thinking about becoming a keyboard nerd
the thing is, keyboard nerds seem to really like small keyboards
i hate small keyboards
why would you want *fewer* keys
(normally i use colemak but i couldn't be bothered to switch around all the labels)
@xnx38h I want a fewer keys! less distraction from all those extra things to type
@liaizon idk personally i think modifiers are annoying and imo the number row should be separate from the symbols so i don't have to press shift
@xnx38h the guy who designed these boards that became somewhat popular as a meme is a close friend of mine
honestly at this point it's just a bit that has gone way too far
i use a TKL because anything wider requires my hands to be unnaturally far apart to use a mouse
but anything smaller is kinda unnecessary unless you want your keyboard to be portable
@xnx38h tkl is just like... a normal full-size keyboard without the number pad
@xnx38h mood
gimme the fucken numpad
@xnx38h become a pseudo keyboard person like me and just get a cheap keyboard from china with outemu blues that puts you directly into the category of keyboard power users without being ridiculously overpriced :P
@xnx38h See, perfect example of the Fitts’ law thing. Typing, for example, a percent sign without looking where you place your fingers is more difficult on that design you proposed. Your fingere need to learn the spatial distances in a non-quantized way, it’s sorta like playing the theremin. Now if you cover the entire thing in braille you’re golden. But that’s why separate groups. So you can feel a key since it’s at the edge of a group or, in the HHKB’s case, at the edge of the board itself.
@Sandra hmm, not really
if i keep all my fingers on the home row (which i do due to using colemak) it's always gonna be the same distance to the % key
like i have that key bound to % on my current keyboard and i never accidentally hit, for example, the f5 key
if it becomes a problem at all i could always just put bumps (like the ones on f and j) on some of the keycaps
@xnx38h I’m on dvorak, so things are based on the homerow and the u/h bumps (equiv of f and j on qwerty) for me too, buuut it’s just nice to be able to lift my fingers, maybe when I’m drawing or something similar, or have a cup of soup or answer the phone or whatever. It’s just nice to be able to navigate from several things. Like when I wanna hit the number row, I start at the homerow and then move my fingers waaay up, I can even overshoot, I don’t have to measure precicely “exactly two rows up”, I just have to think “at least two rows up”.
I have small lady hands, maybe things will be different for you.
Try out your keyboard layout but keep what I said in mind and see what you think. ABT → always be testing♥ That’s the key to all design.
it’s always gonna be the same distance
That’s exactly what I mean, though: you have to teach your fingers to move a specific distance, I only need to teach them a specific direction from the home row, for those more distant and rarely used keys.
So two separate considerations that lead me to my choice of layout (I use the HHKB 2 but am eyeing the Atreus). This isn't to convince anyone else, just to show my thinking.
1. I enjoy having keys on the edges of an area. You know how it can be annoying to have shift next to the up arrow and then you accidentally hit up when you mean shift? On my keyboard, the top row are the numbers. I put my fingers up there and there's no risk of hitting any F-keys and accidentally paying respects when I mean to type 11111.
It's a physical version of Fitts' Law.
2. Now, that same pleasure could be arranged by having very big separation between "groups" on a huge keyboard. Some rows of F-keys far above the other keys. A numpad way off to the side. And if all I did was typing, then yes! And a lot of keyboard nerds do treasure the Model M or the LK201. But I move the keyboard completely to the side when I am drawing digitally. It's nice to be able to do that because my kbd is smol and not a battleship.
Tertially, and of much less importance... yes, portability? Not only bringing the keyboard to work (when I had a job; offers considered!) but also just putting it on the window sill or on the bookshelf when we use the table for something else.
Finally, the last reason is embarassing but I suspect non-zero for me and other keyboard nerds. On vi and emacs you don't use arrow keys. Therefore a keyboard that doesn't have arrow keys is kind of a weird flex. A brag. "See how cool I am that don't need arrow keys", that's the kind of inner egotistical, narcissistic voice that partially drives the desire to get a keyboard like this. Or with my model of the HHKB there's no caps lock, backspace, or even printed letters on top of the keycaps for the same reason. So that I can trick myself into believing that I am cool just because I purchased a particular product. That's not even legal in the EU because of the lead content. Uh... I didn't expect this post to end with a confession of how much I suck and how stuck I am in samsara of materialism but here we are♥
@xnx38h Hello, small keyboard user here (KBParadise V60). I like having everything in reach without having to move my hands.
I'm a programmer and I use Vim, clearly what's comfortable for me may not be for other users
@xnx38h 1) Desktop real estate
2) RSI concerns (assuming a decent layout)
But honestly I think it's mostly aesthetics.
i made this in like 10 mins
the blank keys are reprogrammable macros i guess
how do i get someone to manufacture this for me