alternative keyboard
August 26, 2024
Two years ago I embarked on an alternative keyboard journey by ordering a 40% ortholinear mechanical keyboard.
I got into it because of hand and wrist pain paired up against neccesary continued computer usage.
It has really made a difference. And it has been fun to deeply customize and think through lots of details about how I want a keyboard to work.
Some nerdy highlights:
- getting proficient using 3 "layers" (like how shift enables different characters for the entire keyboard) to have access to (nearly) all the characters
I ever need within 1 key's reach from home row position. i.e. a number pad underneath the right hand
- not having to use shift for capitalization
- using "df" combo for backspace and "jk" for delete
- using "nk" combo for return
- mouse control from the keyboard
I've had it long it enough for the hype and fun to wear off. I have realized that what made the switch so good for my ergonomics
is not my cool layout, the ortholinear arrangement of the keys, but simply that it made me mindful of my typing.
Relearning is powerful tool, powerful enough to break bad typing habits and create new ones like:
- actually using forward delete instead of only backspace
- actually using the right hand modifiers to almost never hit a modifier + key with the same hand
- whole word/line deletion and word/line cursor navigation
- noticing how my hands and wrists feel and considering other workflows (macros, shortcuts, scripts)
To combat dependency on such a specialized piece of hardware, I have switched to other keyboards periodically. Becoming proficient
in switching keyboards/layouts has come more easily than expected. I switch whenever I feel myself becoming careless.