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My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

jackevansevo.github.io

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Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#301

Post by jethro_tell »

frameset wrote: post #16

I really don't understand the numpad-less trend of fashionable keyboards. Doing any kind of number entry beyond one or two digits is very annoying without one. They also don't take up that much space really. If your keyboard is a portable one you pack with you on trips, I get it. If it lives on a desk, why not splash out the small amount extra to make number entry much easier.

Some people don't do number entry of any scale that would make them want to take their hands off the home row. I'm one, I have small keyboards everywhere.

My wife on the other hand has a custom keyboard with a num pad on each side so she can num pad with a mouse in her hand.

People have different needs. And different workflows. Not sure why that's news to you.

Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#302

Post by h2odragon »

Filligree wrote: post #33
wiredfool wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Beating someone to death? My m13 has lasted 20 years - though it needs a new cable because of flakey plastic.

Some people use an astounding amount of force. I wince every time I need to hand my father my laptop.

I have woken my wife up with a burst of typing. She said it sounded like someone shaking a spray paint can.

Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#303

Post by jethro_tell »

bityard wrote: post #139
gorjusborg wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, the number pad is pretty useless to me. I am not a cashier or accountant. The top row is fine fine for programming.

People who work at all with ipv4 networks (devops, sre, sysadmin, netadmin) find themselves entering IP addresses on most regular days.

Or they don't, I've worked on fleets from 10-1,000,000 hosts just use auto configured DNS like a normal person.

If you're using IPs there something wrong with your process.

Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#304

Post by laylomo2 »

LeifCarrotson wrote: post #271
taneq wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's like those articles on gaming addiction where they're like "Anthony (27) spends up to 8 hours a week playing an online game, and his parents are worried about him!"

Meanwhile, most respondents to this post use a keyboard daily for 8+ hours to do work that's valued extremely highly. Have you seen an auto mechanic's toolbox, or carpenter's tool crib? Using the wrong tool, or even one which is only a few percent less efficient than optimal, is a mistake.

Betcha everyone is using qwerty too :)

Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#305

Post by tempaccount1234 »

pr0zac wrote: post #115
frameset wrote: post #16

I really don't understand the numpad-less trend of fashionable keyboards. Doing any kind of number entry beyond one or two digits is very annoying without one. They also don't take up that much space really. If your keyboard is a portable one you pack with you on trips, I get it. If it lives on a desk, why not splash out the small amount extra to make number entry much easier.

Do you not know how to touch type without looking at the keyboard at all or have you just not learned where the numbers are? Shouldn't you take the time to learn to type correctly instead of relying on moving your entire hand just to type a number? I truly do not mean to be insulting or anything, but I read comments like this a lot and they really confuse me. I don't need a numpad because I know how to touch type and…

Situations where I have to type in numbers are usually those where I need one hand to touch paper or a device, so that’s why typing them on a regular keyboard is hard.

Also those keyboards without a number block seem to have bad positions for cursor and other special keys.

Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#307

Post by sokoloff »

rewmie wrote: post #211
jseliger wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I eventually wound up with Kinesis ergo keyboards and stopped being much "into" keyboards; they are a means to an end: https://jakeseliger.com/2011/07/17/further-thoughts-on-the-k... . Now I have an Advantage 3 with Box White switches, after admittedly talking to an Upgrade Keyboards key switch sommelier, which I admit somewhat undercuts my first sentence in this comment.

> eventually wound up with Kinesis ergo keyboards and stopped being much "into" keyboards; Aren't those like $500 a pop? Handing out that kind of dough for a keyboard sounds like the opposite of stopping being much into keyboards.

I'd almost surely have lost my career in software if it weren't for some solution (the solution of which for me was a Kinesis Advantage). I used the PS2 version for a decade, then bought a USB version, which I've used for at least 20 years at this point. I bought both used, but if I'd paid 2x the new price, it would still have been well worth it.

Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#308

Post by gwbas1c »

I've been using a Das Keyboard with blank keycaps for almost a year.

> I frequently had to manually type in passwords when SSH'ing onto remote boxes ... This happened frequently enough that I realised that blank keycaps weren't for me, at least not for the office/work environment.

In my case, I use a laptop as my primary computer. When I need to type like that, I just stand up and use my laptop's keyboard.

Honestly, though, I really wish the Das Keyboard had a braille option. :)

Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#309

Post by tornadofart »

jethro_tell wrote: post #303
bityard wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People who work at all with ipv4 networks (devops, sre, sysadmin, netadmin) find themselves entering IP addresses on most regular days.

Or they don't, I've worked on fleets from 10-1,000,000 hosts just use auto configured DNS like a normal person. If you're using IPs there something wrong with your process.

... or you're working in an environment where it's industry norm that production-crucial devices (embedded devices, PLCs etc) have fixed IPs. In steel plant automation for example. What is "normal" may vary dramatically across industries.

Re: My Unhealthy Relationship with Keyboards

#310

Post by geniium »

Oh I love this article. And I can totally relate. I have so many keyboards that I feel ashamed to have spent so much money on all of theses devices.

But the journey is amazing. Switching from flat to mechanical. From ergo to standard.

Down the road, after so many years, I like the option to be able to switch easily. I lile my Moonlander split (but hate that it moves) so I fallback on a flat Microsoft Sculpt. And sometimes use the MX Key MINI. Yeah, the mini is the way to go. The big one with the numpad is too big for me too.

My dream is a split, flat, keyboard with good build quality. Maybe something like the https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/naya-create/naya-create ? But that price and not built yet is stopping me from pulling the trigger...

What's your favorite dope keyboard out there?

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