May

Pansy Brits Get U.S. Bloggers in Uproar - Filthy Keyboards

Posted by: goinglikesixty in Health, Research, Technology

Puh-leeze, a lot of people are freaking out over the headline grabbing, sound biting, “news” that keyboards are dirty.
We are encouraged to clean our keyboards. With what? GermX hand sanitizer makes typing really slippery. Like KY Jelly on your fingers (not that I would know about that.)
Tub and Tile Cleaner spritzed on the keyboard certainly would do the trick, but posts sure do have a lot (more than usual) of typos.

A small study conducted by a British micorbiologist confirmed something we’ve all known - but likely ignored:
KEYBOARDS ARE FILTHY!
In some cases, really filthy, containing five times the level of harmful bacteria (E. coli, staph, oh my!) as a toilet.

I let dogs lick my mouth.
I heartily endorse and support the five minute rule on food (ha, like food on the floor can last more than five seconds with dogs around.)
I eat from sidewalk vendors
I eat at carnivals
I eat at Chinese restaurants

I’m not worried about a little filth on my keyboard. It’s mostly my filth anyway. Note, it’s a “small study.” I bet it was done at the pubic library.

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24 comments so far

Gretchen

Sure, everything’s a little dirty, but I share your attitude. I don’t even rinse off Boolie’s deedees after they hit the floor, unless there’s visible crap on them.

I firmly believe that you make your kids less resistant to sickness if you insist on sanitizing everything. Ben’s mom is completely horrified that I let the dogs lick the kids’ faces. “Dogs lick their bottoms!” Yet she’ll shoo a fly off her pie and then eat the pie. Stupid. Like the fly wasn’t just climbing through a pile of shit.

Gretchen’s last blog post..This Drives Me Mental.

May 5th, 2008 at 11:07 am

laurie ruettimann

Dude, QWERTY disease is gross. Did you read about the keyboards that had to be decontaminated?

Sick stuff. I hope you don’t get MRSA or the drug-resistant staph from your keyboard!
laurie ruettimann’s last blog post..Your Computer Keyboard is a Toilet

May 5th, 2008 at 11:46 am

goinglikesixty

@Gretchen: I HATE maggots. Nothing grosses me out worse than maggots. Heeeeeeeby-Jeeeeeeby.
@Laurie Ruettimann: I thought you were lost to Facebook forever. I’ll have to check out your place to see what MRSA is. And I didn’t read about the Great Keyboard Decontamination of 2008. I did read on Lifehacker that you can actually put your keyboard in the dishwasher.

May 5th, 2008 at 12:22 pm

Krissi

“I let dogs lick my mouth… I heartily endorse and support the five minute rule on food (ha, like food on the floor can last more than five seconds with dogs around.)… I eat from sidewalk vendors… I eat at carnivals… I eat at Chinese restaurants…”

Ha, and if you’re anything like me you do at least half of those in front of your keyboard and/or with some other device (cell phone? PDA?) that also has a keyboard.

Krissi’s last blog post..Bloggy Giveaway Winners!

May 5th, 2008 at 5:38 pm

Edna

It’s my hands that I have to keep clean not my keyboard. At least my keyboard is from my own dirty fingers.

Edna’s last blog post..My Baby’s Birthday

May 6th, 2008 at 1:55 am

GoingLikeSixty

@Krissi: yes, that happens a LOT in front of a keyboard, you’re right.

@Edna: right! I’m glad I don’t use a keyboard where strangers might use it also. That could be yucky.

GoingLikeSixty’s last blog post..Pansy Brits Get U.S. Bloggers in Uproar - Filthy Keyboards

May 6th, 2008 at 7:11 am

BearNaked

The only time I REALLY cleaned my keyboard was when I inadvertently
spilled a large Double Double coffee on it.

I still can’t talk about the time I fried my modem with a glass of white wine. (oops)

BearNaked’s last blog post..Serious topic–Hot Flashes

May 6th, 2008 at 12:06 pm

Winston

It appears that even you have your limits, at least by omission from your list. You did not include Mexican restaurants, so they must be off the bottom of your scale. Some of those little hole in the wall tacorias are filthy, as are the fine folks who work there and cook and bring your beans to you. They usually don’t last long because the health dept shuts them down. But they move down the street and do it all over again.

The dirty keyboard (and mouse) story is not new. We’ve known it for years. Word is just now getting across the North Atlantic. Being in the support business, I touch dozens of keyboards and mice each week. Got a small bottle of Purell or such in every pocket and service bag and storage nook of my car. And I use it regularly.

Winston’s last blog post..Rough Sleepers…

May 7th, 2008 at 5:19 am

goinglikesixty

@Winston: Correctomundo! I don’t eat in tacorias either. In our town, it’s the China buffets that have difficulty staying open. Have you ever run into somebody like Laurie, who won’t let tech support touch the keyboard?

May 7th, 2008 at 6:58 am

David Leonhardt

I thought it was a five second rule with food. Thanks for giving me 60 times re leeway.
And I touch door handles without wiping them.

And I take back my credit card from cashiers.

And I walk on the deck at the public pool.

And I pick heavenly raspberries right off the bushes (this is week four!) without washing them.

And…

David Leonhardts last blog post..Google Cache Gets Style

July 25th, 2008 at 10:08 pm

banquet manager

Remember as a kid, we would “kiss it up to the sky” when our food would fall on the floor? That would clean it enough to eat it. I didn’t die once with this method.
So You Want To Be a Banquet Manager

banquet managers last blog post..You Look Like a Jerk When You Dance!

September 16th, 2008 at 7:56 am

kira

It’s my hands that I have to keep clean not my keyboard. At least my keyboard is from my own dirty fingers.

kira…also wrote this…http://www.wachoviabank.com

February 10th, 2009 at 11:50 pm

goinglikesixty

@Gretchen: LOL on your MIL. That is so true, people hate dogs mouths, but accept flies! She would enjoy Slumdog Millionaire.

February 11th, 2009 at 8:24 am

goinglikesixty

@Laurie: Who would contaminate my keyboard any more than me?

February 11th, 2009 at 8:25 am

kindy

thanks you for great post.

kindy…also wrote this…http://www.palottery.com

February 13th, 2009 at 10:37 pm

sara

only time I cleaned my keyboard was my children pour milk on it:P

February 18th, 2009 at 9:02 am

Mark Tech

You should be subject to a certain degree of germs to build up your resistance to them. People who keep everything super clean seem get ill all the time. I though the rule for food was that if nobody saw it fall then it’s ok!

February 19th, 2009 at 9:59 am

Nancy

Thanks for share. It’s useful for me.

February 26th, 2009 at 9:26 pm

Polly

This is great post. Thanks for sharing.

March 10th, 2009 at 10:36 pm

9business

Interested post , Thanks for sharing

9business…also wrote this…http://www.providian.com

March 24th, 2009 at 6:44 pm

Outdoor Signage Enclosure

You’re right about the dirt, we are too clean sometimes, no wonder there is the MRSA bug that cannot be killed due to it being tolerant to the cleaning agents - years ago I remember being covered in mud most of the summer and rarely getting a cold, now it’s a different story!

The other point is the dirt would no doubtedly be our own as we all use computers at home.

John Williams.

March 31st, 2009 at 2:40 am

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