Mac questions

wave100

I recently got a Macbook pro for doing music on after being a long term Windoze user. My problem (or at least the one I'm admitting to) is I really want to use a wireless keyboard with a keypad, as I use the keypad all the time in Cubase. I know that I could get the Belkin Bluetooth keypad, but A) I've already got a wireless keyboard and mouse for my PC and I don't want to look any more like a tragic hipster than I already do by owning the laptop. What's the best way of mapping the UK keyboard to OS X? Should I just get a Merkin keyboard? Or is there some Apple product I'm missing? Or should I just embrace my inner hipness and go with the brushed aluminium?

;-)

Axe_meister

You can select the keyboard type on the Mac

sweepy

You can also get the Bluetooth trackpad, that works very well indeed

marcus449

Wired Apple British Keyboard: http://www.apple.com/uk/shop/product/MB110B/B/apple-keyboard-with-numeric-keypad-british?fnode=56    They don't do a wireless full british keyboard

Should be easy to set up your Belkin keyboard with the mac, althought that does depend on the model, but mapping a keyboard is pretty easy. (it may just not be compatible) 

apple do sell this by god it's expensive : http://www.apple.com/uk/shop/product/HD389ZM/B/belkin-wireless-yourtype-numeric-keypad-for-imac-and-macbook?fnode=56

dern

marcus449 said:

Wired Apple British Keyboard: http://www.apple.com/uk/shop/product/MB110B/B/apple-keyboard-with-numeric-keypad-british?fnode=56    They don't do a wireless full british keyboard

Yes. I have two of these and really like them and they work flawlessly. Trying to use a windows keyboard on a mac is too much of pain.

crunchman

They should offer MacBooks with a UK keyboard layout in the UK.  That was one of my many gripes when I had a MBP.

Axe_meister

It's easy enough to change. Google it.

NPP

keyboard layouts are easily changed, as said above, and, hardware-wise, I have no problems using the wireless keyboard off my old Windows desktop with my Macbook. 

The keyboard is a UK one but my layout (and Mac keyboard) is German so I just try to remember where the keys are and painted on the ones I always forget with Tippex. 

mynamesnotbob

crunchman said:

They should offer MacBooks with a UK keyboard layout in the UK.  That was one of my many gripes when I had a MBP.

All MacBooks sold in the U.K. come with U.K. keyboard, it's just not a PC layout. The us keyboards don't have a £ for instance, they have a # on the 3 key

crunchman

mynamesnotbob said:

crunchman said:

They should offer MacBooks with a UK keyboard layout in the UK.  That was one of my many gripes when I had a MBP.

All MacBooks sold in the U.K. come with U.K. keyboard, it's just not a PC layout. The us keyboards don't have a £ for instance, they have a # on the 3 key

It's not where I expect things to be though.  The " character should be shift 2 and the @ character should be 2 keys left of the return key.

Axe_meister

Again you can change the keyboard layout

wave100

This is an MS keyboard, the layout is uk in the localisation settings, the most annoying thing for me is the reversal of " and @. I suppose I will just type my emails in Windows.  The other thing that is confusing me is trying to use the "2 finger for right click" on a Windows laptop. I'm not really asking for advice on that one! @Axe_meister, do you mean you can program the individual keys (which would solve my @ and " problem) rather than just setting the uk keyboard setting? Although I would need to remember to change it back if I was going mobile.

I thought I would post on here as it struck me as the kind of question which would be best answered in a conversation rather than wading through 5 gazillian google hits about how to select the uk keyboard!
 
dern said:

marcus449 said:

Wired Apple British Keyboard: http://www.apple.com/uk/shop/product/MB110B/B/apple-keyboard-with-numeric-keypad-british?fnode=56    They don't do a wireless full british keyboard

Yes. I have two of these and really like them and they work flawlessly. Trying to use a windows keyboard on a mac is too much of pain.

This has confirmed my opinion that it is, indeed, a pain. If I find it too annoying I'll give that Belkin thingy a try.

Cheers lads

Axe_meister

To quote from Mac forum

there is already a "British - PC" layout installed by default.

To activate it was Settings->Keyboard->Input Sources->Plus sign & find it from the list, and then click the input source icon in the menu bar to select it.

Just search for British PC in the keyboard list