a good universal keyboard

I'm looking for a good FCP or AVID keyed keyboard that has a USB connection and can be used on both PC and MAC. I'd also like it to have some USB ports on the keyboard. Any suggestions?

I actually use my Apple keyboard on my PC and use a PostOp Video EZKeyboard on my mac. Don't really use the short cuts anymore but people always comment about the pretty colors.

Steve

You can use the stock keyboard that came with your computer, and just replace the keys.

www.logickeyboard.com

I really like my MacAlly Media Key keyboard it's pretty much a standard Mac Keyboard but with a bunch of extra programable keys. Most of all I like the keys actions. It's also got a power key for shutting down.

This is what I use and swear by. FCP PRO SERIES 3 by BELLA

[www.bella-usa.com]

Nah, you don't need one. Learn the keyboard shortcuts.



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The colour-coded keyboards are good for facilitating learning shortcuts, but once you know enough shortcuts you won't be looking at the keys. Plus most of those suckers have a lousy feel on the fingertips -- most keyboards I've used have subtle difference in the depth of the depression on top so that you can feel whether you're in the correct ASDF position, but those "training keyboards" don't, not to my fingers. And they're usually unergonomic, clumsy (too many miscellaneous keys), unresponsive, buggy (Eject doesn't work on half of them) and take up way too much space.

I would agree with Derek about the feel, pretty cheezzy and i did have to remap the eject. I seem to remember FCP coming with clear short cut stickers to put on your apple keyboard. Once you learn the shortcuts you can take them off.

I'll add my contrary opinion.

I like the keyboards, especially when I'm having weeks like this one, where I have to hop between Avid and FCP. Having the visual cues of each keyboard really helps me keep my head in which app I'm using a greatly reduces the number of wrong key combinations I use when I'm switching between FCP and Avid. I retain my usual swift and super-fast trademark editing style when I have access to the keyboards, especially when I spend all day on Avid and go back to my office and work on FCP in the evenings.

I say "well, that would've worked if I were using an Avid" far less when I'm using a FCP-coded keyboard than a regular ol' Mac keyboard.

But how can a client tell that you're a pro if you don't have a real fancy colored keyboard?

Seriously are there ones out there that look more like the pro apps themselves? That blue-ish gray running the gamut from very dark to quite bright for example?

Frank

What do you think of this one that I use:

[www.bella-usa.com]

(As posted 5th message)

I think this one is awsome. I think the clients like it as well but thats not my motivation. The jog wheel on the keyboard saves you buying an external jog wheel (which are apparently better, but I think this is just as good). Saves space as well. What do you think Frank?

Yes Benn, I actually looked at that one before. First thing that popped into my head was "Fisher Price" . It's really quite the opposite from what I perceive as elegant. Also I have a feeling that I'd constantly be hitting the arrow keys on the hand-rest.

I'll try out the Contour Shuttle Express vs the Power Mate from Griffin this week for scrubbing.

The thing I liked about the Bella keyboard is the 4 finger rests in the jog wheel.

It seems there aren't that much companies building input devices for editing, color correction, etc. The Quantel stuff looked promising but I couldn't get them to trade my car for a system. Probably too cheap of a car to begin with