So I just started using my new ergo 4000 and I am VERY disappointed. The pad and the new downward angle are AWESOME (I just wish I had a slightly higher chair and/or lower desk) and everything else is GREAT about it except for one HUGE thing. THis effing spacebar is driving me crazy. First it was stiff as hell… Now the right side is starting to loosen up, but just as it started loosening up it started making a really, really loud click every time I hit it. My problem isn’t so much that it’s hard to press (like several other people said), but more that it is “sticky” and doesn’t recoil very quickly. Not feeling the key rise with my finger feels very odd and I’m having trouble getting used to it. I saw another keyboard at the store where I bought this one that wasn’t quite as ergo but did have a slight curve to it and was wireless (big plus). Maybe I’ll go return this tomorrow, check out another ergo 4000 in the store and see if it’s any better. Then if they are all like this, get the other keyboard instead.
The NEC 4000 is now compatible with Intel-based Macs. Whoopee!
My post may not be a good fit on this thread, but it could influence a user or two of the Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 (NEC 4000).
I’m a veteran Natural Keyboard Pro user, and a two-finger typist with a collection of worn out, largest-ball-available trackballs. An ergo board keeps me from crossing typing hands on occasion. Crazy, huh? The trackball completely eliminated a bad case of strained tendons in my right wrist.
I don’t regret switching from PCs to an Intel-based Mac mini computer one year ago, but the Intel Mac rendered the NKP hot keys and many combo keys useless.
I bought an NEC 4000 in November, 2006. Prior to installing its ver. 5.3 software CD, the keyboard functioned no better than the NKP. When I attempted to install it, the Intel Mac (Intel is the key word here) locked up, and the CD would not eject. The fellas at The Apple Store removed it for me.
I logged in to Apple’s forums, and found a related thread. I read the 100 most recent entries from Intel Mac users who had posted about the same problem. No solutions were offered. With resignation I figured that, until Microsoft issued updated software compatible with the Intel Mac, I was out of luck.
But wait! None of the posters stated that they had actually checked with MS for a driver update. I did just that. Lo and behold, MS had issued ver. 5.5, with an Intel Mac fix included, way back in February, 2006! It is now downloaded and installed in my Mac. So far, in an ongoing process, I have a lot of the combo key shortcuts and hot keys working.
My transition is trickier than only switching from a PC keyboard to an Apple keyboard-- a type I have never used. In deference to former Apple keyboard users, MS has reassigned as the default some functions to the Alt, Control and other function keys.
After I have a more complete understanding of how Apple keys such as Command and Option relate to standard PC function keys, I can use them to better advantage and relax. While I’m in the learning mode, I’m training myself to do everything possible on the keyboard, and much less with the trackball. Ctrl+T reverses the two letters before and after the cursor insertion point, and will change, for example, the misspelled “tpi” to “tip.” Cool! (With Macs, Alt+T brings up the font window.)
My point? I don’t like the smaller Enter key either. I don’t have the Back/Forward bars working yet. And all too often, I hit the wider Caps Lock key along with the lower case “a”. But that’s the least of my worries. My challenge is learning to two new languages simultaneously–Mac-talk and how to talk to my keyboard. Try doing that and you will quickly forget about the Enter key being smaller. At least, I did.
I like the site, Jeff Atwood, for your content and design, and the high quality of the posts. Found it on Wiki in “keyboards”. The entries helped me, and I felt like I could read forever without my eyes tiring. Is the font Tahoma? That what I used on my Dell Win XP. Mac OS X 10.4 has an extensive list of fonts, but they left off Tahoma this time.
Jim
I accidentally spilled water on mine! I unscrewed all the screws from the bottom, removed the two hand-rest pads, removed the two screws that were under the handrests… and I still can’t get the keyboard to come apart.
It feels like there is one more screw holding the thing together right in the middle. I felt a small depression under the serial number barcode sticker on the bottom, and I figured this was the final screw. I peeled off the sticker, and there is indeed some sort of screw. But it has no threads, and appears to be made of plastic.
Does anyone have a link to a step-by-step guide to opening this baby up? I’d hate to have to toss it just because I can’t figure out how to open it.
marcel, I had the exact same problem that you did a few months ago. The thing underneath the sticker is not a screw and you don’t need to remove it. You need to remove the spacebar key. You will find more screws under there. Good luck
Is there a trick to removing the space bar? Do I just pry it off with a flathead screwdriver?
Can anyone help??
I can’t seem to get my win2000 pro desktop to recognize the new keyboard. I installed the software, powered down plugged in the usb keyboard, old pluged my old traditional keyboard and powered up - can’t hit Ctrl/Alt/dlt.
I then uninstalled the s/w and tried having win2000 regonize the new hardware and install the s/w that way - still nothing.
then I tried plugging it in so that win2000 recognized the new h/w, skipped the install of new s/w and still nothing.
I tried intellitype 5.5 and 6.2? and still nothing.
anyone else running on win2000 pro?
