control keys are located in the lower left and are arranged in the inverted-T format that is fairly standard on all computer keyboards. The Insert, Delete, Home, End, Page Up, and Page Down keys are located above the Backspace key. The function keys are located across the top of the keyboard. The Esc key is isolated in the upper-left corner of the keyboard. Dedicated Print Screen/Sys Req, Scroll Lock, and Pause/Break keys are provided for commonly used functions.

The most obvious difference in a portable system keyboard is the sacrifice of the numeric keypad. Most systems now embed the keypad into the standard alphabetical part of the keyboard, as shown in Figure 13.2. To switch the keys from their standard values to their keypad values, you typically must press a key combination involving a proprietary Function key, often labeled Fn.

This is an extremely inconvenient solution, and many users abandon their use of the keypad entirely on portable systems. Unfortunately, some activities ”such as the entry of ASCII codes using the Alt key ”require the use of the keypad numbers , which can be quite frustrating on systems using this arrangement.

To alleviate this problem, many portable system manufacturers sell external numeric keypads that plug into the external keyboard port, a serial port, or a USB port. This is a great feature for users performing a lot of numeric data entry. Figure 13.3 shows a USB numeric keypad sold by Belkin, which can be ordered from www.belkin.com.

In addition to keypad control, the Fn key on most laptop keyboards is used to trigger other proprietary features, such as toggling between internal and external displays as well as controlling screen brightness, screen expansion or zoom, sound volume, and more.

Some portable system manufacturers have gone to great lengths to provide users with decent keyboards. For a short time, IBM marketed a revolutionary system called the ThinkPad 701, which had a keyboard that used a " butterfly " design. The keyboard was split into two halves that rested over and under each other when the system was closed. When you opened the lid, the two halves slid from over/under to side by side, forming a keyboard that was actually wider than the computer case. This design is now considered legendary and had won many awards after it was released.

Ironically, the trend toward larger-sized displays in portable systems has made this sort of arrangement unnecessary. Many manufacturers have increased the footprint of their notebook computers to accommodate 15-inch or larger display panels, leaving more than adequate room for a keyboard with full-size keys. Because of this, most portable systems today have keyboards that approach the size and usability of desktop models. This is a vast improvement over some older designs in which the keys were reduced to a point where you could not comfortably touch-type with both hands. Standard conventions such as the inverted-T cursor keys also were modified on older machines, causing extreme user displeasure.

Still, even the largest systems don't have enough room for a separate numeric keypad. If you plan to perform a lot of numeric data entry with your portable computer, look for numeric keypads that plug into your system and override the embedded keypad on the right side of your keyboard, or use a standard 101-key keyboard if you're at your desk.