Chorded keyboards always seemed like an ergonomic nightmare - every keystroke is now multiple fingers having to move. You're multiplying the repetitive action...
A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
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Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#42I sometimes wonder if chorded keyboard would be better for controlling the computer and keeping better posture against RSI issues. Not to mention more compact space compared to full keyboard. I seem to remember from a recording of the demo (and few writings on subject) that the keyset and mouse were used together for more powerful effect than either one alone. What I haven't found out is how well a multilingual write…
Douglas Engelbart used a straightforward binary encoding scheme for the chord keyset: Engelbart Explains Binary Text Input. Douglas Engelbart explains to co-inventor, Valerie Landau, and some blogger how binary can be used for text input. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB_dLeEasL8 Engelbart: Think about if you took each finger, and wrote a one on this one, a two on this one, a four on this one, and a sixteen on this…
Whoa. Thank you for the info dump. I'll see about making use of these.
That Tap device has moved from fingers to wrist, I see. Sadly it's out of stock. Plus getting niche devices outside US is expensive and warranty probably doesn't work.
[1] https://www.tapwithus.com/product/tap-xr/
Edit: that LTT video makes a good case for the device, if only in typical 'tube fashion.
Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#43I sometimes wonder if chorded keyboard would be better for controlling the computer and keeping better posture against RSI issues. Not to mention more compact space compared to full keyboard. I seem to remember from a recording of the demo (and few writings on subject) that the keyset and mouse were used together for more powerful effect than either one alone. What I haven't found out is how well a multilingual write…
I would hazard a guess that it would make RSI worse because it minimizes the kinds of hand motions to operate it. Alleviate RSI with a keyboard by constantly changing the position of your hands on the keyboard - the exact opposite of touch typing dogma. Pecking at your keyboard is healthier.
Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#44> Engelbart's demo also featured an input device known as the keyset, but unlike his other innovations, the keyset failed to catch on. Chording keyboards were popular among the "wearable computing" researchers (who then went on to work on things like Google Glass). For example, the Twiddler. One advantage of them is that you only need one hand to operate it. And some designs mean you can simultaneously hold it with t…
chording keyboards are still extremely popular among the blind, after all, chording is how you type Braille. They appear on everything from mechanical Braillers of the 1950's[1], to modern, electronic Braille displays and notetakers. Input methods based on this concept and adapted for the touch screen are even built in to both iOS[2] and Android[3].
[1] https://wecapable.com/perkins-brailler-braille-typing/
Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#45I sometimes wonder if chorded keyboard would be better for controlling the computer and keeping better posture against RSI issues. Not to mention more compact space compared to full keyboard. I seem to remember from a recording of the demo (and few writings on subject) that the keyset and mouse were used together for more powerful effect than either one alone. What I haven't found out is how well a multilingual write…
As Don Hopkins sort-of says—the original chording keyboard (and most later units) just had you inputting a binary number, which would be added to 64 to get an ASCII codepoint. No attempt was made to optimize for letter frequencies in English at this stage of design—A was one key (00001) but E was two (00101). Engelbart's style of chording keyboard barely escaped the Anglosphere. But a related invention, the stenograp…
Yeah, I have probably conflated the two technologies somewhere along the way. And if I had read all the way to the footnotes of the original article I'd have found the keyset's chords. They do are counting in straight binary, going from a-z in order. Add mouse buttons for modes to get uppercase, numbers and what not. Interesting really that such a simple scheme worked.
Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#46[flagged]
Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#47[flagged]
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Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#48I'm sure there's a (mythical at the moment) device just waiting to "disrupt they keyboard industry"
It's crazy that most of us are effectively using a fancy typewriter. Qwerty layout dates 1874, clocking in at just over 150 years of age.
Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#49I'm sure there's a (mythical at the moment) device just waiting to "disrupt they keyboard industry" It's crazy that most of us are effectively using a fancy typewriter. Qwerty layout dates 1874, clocking in at just over 150 years of age.
We already did.
It's called the mouse.
Re: A USB Interface to the "Mother of All Demos" Keyset
#50I sometimes wonder if chorded keyboard would be better for controlling the computer and keeping better posture against RSI issues. Not to mention more compact space compared to full keyboard. I seem to remember from a recording of the demo (and few writings on subject) that the keyset and mouse were used together for more powerful effect than either one alone. What I haven't found out is how well a multilingual write…
I would hazard a guess that it would make RSI worse because it minimizes the kinds of hand motions to operate it. Alleviate RSI with a keyboard by constantly changing the position of your hands on the keyboard - the exact opposite of touch typing dogma. Pecking at your keyboard is healthier.
I'm no health expert, only an expert practitioner of my hands. Mostly I keep changing keyboards and positions. That small chorded keyset can be set to more natural positions and moved at will to wherever you can reach. You ostensibly don't need to even look at it. I'd assume you would be looking between the chord sheet for directions and what you're actually writing... A device like this Tap thing, which is attached to your fingers or wrist, allows even more freedom.
As for mouse, well, I guess a trackball is easier to move about, stick to chair arm or something. Touchpad might work also, but you require more estate for precision and gestures.