I’ve got two of these keyboards - one at work and one at home. Every now and then when I boot up into WinXP the keyboard doesn’t work. If I unplug it from the USB port and plug it back into the same one, it immediately starts working again (no reboot required). This happens on both of my two totally different PCs. Any ideas?
I have another problem that I sometimes run into in games when I try to use the Num Pad arrow keys to move while using the 4 standalone arrow keys to adjust the camera. Every now and then the keyboard will not sense when I release a key and either I’ll keep moving or the camera will keep spinning. I have to mash all the keys and eventually it picks up on the key release. Anyone run into something like this?
Hi! I am also trying to figure out how to get the spacebar off this keyboard. The spacebar stopped working sometimes, so I’m trying to clean it out. I blew some canned air in there, but not much dirt came out. I notice that the open spaces in the keyboard are pretty thick, with lots of room for lint, dust, dirt, hair, whatever to fall down in there, so I want to try a deeper cleaning and see if that helps the spacebar problem. The spacebar didn’t pop off easily, though, and I don’t want to break it. Any advice? Thanks.
Okay, never mind. We just got bold solved the problem ourselves. Popped the space bar off with a butter knife found the problem may have been that someone else popped it off for cleaning didn’t replace it properly. People complain that the space bar is stiff, right? But this one was soft on the edges sticking. I think the metal wire on the underside of the space bar was not sitting right. Now it’s fixed. Don’t be shy. Try to pop the space bar straight up if you need to; it’s resting inside of 4 tall plastic housings.
I miss the windows key on the right side… “Windows L” to lock the PC when I get up, used to be able to do that one handed as I’m jumping up to a meeting or something.
I tried all of the fixes suggested here for the volume key problem, nothing worked for my IBM/Lenovo T42 notebook.
However, IBM does provide a way to use an external keyboard to access certain hardware functions (such as volume, sleep, and external monitor control) via alternative key combinations:
Start - Programs - ThinkVantage - Keyboard Customizer Utility
Select the “External Keyboard” tab, and check the “Enable” box.
When this box is checked, IBM provides a set of default key combinations, which use the arrow keys for volume control. I didn’t particularly like using the arrow keys for volume, because it conflicts with other things I use them for. Instead, I fiddled with the settings to use three of the function keys for volume, and attached little stickers to my keyboard to remind me of which are which.
Just figured out from C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliType Pro\commands.xml that F5 or open button can do next track for winamp
you may add the key codes here for different next prev buttons so that the web page does not refreshes when you try to change the track. 
Application UniqueName=“BaseWindow_RootWnd” AppName="WinAmp"
C308 Type=“5” KeySeq=“l” /
/Application
Well, I’m in total agreement
that Code Complete is the
greatest programming book
in the world…
but I think my keyboard is better.
plus, I’m a Dvorak convert, and
I don’t think I’ll ever go back to
QWERTY.
it’s a TypeMatrix EZ-Reach 2030
(typematrix dot com)
I had a lot of hand pain before
switching and now, no more pain.
It’s not perfect, but a new version
is coming out soon that should fix
some minor problems.
Well I wana must say that. This blog is very imformative for me and I m very glad full for this blog owner. And I must say this to blog owner u make more this type blogs and we get more information abt this. Thanks
Help! I installed this new 4000 keyboard and all it ever does when I try to shut down the computer is restart it again. I put back my Natural Pro one and it shuts down fine. I can’t even install the 4000 software properly as it keeps saying that there’s an error… oh bum - I really want to use it but it’s no good if it just keeps rebooting when I want to go to bed!! HELP!!!
I just bought this keyboard and I can figure out to override the preset cmd key functionality. In EXCEL I use the F2 key to edit a cell and now the F2 will only “undo”. Anyone know how to change the cmd key settings? The keyboard mapping allows me to “disable” it or assign programs to them… But that’s not much help.
Never mind. I discovered the “F Lock” key and that solved everything.
I have the Microsoft Natural Curve 2000, and I love it.
Definetly worth the money, 20$.
http://www.hardware-pacers.com/pages.php?pid=338catType=r
YES!!! Thanks to gary way up there for providing the solution to my Natural Keyboard 4000 volume +/- woes.
I had it working, then I re-installed windows (used xp media center with rollup 2 and rollup 2 update installed), and for some reason, after installing intellitype pro 6.1, I couldn’t get the volume to work. Mute worked, all other buttons worked - just not volume. I tried uninstalling it and installing 5.5 - nothing … uninstalled and installed 5.2 - nothing … uninstalled and installed 6.1 again - still nothing. Then, on the recommendation of Gary, I went into services and discovered that the hid input service was disabled - not sure how that happened, but changing its startup to automatic and starting the service fixed everything. Thanks gary!!
Thanks for the volume fix. All the way back in 2005 was the post. lol
""Volume control seems to work fine if you start the “HID Input Service”.
If you are not able to start it (happened to me), fire up the registry
editor and find:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\HidServ\Parameters
If there’s a string called “ServiceDll” delete it, and create a new one
(expandable string named “ServiceDll”) with this value:
%SystemRoot%\System32\hidserv.dll""