New Macbook special feature: the QWERTZ keyboard

lol – not eyactlx what you’d eypect!

bloodz hell.

Not verz good. Not verz good at all.

But at least it looks like the z=y, y=z transpositions are catching on quick! Prettz soon zebra will be yebra, yellow’ll be zellow and we’ll all be laughing at just how old-fashioned ‘qwerty’ was anzwaz …

Hope they fix it!

lol eycept on my mac it seems maybe the x is broken too

I think that’s why I caution against buying version 1.0 of anything

Or maybe you could just learn to blog in German?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QWERTZ

Looks like all the gags have been taken so….

no, can’t do it

I’m glad you’re all so amused!

Interesting about that German keyboard. A few people pointed that out on Twitter too. But this isn’t a modified QWERTZ keyboard sent to me in error, as the keys still type the expected letters (strike the X key, where the Z key usually is, and you get a Z).

I was tempted to keep it for a while, just for the sheer quirkiness. But you don’t pay over £1000 for something to be wrong.

So I got on the blower. Applecare were less than helpful, and Apple Regent Street can’t offer a repairs appointment for at least 3 days because they’re fully booked and their “system” doesn’t schedule further than 3 days away (and apparently you *have* to have an appointment, and even then they can’t swap an item that was bought from the online store…)

But next I called the online store and they are sending a new one, and collecting the dud one – simultaneously. Much more like the service you’d expect from Apple. Even so, I am Macbookless until about a week on Friday. Grrrr.

Apart from the keyboard problem and this frustrating delay, it’s a gorgeous machine. The new glassy trackpad feels very intuitive.

I’ve experienced that before from Apple – I did manage to get a replacement eventually though because as far as I understand it doesn’t matter whether you buy it online or offline if you take it to the official Apple retail store they legally have to either provide refund or replacement. The only thing you can’t get past is that in the stores they only have standard models so if you ordered extra memory etc. they can play the ‘we don’t have those in stock’ card – otherwise I’m pretty sure legally you can insist on an immediate replacement or refund at the store.

[...] WTFZ? from: Mission Creep | Neil Williams [...]

Epic fail, this is german keyboard layout.

Pah: I think you just need to get into the swing of Apple hardware. It’s lovely but it has its quirks.

Keyboard layout is entirely software controlled and pretty much always has been: you can switch between UK and US English, Polish or Kanji whenever you want: whatever it says on the keys. I had a lovely PowerBook G3 imported from the US which had the # and £ signs transposed – but still worked very nicely. How often do you look at the keys, anyway?

Wait till you get some dead pixels, overheating CPU, fading wifi reception or cranky hard disk: then you’ll have something to complain about!

Oh NOW you tell me.

are you too lazy or to stupid to switch two keys?
I agree that its a shame that this happens and its a shame how the customer service reacted.

But hey, it can be done in less than a minute so stop complaining, its your own fault to be so stupid to bring it to customer service instead of switching two keys by yourself.
As said, the right keyboard layout is just three clicks away.

Oh and by the way are you sure you know which keys are switched at first you write Over the Laxy Dog? so I guess somethings wrong with z and y then you write the z is switched with Y as it is normal with a german layout and then I see that you seem to think you have a qwertX layout when looking at the url of this blog.
Are you sure you know what your Problem is or did you just found a german Mac pic at Google and wondered about the layout?

*sigh*. I shouldn’t rise to this nonsense, but… I wrote the blog post in a hurry in the 10 mins I could find between putting my son to bed and eating my tea, without the picture in front of me. Yes I have muddled the Z and X (now edited). I am not familiar enough with Mac hardware to start taking a new ‘Brick’ machined Macbook to bits. And in answer to your main question, I am stupid AND lazy. Who isn’t?

thats Jens from Apple Customer Service

[...] What’s wrong with Neil’s new MacBook? [...]

All’s well that ends well, by the way. I have been using my Macbook for a week as of today (came much quicker than Jens and friends’ projection). It’s the 8th wonder of the world, I am a born agan Mac evangelist.

