Laptop keyboard on PC?

This is the reverse of what most people seem to want to do.  A quick Google search turned up no results for me, so I was hoping the tech gurus here could help me. 

Is it possible to use a laptop as the keyboard for a desktop computer?  I know that using a regular keyboard for a laptop is easy, but is it possible to essentially do the reverse?  The main reason I'm asking is because I'm trying to learn to type with Dvorak, and virtually all keyboards are Qwerty.  And it'd make my life easier if I could have my keypresses "translated" from one layout to another.  I don't really expect this to be possible, but is it?

Why not just find a program that remaps your keys?

My school's computers are ridiculously limited.  We can't even use any search engines.  So I can't change the keyboard settings manually, or execute a program that will do it for me. 

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Sounds like you need to bring in your own keyboard and swap them out.

The problem with bringing my own keyboard, though, is that I use a Qwerty keyboard, remapped for Dvorak.  But when plugged into another computer, it will work just like a regular Qwerty keyboard.

But that's actually a great idea, bringing my own keyboard for when I have to do in class exams and stuff, even if I can't use Dvorak.  The keyboards at my school really suck.

So why are you wanting to use the Dvorak keyboard so bad?  Most keyboards you have nowadays all use QWERTY, and going forward they will continue to.  Seems like your are re-programming yourself.  I mean I don't get the want to do it.  Unless you have "your" keyboard your aren't going to be as proficient at what your are doing.  I mean are you trying to be the next Woz or Bram Cohen?

I'm not quite sure what you're asking.  Any keyboard plugged into a computer is going to be interpreted by the computer.  If you can't change the computer to use the Dvorak layout, then it doesn't matter what keyboard you plug into it.

Laptop keyboard, do you mean the keyboard integrated into the laptop?  There's no easy way to just plug it into a desktop PC and have the keystrokes from the laptop translate to the PC.  You could use remote desktop, I suppose, but if your school's computers are so locked down that you can't even use Google, I highly doubt they'll allow you to enable remote desktop.

http://synergy2.sourceforge.net/

You need to install the software on both the laptop and the other computer. It lets you use one keyboard and mouse to control multiple computers seamlessly including dragging the mouse from one to the other. The nice thing is its cross platform for windows/mac/linux. If your laptop is setup as dvorak I think it will do what you want it to.

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synergy would definitely accomplish what you are trying to do

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Yep. This is the way to do it. I wrote an article on how to do it a while back.

Do you use more than one computer? Maybe you are you sick of using a separate mouse for your laptop? Wouldn't it be great is you could move seamlessly between the two, using one keyboard and mouse for both? Well the guys over at Synergy have a free application that will allow you to do just that! Download it here.

Their application lets you share not only input devices between two or more machines (even those with different OSes) but also a clipboard, all by harnessing the power of the network. This means that you can cut and paste between multiple computers with no problem at all. The keyboard also works normally on each screen; input goes to whichever screen has the cursor.

Worried about how this will affect the gaming with fellow 3-PGers? Don't fret, there is a scroll lock button that you can bind to a hot key that will keep the cursor and keyboard on your primary screen. Game on!

Read more after the jump!

How to do it

This article assumes you have your hosts on the same network, and they are already communicating with each other.  If you don't have that setup yet, you will need to grab a tutorial on how to build a home network, like this one.

First, you will need to decide which computer's mouse and keyboard you are going to use. Download and install Synergy on your primary PC. This computer will be the server, and the other computers will all be clients.  In this example, the primary computer is the ‘Desktop' and the second computer is the ‘Laptop'. In the Synergy app, click the radio button for the "Share this computer's keyboard and mouse option" and click Configure. Add each computer you want to connect to in the top window, in this case, the Laptop.

Next, you need to set up the rules for cursor movement. If the secondary PC's screen is to the right of the primary PC's monitor, set a rule that says "0 to 100% of the right of Desktop goes to 0 to100% of Laptop." You'll also need to set the inverse rule (0 to 100% of the left of Laptop goes to 0 to 100% of Desktop). If you don't do this, your cursor won't be able to move in the other direction.

Now, install and launch the Synergy app on your second computer or laptop. Select the "Use another computer's shared keyboard and mouse" and enter the hostname for your desktop PC. Press test and you should be connected!