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Why do all these new keyboard designs lack Function keys? Layering is not a good solution when many applications already have double or even triple buckies on the F keys. What IDE doesn't?
Why do all these new keyboard designs lack Function keys? Layering is not a good solution when many applications already have double or even triple buckies on the F keys. What IDE doesn't?
Even worse, the ones which (like this one) lack left and right modifiers such as Shift, Control, Alt and Super. For those who’ve never touch-typed, the right way to type a modified key (e.g. G) is to hold the modifier (e.g. Shift) in the opposite hand, then type the key (in this case, g). I really like having return under my pinky, which means that I need another column in order to get quote somewhere decent.
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I see, thanks. Do you double up on your modifiers? For instance if A is Ctrl, then how do you type Ctrl-A? How do you handle triple buckies, e.g. Ctrl-Shift-A?
You can change the behavior of your layer activation key(s) so that you aren't n+1ing your buckies, and can also customize the keymap of all layers (including the baselayer) so that you don't have Ctrl and A sharing the same physical key between layers to avoid that exact issue. Though, if you do choose to do that, there is still a way to send Ctrl-A (using one shot keys [2] for example). I've listed a few options yo…
Great, just what I need, to get further into the keyboard hobby... ))
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There's a whole lot of folks that believe minimizing have movement is ergonomically better, if not faster, and therefore use keyboard layouts that require cords to type not just function keys but also numbers. A popular way to handle modifiers, for example, is putting them on the home row. A tap gives you a letter; a long press gives you a modifier instead. This allows me to (for example) type Ctrl+alt+shift+left arr…
I see, thanks. Do you double up on your modifiers? For instance if A is Ctrl, then how do you type Ctrl-A? How do you handle triple buckies, e.g. Ctrl-Shift-A?
The "both hands on the keyboard" thing is a major caveat. The key I use to switch to my navigation layer (arrows, paging) is on my left hand and it also runs all of my non-home row keys into Ctrl modified versions of themselves. This allows me to type almost any Ctrl combination while mousing that you could type easily with only your left hand, with the exception of Ctrl+D because I have D mapped to control (I use super/alt/Ctrl/shift). I only use Ctrl+D in the terminal, so I had no need to resolve this limitation.
Is all this worth it? Honestly it's hard for me to say yes, but I also find using a qwerty keyboard uncomfortable now. Plus the keyboards are cool.
Why do all these new keyboard designs lack Function keys? Layering is not a good solution when many applications already have double or even triple buckies on the F keys. What IDE doesn't?
Fn keys are literally just layer keys: They don’t send a keycode, they modify existing keys so they either send different keycodes or modify the keyboard’s state (e.g. toggle LEDs). The main difference is, once you start rabbit-holing the custom layers, you don’t have to only put a layer on the F keys. My favourite layer is holding down an extra thumb key to get arrow keys + home/end, pgup/pgdown near home row. Since…
Why do all these new keyboard designs lack Function keys? Layering is not a good solution when many applications already have double or even triple buckies on the F keys. What IDE doesn't?
Fn keys are literally just layer keys: They don’t send a keycode, they modify existing keys so they either send different keycodes or modify the keyboard’s state (e.g. toggle LEDs). The main difference is, once you start rabbit-holing the custom layers, you don’t have to only put a layer on the F keys. My favourite layer is holding down an extra thumb key to get arrow keys + home/end, pgup/pgdown near home row. Since…
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There's a learning curve involved with these keyboards, as they move the modifier keys around. Because of this, the target audience is people who are willing to invest time and effort (not just money) into ergonomics. Those people typically already alter the default shortcuts of the software they use to fit their workflow. Changing IDE shortcuts is really an easy win for ergonomics. Shortcuts aren't really designed:…
I've used over a dozen split- and ergonomic- keyboard over the years, so I am familiar with the time investment. And I do agree, for the most part, that the time is well invested up until a point. But I don't see how requiring additional simultaneous keypresses is "more ergonomic" than pressing a dedicated Ctrl or Alt key. Airplanes, which pilots invest much time learning to fly, have dedicated buttons for all functi…
I have Ctrl + Alt + Super on the thumb clusters, each as their own key. I did copy the default layout for the Ergo S-1 which uses a modifier key (also on the thumb cluster) to access the function keys, so F1 is Fn+1, F2 is Fn+2.
I thought I would miss having dedicated Fn keys but they are surprisingly not missed much in my workflow. Might depend on your workflow though. The current solution is workable, at any rate.
Project description: The Ergo S-1 is a fully wireless, split ergonomic keyboard that is compatible with cherry/gateron switches and cherry/oem/dcs keycaps. It runs on the fantastic ZMK firmware. --- I made one of these a few months ago, and I'm a big fan. It's like an open-source Kinesis Advantage 360. --- Project homepage: https://wizardkeyboards.com/ergo-s-1/ Hackaday article: https://hackaday.com/2022/08/10/from-p…
Price?
I don't live in the US, so I made a [purchase list](https://github.com/arcanemachine/Ergo-S-1-Extras/blob/main/e...) with links to AliExpress. The original assembly guide assumed the user has access to McMaster-Carr, which I unfortunately do not (for a reasonable price, at least).
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Fn keys are literally just layer keys: They don’t send a keycode, they modify existing keys so they either send different keycodes or modify the keyboard’s state (e.g. toggle LEDs). The main difference is, once you start rabbit-holing the custom layers, you don’t have to only put a layer on the F keys. My favourite layer is holding down an extra thumb key to get arrow keys + home/end, pgup/pgdown near home row. Since…
How do you press Ctrl-Tab? At least for me that is a very common shortcut, among other things it cycles tabs in e.g. Firefox.
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How do you press Ctrl-Tab? At least for me that is a very common shortcut, among other things it cycles tabs in e.g. Firefox.
As someone who didn't go too crazy with the custom keymaps, it's a thumb press for the Ctrl key, and a pinky press for the tab key. (I have the Tab key in the expected spot.) Ctrl+Shift+Tab works as expected also.