Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

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darien95

Oct 30, 2008; 5:19am

Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

I've been using my USB keyboard on my lap since I connected my
computer to my PC and now don't have any other good place for it. Is
this a bad idea? Also, how far should you sit from an LCD monitor to
be safe?

Marc Martin

Oct 30, 2008; 5:24am

Re: Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

Administrator

> I've been using my USB keyboard on my lap since I connected my
> computer to my PC and now don't have any other good place for it. Is
> this a bad idea? Also, how far should you sit from an LCD monitor to
> be safe?

I suspect the keyboard and mouse should be the least of your worries.
The monitor, computer, and Internet router are probably the things
you should try to keep your distance from. I use a keyboard tray,
so the keyboard is only about an inch above my legs/knees. My
LCD monitor is about 3 - 4 feet sway from my face, but I think to
be really safe it would have to be an impractical distance away...
like 10 feet.

Marc

darien95

Oct 30, 2008; 5:35am

Re: Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

--- In [hidden email], Marc Martin <marc@...> wrote:

>
> > I've been using my USB keyboard on my lap since I connected my
> > computer to my PC and now don't have any other good place for it. Is
> > this a bad idea? Also, how far should you sit from an LCD monitor to
> > be safe?
>
> I suspect the keyboard and mouse should be the least of your worries.
> The monitor, computer, and Internet router are probably the things
> you should try to keep your distance from. I use a keyboard tray,
> so the keyboard is only about an inch above my legs/knees. My
> LCD monitor is about 3 - 4 feet sway from my face, but I think to
> be really safe it would have to be an impractical distance away...
> like 10 feet.
>
> Marc

... [show rest of quote]

Why the Internet router? What about the wireless adapter in the PC? Is
that not as bad? And how far from a CRT monitor?
>

Marc Martin

Oct 30, 2008; 6:32am

Re: Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

Administrator

> Why the Internet router? What about the wireless adapter in the PC?
> Is that not as bad?

Well, you should not be using your router or PC in wireless mode... :-)
That is something that should be replaced with wires.

> And how far from a CRT monitor?

In an ideal world, 10+ feet away... but of course you cannot do that,
so as far away as you can get it.

Marc

R. Ticle

Oct 30, 2008; 12:26pm

Re: Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

If it's of interest, I find that I have a much better time with my LCD
screen (Dell 24") than an old CRT I used to use. I visited a home
last month and checked their CRT - apart from the flickering problem
it had, which made it difficult to look at, it put out, even at
keyboard range, ie, a few feet away, 3+ milligauss of magnetic field,
and when it got turned on after being completely shut off, even
farther away than that, it gave a burst of nearly 100 milligauss.

R.

--- In [hidden email], "Marc Martin" <marc@...> wrote:

>
> > Why the Internet router? What about the wireless adapter in the PC?
> > Is that not as bad?
>
> Well, you should not be using your router or PC in wireless mode... :-)
> That is something that should be replaced with wires.
>
> > And how far from a CRT monitor?
>
> In an ideal world, 10+ feet away... but of course you cannot do that,
> so as far away as you can get it.
>
> Marc
>

BiBrun

Oct 30, 2008; 2:16pm

Re: Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

Chances are the keyboard emits ELF electric and magnetic fields,
and RF. The electric can be shielded, and if the computer is not
grounded (or isolated and running only on a battery, with router also
isolated or grounded) it would probably help to ground a metal tray
between you and the keyboard.

If you were planning to have kids I would definitely be concerned
about any electronics on the lap.

Bill

On Thu, Oct 30, 2008 at 6:26 AM, rticleone <[hidden email]> wrote:

> If it's of interest, I find that I have a much better time with my LCD
> screen (Dell 24") than an old CRT I used to use. I visited a home
> last month and checked their CRT - apart from the flickering problem
> it had, which made it difficult to look at, it put out, even at
> keyboard range, ie, a few feet away, 3+ milligauss of magnetic field,
> and when it got turned on after being completely shut off, even
> farther away than that, it gave a burst of nearly 100 milligauss.
>
> R.
>
>
> --- In [hidden email] <eSens%40yahoogroups.com>, "Marc Martin"
> <marc@...> wrote:
> >
> > > Why the Internet router? What about the wireless adapter in the PC?
> > > Is that not as bad?
> >
> > Well, you should not be using your router or PC in wireless mode... :-)
> > That is something that should be replaced with wires.
> >
> > > And how far from a CRT monitor?
> >
> > In an ideal world, 10+ feet away... but of course you cannot do that,
> > so as far away as you can get it.
> >
> > Marc
> >
>
>
>

... [show rest of quote]

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

jaime_schunkewitz

Oct 30, 2008; 5:59pm

Re: Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

In reply to this post by darien95

Keyboards emit a lot of RF. Put an AM radio to one and for
sure you'll take it off your lap. I know a guy who says keyboards cause
kidney pain. For me it's tinnitus. It really depends on your weakness.
The good thing about keyboards is that one can modify them to produce
near zero RF emissions. Same for the mouse. Monitors are a different
story. I don't feel safe 25 ft from an LCD monitor, at least any
rrunning off a switching power supply. The chest pains are unbearable.
Eli

-- In [hidden email], "darien95" <darien95@...> wrote:
>
> I've been using my USB keyboard on my lap since I connected my
> computer to my PC and now don't have any other good place for it. Is
> this a bad idea? Also, how far should you sit from an LCD monitor to
> be safe?
>

PUK

Oct 30, 2008; 6:26pm

Re: Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

In reply to this post by darien95

In a message dated 10/30/2008 6:00:47 P.M. GMT Standard Time,
[hidden email] writes:

The good thing about keyboards is that one can modify them to produce
near zero RF emissions. Same for the mouse. Monitors are a different
story. I don't feel safe 25 ft from an LCD monitor, at least any
rrunning off a switching power supply. The chest pains are unbearable.
Eli

PUK -

How do we reduce RF from mouse and Keyboard please

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

jaime_schunkewitz

Oct 31, 2008; 6:36pm

Re: Is it bad to have a keyboard on your lap?

Opto isolation. Basically strip the electronics from the keyboard
and mouse, leaving only the switching/rolling mechanisms. Use fiber
optic to connect the mouse/keyboard mechanisms to the stripped
electronic components which are placed a distance from the user.
Standard opto couplers are too small to be any good so fiber 10 ft or
so is required.

This guy, Richard, can provide the details. Hopefully we'll be
producing them soon.

http://www.conradbiologic.com

Eli

--- In [hidden email], paulpjc@... wrote:
>
>
> In a message dated 10/30/2008 6:00:47 P.M. GMT Standard Time,
> jaime_schunkewitz@... writes:
>
> The good thing about keyboards is that one can modify them to
produce
> near zero RF emissions. Same for the mouse. Monitors are a
different
> story. I don't feel safe 25 ft from an LCD monitor, at least any
> rrunning off a switching power supply. The chest pains are
unbearable.

> Eli
>
>
>
> PUK -
>
>
>
>
>
> How do we reduce RF from mouse and Keyboard please
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

... [show rest of quote]