My New Keyboard: The Toshiba 67-Key Modular POS LCD keyboard
here's my new keyboard: the Toshiba 67-Key Modular POS keyboard!
I spent this weekend setting up a layout for it using the Toshiba Modular Device Utility v1.0.36 from Sharktastica's site, and designing a set of legends for it to print on my Epson TM-U675 Multifunctional POS printer!
Some interesting (for me) things to consider regarding the designs of these legends:
I knew I'd be printing these on my epson TM-U675 using the roll paper, so while I got to leverage my extant libraries for interacting with my printer for pixel-perfect print control, I also was limited to 225 pixels per line*!
Since we only have 225 pixels for 3.25" of print area, all of the single height keys are 29px tall, whereas double height are 81px. As for width, the squares are 29px wide and all others are 49px wide.
Because of the ink ribbon cartridge I have, they're fuckin Ourple
* Technically the TM-U675 lets you print in double width mode for up to 450 pixels per line, however it only has a double density mode for width and I did not want to design these with non 1:1 pixel aspect ratios. Maybe next time!
I've actually had this keyboard for a month or so now - I bought myself a clamp to mount this on my desk to use with my main desktop as a macro pad, but found it was too big for the clamp! As a result, it's kinda been floating around my room waiting for me to find a use for it. As luck would have it, I'm trying to learn how to draw and was starting to have frustrations with not having a keyboard under my hands but also not wanting too much between me and my drawing - an ample opportunity for a project!
However, try as I might, I cannot get much control over the LCD: it just says OK! I feel that with the Toshiba UPOS drivers I could do so much more, and could even use the GNU Image Manipulation Program's scripting interface to write status messages for the editor to it, but alas - Toshiba limits access to those resources to those with an Enterprise ID, which I do not have. Locked out of paradise.
Anyway, never give up - enjoy playing with all the weird technology you ever find forever and sometimes you might even find a single practical use for them 😌
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I started drawing this the day before yesterday in GIMP. Today I finished it and made a dimple effect by adding a "shaped" gradient to the black outlines and applying the emboss filter on top of that.
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New christmas mascot. use this in decorations, cookies,
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No see because what I wanted to do when I crop images is I actually wanted to spend 20 minutes screwing around wondering why it's still forcing everything in the old canvas dimensions because it crops the canvas but doesn't automatically fit the layers to the new dimensions and you have to do this manually. It's actually very clever because it makes everything needlessly more complicated and unintuitive.
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Lesson learned. You'll want to be VERY specific when searching the web for this.
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a couple goofs made in G.I.M.P. based on jokes made during a session of Fortress Forever between me and my friends, cobbled together in a couple hours, the context makes it funnier but i think they can be enjoyed without it too.
Barack Obama delivering cells to georgie
monkey noises in gamechat crashing my friend on the server
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