Attain CoolOne.

Japan is gadget heaven. Who else but the Japanese would have come up with the inimitably-named "CoolOne"--not a new digicam from Nikon, folks, but a washable keyboard. Oh yes. Many's the time I've been working hard at my PC only to glance down at the keyboard and see remnants of the morning's croissant and coffee breakfast lurking bug-like in the crevices between the keys. Or seen the keys drenched in sweat and other fluids after marathon late night sessions (of the gaming variety, of course) alone in my bedroom. Happily now, help is at hand. The CoolOne is a bit pricey at (yen) 48,000 but is a full 101-key, USB and PS/2 keyboard and, thanks to its silicon keys, is fully waterproof for washing under a running tap, or can even be swabbed down with alcohol. Which, in my case, is often how it gets dirty in the first place. Bizarrely, however, maker Attain thinks it'll prove more useful for nurses, "clean room" engineers and the like who can't actually help their keyboards getting all messed up in the course of the working day and, anyway, can always blame someone else.

More info: www.attainj.co.jp/japanese/ top/press/2003/coolone.html