Congrats on owning your very own macbook! I know I was excited when i first received my macbook. How do you enjoy your Qwertz keyword? Did you get a good deal on it? In any case the look pays for itself =)

its a german laptop.

most of the keys on those are the same as a us keyboard, the strangest switch is the yz one. try changing your input mode to german and you’ll see.

I’ve just written about this. Here have a good laugh.
ust for a change and strengthening my beliefs that business should be fun I thought I would treat our readers to some Euro news.
Euro English to be introduced to the EU

Our leaders in the EU have decided that an adapted version of English should be instigated to level the playing field a little for our Germanic cousins. Angela Merkel, Nicholas Zarkozy and the former Prime Minister of Sweden, Karl Bildt have decided push for new grammar and spelling status for the Englsh language. I decided this needs serious investigation so I have rejoined the Academics to report the findings. The French, as usual are up in arms but in the interests of Egalite, this is what i have discovered:
English Spelling Changes

New Language Standards For The EU (the European Union for our American friends who dont know anything outside of Denver and probably think its a fast food joint). The European Commission has just announced an agreement whereby English will be the official language of the European Union rather than German, which was the other possibility (they must have been kidding). As part of the negotiations, the British Government conceded that English spelling had some room for improvement and has accepted a 5-year phase-inplan that would become known as “Euro-English.
In The First Year

In the first year “s” will replace the soft “c”. Sertainly, this will make the sivil servants jump with joy. The hard “c” will be dropped in favour of “k”. This should klear up konfusion and keyboards kan have one less letter.
The Second Year

The second year there will be growing publik enthusiasm when the troublesome “ph” will be replaced with “f”. This will make words like fotograf 20% shorter.
In The Third Year

In the third year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expekted to reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible. Governments will enkourage the removal of double letters which have always ben a deterent to akurate speling. Also, al wil agre that the horibl mes of the silent “e” in the languag is disgrasful and it should go away.
By The Forth Year

Year four, the people wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing “th” with “z” and “w” with “v”.
During Ze Fifz Yer

During ze fifz yer, ze u,nesesary “o” kan be dropd from vords kontaining “ou” and after ziz fifz yer, ve wil hav a reil sensibl riten styl. Zer vil be no mor trubl or difikultis and evrivun vil find it ezi tu understand ech oza. Ze drem of a united urop vil finali kum tru. Und efter ze fifz yer, ve vil al be speking Jerman like zey vunted in ze forst plas. Easy eh? Americans will feel at very much at ease with this; you have after all been talking this way for years.

PS plis do not korl telling mi av ze tipogaf errors danke…… Ze Balapotekare ( or somethig like that). By the way we are now working flat out to amend our spell checkers( leaving our American friends well in front as they have been using this variation for years. OMG dats like, awesome.
Tell me what you think.

Yeah Brodee is right, thats a german keyboard…

I have got the same problem.
I ordered my macbook pro 17″ online (september 2009)

After a couple of days i noticed that my keyboard was qwerz physically but when i press the Z button Y comes up on the display.

This must be a manufacturing problem. (cause german keyboard are QWERTY too)

Anyways i dont care i have a 3 year apple warranty, in a couple of months when i think my keyboard looks dirty and used i will just go to apple store and say that

(some keys doesn’t respond well, please have my keyboard changed, and buy the way please put a QWERTY keyboard this time)

they will do it without arguments. I’ve been a mac user for years and had so many parts changed on all my macbook pro’s I’ve owned.

But i always give my macbook to the retail when i go on holidays and don’t need it. so when i get back it’s all new. (since it takes a couple of weeks)

hope this helped.

Ps: i have a mini pixel that is fucked on the middle of the screen, its so tiny. But guess what? I’ll just go and have the screen changed at the same time.
Buy Apple care it’s totaly worth it.

A keyboard is worth 160€ and a screen 590€

and i paid my apple care 370€

Loved JC Christian’s response and good luck getting those questions answered! ,