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Ask HN: No mechanical escape key in new Macbook Pros?

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Re: Ask HN: No mechanical escape key in new Macbook Pros?

#11

Post by gamedna »

Back when the iPad was released, I ran a 6 month experiment to see if I could live as a developer using only the iPad and the cloud. My initial findings were quite positive, and the first few weeks were exciting and new.

As time progressed, task switching and copy/paste were obvious shortcomings due to limitations with iOS, but the experience was mostly bearable but not awful.

Towards the end it became unbearable as the escape key was so engrossed with all things unix/linux that i gave up a month early.

If the escape key is actually vanishing, I am completely confused. macOS is a unix derivative and apple has a boatload of developers. Why would they want to alienate us?

Re: Ask HN: No mechanical escape key in new Macbook Pros?

#12

Post by gamedna »

mattnedrich wrote: post #8
busterarm wrote: post #6

I've been using an external keyboard (Realforce 87U at work. A 104 w/ Cherry Blues at home). Other than the coffee-shop crowd, how many of you would say you're exclusively a laptop-keyboard user? Not a dig, just wondering. If Apple offered an iPad Pro, running OSX with USB ports (or a thunderbolt port usb hub) for a physical keyboard, I would switch over in a heartbeat.

I actually use my laptop keyboard almost exclusively (my setup is MBP + external monitor). I have an external keyboard that I use every now and then, but I love the portability of being able to pick up and move.

Even though I have a full desk setup with keyboard, mouse, I do spend quite a bit traveling for work. Also, its very convenient to occasionally unplug and move into the living room so I can spend time with my family if i need to work late.

Re: Ask HN: No mechanical escape key in new Macbook Pros?

#13

Post by dfsegoat »

gamedna wrote: post #11

Back when the iPad was released, I ran a 6 month experiment to see if I could live as a developer using only the iPad and the cloud. My initial findings were quite positive, and the first few weeks were exciting and new. As time progressed, task switching and copy/paste were obvious shortcomings due to limitations with iOS, but the experience was mostly bearable but not awful. Towards the end it became unbearable as…

Have a blog / write up which chronicles your experiment? I always wondered if I, or anyone could do this when i first got my ipad.

Re: Ask HN: No mechanical escape key in new Macbook Pros?

#15

Post by busterarm »

mattnedrich wrote: post #10
busterarm wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Probably have to live with it since no one else seems to be able to make a really high quality laptop. sigh. My solution to this has grown more and more to be "do everything on a remote box via SSH" and then it doesn't matter what laptop I use. I am a heavy Vim user, so this is easy!

The MBP is nice b/c of the retina screen. Most laptops have crappy screens. In fact, I would go as far as saying that the MBP has the best screen by a decent margin.

I definitely have to agree, but they're getting serious competition on that front now. The Surface Pro is very close in ppi to the rMBP. Vendors are asking for this to compete with Apple.

Re: Ask HN: No mechanical escape key in new Macbook Pros?

#16

Post by busterarm »

gamedna wrote: post #12
mattnedrich wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I actually use my laptop keyboard almost exclusively (my setup is MBP + external monitor). I have an external keyboard that I use every now and then, but I love the portability of being able to pick up and move.

Even though I have a full desk setup with keyboard, mouse, I do spend quite a bit traveling for work. Also, its very convenient to occasionally unplug and move into the living room so I can spend time with my family if i need to work late.

I have (and when I need to, carry around) a KBC Poker when I'm traveling and it was worked out well. I don't use the mouse for anything but web browsing honestly and if I'm doing that or working late, I'm not really effectively getting any work done anyway.

I mean, I see the appeal though...it's just the typing experience on that keyboard sucks so much to me it's borderline-unbearable.

Re: Ask HN: No mechanical escape key in new Macbook Pros?

#18

Post by kazinator »

1_2__3 wrote: post #14

It's really hard not to see this as just a continuous and perpetual dumbing-down by Apple of all its products, to the point of uselessness for essentially anyone who isn't an 80 year old grandmother who's never used a computer before and needs to use skype.

The inventor of the escape character would be 96 today, had he not died in 2004 at 84.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Bemer

Re: Ask HN: No mechanical escape key in new Macbook Pros?

#19

Post by cygned »

blcArmadillo wrote: post #9
weinzierl wrote: post #2

I'm in the market for the new MacBok Pro and the OLED row makes me excited, but as a Vim user the lack of an physical escape key would be problem for me. I have Caps Lock mapped to Ctrl and I'm glad that MacOS provides this option out of the box, but Caps Lock as Esc is not an option for me. I hope there will be an out of the box way to map Escape to something sensible. I'd trade ~ for Esc anytime, as long as ~ and `…

Have you ever considered mapping 'jk' or 'kj' to Esc? This seems to be a somewhat common mapping from what I've seen looking at others' vimrc.

I mapped to in all modes. I find that way better actually.
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