DIYbanter - View Single Post - (OT) Need keyboard & mouse for old Apple G3 computer

Don Y[_3_]

On 6/7/2016 7:30 PM, wrote:

It seems that the original ABD keyboards sell for big money, so I wont
even consider buying one of them. I could be wrong, but I'm guessing
that I could use ANY mouse with a USB plug (is that true?)
But can I use a USB keyboard which is made for a PC? (Knowing that the
specific "windows" keys will be worthless).

The problem you will find is bringing up the computer. A USB keyboard might
work -- but probably only after the OS is running. I.e., if you ever have to
install from scratch, you might discover that it REQUIRES a genuine keyboard
to interact with the machine.

So I either need a genuine Mac USB or ADB keyboard, for things to work
properly. Right?

It depends on how convenient you want the system to be -- how you value time
vs. money.

I've found it easier just to have the "right" keyboard for each machine,
here. One less thing I have to remember (e.g., have caps lock and control
been swapped on this keyboard? or not? where's the "Compose" key?
which key increases the screen brightness??). Especially when I'm
switching between keyboards on the fly (working on two or more computers
at the same time).