The problem was that when people tried to get into their rooms, they found the keys no longer worked. Huge crowds of people lingered in the lobby and halls since they had nowhere to go. The hotel elevators were also locked out. The police even had to be called as some fights broke out in the hotel. When it was all over, guests were locked out for about four hours. The lockout didn’t end until about 3am, and people were given free rooms as a thank you for not destroying the hotel.

Strangely enough, the problem started at about 11pm, so it’s not clear if the cutover to 2012 was responsible for the failure, since the system clock would have had to have been on Central time for that to have had an impact.

[via 9news]

We’ve previously featured earrings, textiles, skulls, jackets, and even a Rubik’s Cube made out of old keyboards, but here are a couple of new ideas.

The brazier-like top of this dress uses keyboard keys and was showcased during Ecofashion 2011, last March. It definitely looks interesting, but I wonder how comfortable it is. Then again, I don’t have to wear it.

Another unusual use for old keyboards is the The Typographic Wall Calendar. For his design, Harald Geisler arranged thousands of keys in a grid to indicate the days and day of week. It’s really cool looking, but not exactly the easiest thing on Earth to read.

While these two ideas might seem completely random, they’re actually quite appropriate, since November 15th is America Recycles Day.

[via If It's Fly It's Here and In Focus]

Recently, engineer Nirav Patel took his RepRap 3D printer and created a program for it that allows it to print keys that will open locks at home and other places too. The system uses the printer to actually make the keys and OpenSCAD software for the in putting of the lock code to generate the key schematics.

The builder says that it will work with Kwikset KW1 and Schlage SC1 locks. Those are the two most common door locks in the US apparently. If you have a 3D printer, you can print your own keys using OpenSCAD and the files offered on eclecticc.

[via Hack a Day]

The new version of the Keyport still holds six different slide-out blanks that can be used for cars – with blanks available for cars that need keys with chips too. The Keyport also has available blanks for USB storage and a new blank that has an LED flashlight.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The LED light can be pre-ordered right now for $9.99 and will fit into existing Keyports. A starter kit with one chipped car key starts at $94. A version without a car key starts at $79 and a USB insert sells for $19 for 4GB and $39 for 8GB.

If you don’t want to go that extreme, the Keybrid may be the perfect solution. It’s a key blank that you can have carved at a hardware shop to work on just about any lock out there. The thing has a key ring built into the key so you can clip it to things and I assume you could clip other keys to it as well if you want.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Right now, you can only get them in silver but next year there will be gold, black, and pink Keybrids too. A single keybrid in SC1 or KW1 styles will cost you $8.99 or you can get both styles for $16.99 and cover 95% of the locks out there.

These oversize computer key LED lamps plug into a spare USB port, and provide a little extra accent lighting for your workspace. Each key measures in at about 5.86″ (w) x 5.07″ (d) x 2.95″ (h), which makes them about 80 times bigger than an ordinary key. Available in Esc, Del, Ctrl and Shift key designs, they turn on and off with just a little tap on the top.

USB Keypress lamps can be ordered over at USBGeek for just $14 (USD) each. Maybe someday they’ll make every key on the keyboard so I can make a giant one of these.

United Keys OLED keyboard keep their prices on planet Earth by including only monochrome displays, and letting you program just 9 of the keys.

Each keyboard comes with a 3×3 matrix of custom keys, each of which contains a tiny 0.7″ yellow OLED screen with a bright high-contrast 64×64 pixel display. The keyboards ship with a OLED Manager software (Windows XP/Vista only) which lets you create custom icons and save macro functions for each key. The coolest part of the software is that you can set the keys to load in a unique profile for each application (as well as a default key set), so you can set different macros and icons for Photoshop than you do for Excel, and so forth.

The only real downside to OLED screens are their relatively short life span. With just a 40,000 hour display life (at 50% brightness), you’ll end up throwing this keyboard in the trash after about 4-1/2 years of continuous use.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

United Keys keyboards are available in either a full 103-key keyboard ($249 USD) with the function keys on the left side, or in a standalone 9-key keypad ($199 USD), which you can set on either side of your current keyboard. While they’re definitely no Maximus, they’re definitely the cheapest OLED keyboards you can get at this point.

[via OLED-Info]

[Looking for something more colorful and don't care if it's OLED? Don't forget about the Luxeed RGB LED keyboard.]

Here’s how it works: “In this interactive sculpture, thousands of recycled keyboard keys are embedded into a continuous textile. The keys spell out a line-by-line transcript of the email correspondence between the artist and fabricators regarding the creation of the artwork. As a result, the sculpture documents its own making. Viewers can also type their own messages on the active keys amid the first three rows of emails. These new messages are then projected onto the opposite end of the fabric, thereby continuing the virtual dialogue.”

TEXTile was made by Jean Shin, and can be found at the Permanent Collection of Fabric Workshop and Museum in Philadelphia. You can see more pictures at Jean Shin’s website.

I’m feeling pretty bummed right now because I was just on the East Coast and I didn’t yet know about this. It looks like it would be insanely fun to see, touch, and play around with!

[via Notcot]

Created by Taiwan’s MOD Design, Reset Cups are larger-than-life versions of the “Ctrl-Alt-Del” keys, typically used to reboot or login to your Windows PC. Each set of three key cups ship with a matching circuit-board embossed tray (which sort of reminds me of TRON for some reason). MOD will be making them in both a white-on-black and black-on-white version, so you can match them with the color of your keyboard.

Other than the fact that MOD showed off the Reset Cups at the recent Maison + Objet design show in Paris, there’s no further information on when or where you’ll be able to buy these yet. I guess for now, you’ll have to settle for pressing the Ctrl-Alt-Del keys on your PC over and over agin.

[via Electric Pig via The Daily Dairy]

These beauts are handmade by Capitola Girl Jewelry. She sells them on Etsy for 29 bucks. They come on an 18 inch chain with a silver clasp. She promises to center the key perfectly for your ultimate satisfaction.

The display ones are all in the letter B, but she’ll do some alternate letters in black or gray if she has them. Now to see if she has a K lying around… or even better, ctrl. Why? I don’t know, it just seems kind of cool.

[via GeekSugar]

These Super Mario Light Mascot keychains from Bandai come in a set of five familiar faces from the classic Nintendo franchise. The set includes Mario himself, Power-up and 1-up mushrooms, a “?” box, a Boo ghost and a Goomba (not the type from Jersey). They each light up so you might have a better shot seeing your keys while your fumbling around in the dark. Why five keychains, you might ask? Why not share ‘em with your friends, or put a single key on each one if you’re feeling really whimsical?

The $20 set can be pre-ordered now from NCSX, and should ship right around Christmas 2007.

The oversize plastic computer key (4.5″ x 4.5″ x 2.25″) serves as a constant reminder to save those spare coins you found under the couch cushion. The Auto Save Bank is just $10 from Uncommon Goods.

Command Sit stackable plastic stools look perfect for a dorm room or other playful space. The giant key seats provide one simple and succinct command, “sit.” They’re available in both black with white letters and beige with white letters to suit your personal color preference. Each stool is 22″ square and 15″ high.

The stools are being distributed as part of the Japanese Duende furniture line, and can be purchased online from GreatBigStuff.com