I just wish somebody made an MS natural keyboard with mechanical keys and an extra 25 or so programmable function keys (row above normal fn keys, double row of 5 vertical keys to the left of caps/shift/...)
My Mechanical Keyboard
121–130 of 203 posts
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#122I think people always are easily obsessed and get attached to things they touch. Those things becomes extensions of themselves. I am that way about my smart phone, keyboard and headphones. I could replace the monitor tomorrow without thinking twice about it. Get a new hard drive, new router, even a new a new laptop because I don't touch but use an external keyboard. But, as soon as my IBM Model M keyboard stopped wor…
Not irrational at all. I've gone through countless newer keyboards, both insanely expensive mechanical gaming and business, yet none feels as "right" as the M. I got it new for a pittance in the 90s.
It may weigh almost as much as me, and look a little grubby, but it seems destined to remain in mint condition forever. If it had a few media keys it'd be perfect.
Keyboards and trackpoints are why I stuck with Thinkpads for years, and despite owning several always hated Macbook keyboards and touchpads. It's also why I was deeply offended when Lenovo replaced the 7 row keyboard with the compromised 6. When I spent a lot of time on iMacs I had a mechanical that was similar to the old extended keyboard (though not as reliable).
So no, as the main interface to a machine, having a good keyboard with adequate travel is hugely important, and not the least bit irrational.
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#123I don't know or care if mechanical keyboards increase my typing speed and/or precision, but they feel great and make me enjoy work more. If I can choose between a rocky desk and a sturdy one, I'll choose the latter, although they both do the job sufficiently well for my needs. A few months ago I got myself a tenkeyless with brown Cherry MX switches, and I am getting a second one now, because I can't be bothered to ty…
If they only were as much available to buy as much people talk about them. I never used it before, I tried, I loved it, I researched a lot, I've finally chosen one ... and only got disappointed by availability. They're nowhere to be in stock. I found it only on Amazon UK and they want almost the same as keyboard price for a shipping. And no, it's not some bizarre custom made thing - it is just a normal Ducky One TKL.…
Look for different models. Corsair and Razer both make excellent mechanical keyboards as well.
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#124Earlier quoted context omitted.
I use a Leopold FC750R with brown mx cherry switches[0] at work. It uses a sound dampening pad and is no louder than a regular membrane keyboard. My coworkers were hesitant about me using a mech at the office when I first got hired but now have no complaints after realizing not all switches and keyboards sound like a type writer. Btw I absolutely love that keyboard and Leopolds in general, I have 3 of them... Bottom…
The sound dampening pad does not dampen switch and keycap noise.
But it does reduce the sound made by bottoming out. Browns make very little noise compared to some of the other switches though.
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#125Mechanical keyboards are overrated. They're great, don't get me wrong - and I've used them for years - but they are not the end all be-all to everything your fingertips will press down.
I've actually given up on my Cherry MX Brown DAS and switch to a Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Desktop and it's absolutely fantastic. The design is odd at first, but after using it for a few hours I realized that the way I thought about mouse and keyboard ergonomics has been wrong my entire life until now. The pain and finger fatigue that I'd started to feel from the mechnical keyboard and gaming mouse I'd been using as my daily drivers simply vanished after just under a day of standard use. It really is a thing of beauty.
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#126This is some amazing writing. I couldn't care less about what kind of keyboard I use, but I kept reading and reading because this was just so easy to read. Can anybody explain why what made this such a good read? Or point me in a direction where I can improve my own writing?
I guess I'll be the contrarian today, but honestly I found his writing to be needlessly long and meandering.
I felt I already knew what he was going to say (based on the title alone), but it took dozens of paragraphs to get to the meat of it. The history with previous Apple devices didn't seem all that necessary to get to the real point at the end.
Maybe I'm just more impatient as a reader?
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#127It's a bit odd to compare the MacBook Pro's keyboard to a mechanical keyboard. I mean, mechanical keyboards are great, but laptops with mechanical keyboards are almost nonexistent due to the extreme bulk required. Sure, there are many laptops with far more key travel than Apple's latest offerings, but it's not fair to hold them up to that standard...
> laptops with mechanical keyboards are almost nonexistent due to the extreme bulk required
Here's some hope for the future: http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-systems/razer-blade-pro
It's big, but because of the screen rather than the keyboard.
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#128Mechanical keyboards are overrated. They're great , don't get me wrong - and I've used them for years - but they are not the end all be-all to everything your fingertips will press down. I've actually given up on my Cherry MX Brown DAS and switch to a Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Desktop and it's absolutely fantastic. The design is odd at first, but after using it for a few hours I realized that the way I thought about…
I've done the same transition. I used to love my keyboard with Blues but it never quite solved the problem for me and is too noisy to use at work. I then also realized that the position and angle of the hands and wrists is probably more important then the type of keys.
After I tried the sculpt keyboard it has become my new daily driver both at home and work.
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#129I think people always are easily obsessed and get attached to things they touch. Those things becomes extensions of themselves. I am that way about my smart phone, keyboard and headphones. I could replace the monitor tomorrow without thinking twice about it. Get a new hard drive, new router, even a new a new laptop because I don't touch but use an external keyboard. But, as soon as my IBM Model M keyboard stopped wor…
I do think the "self extension" is a deep human builtin. And it's a very high bandwidth path in us. Ignoring it is mostly waste.
Re: My Mechanical Keyboard
#130Mechanical keyboards are overrated. They're great , don't get me wrong - and I've used them for years - but they are not the end all be-all to everything your fingertips will press down. I've actually given up on my Cherry MX Brown DAS and switch to a Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Desktop and it's absolutely fantastic. The design is odd at first, but after using it for a few hours I realized that the way I thought about…
I've done the same transition. I used to love my keyboard with Blues but it never quite solved the problem for me and is too noisy to use at work. I then also realized that the position and angle of the hands and wrists is probably more important then the type of keys. After I tried the sculpt keyboard it has become my new daily driver both at home and work.
I'll have to give another spin at MS wavy layouts. I fell in love with ThinkPads and old school keyboards. My view is biased by music. Guitar and pianos are straight, but with time you shift how you use your hands/fingers to allow fun on it. I do think it's the same for keyboards. But maybe I'm wrong.