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Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

stavros.io

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Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#141

Post by philipswood »

Alternative chording scheme - take sequence into consideration.

Chord starts with first key depressed and ends when last is released.

One-key chords: 5

One of 5 keys to press, one way to release key.

Two-key chords: 40

1 of 5 possible starting keys, 1 of 4 possible second keys, 5x4 20 openings.

With 2 keys held in, two ways to release: 1 of 2 keys to release first, 1 remaining key to release last.

A total of 40 (20x2) 2-key chords, 45 total chords so far.

3-key chords: 360(*)

5x4x3 for 60 openings. 1 of 5 first keys, 1 of 4 second keys, 1 of 3 third keys.

3x2x1 for 6 releases. With 3 pressed, 1 of 3 to release first, 1 of 2 to release second, last key released.

Total of 360 simple(*) 3-key chords.

405 (5 + 40 + 360) chords so far.

Yeah, biggest effort is not the hardware, but wiring the muscle memory, but I figure out motor system should be great at this if you're motivated.

(*) Simple chords - where we first just press and then just release, more options are available if we are ready to keep the sequence going by pressing and releasing and pressing again.

NOTE: Not original, this is my take on some one else's scheme, I'll look for the reference.

Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#142

Post by StavrosK »

mromanuk wrote: post #133
StavrosK wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There will be no question because I didn't include a question mark.

Then I'll wait for the next version Keyyyyyyyys! 2, with 20% more keys, and 2^6 - 1 (63) combinations. Could the thumb key, be half pressed? Or maybe have 2 keys there, or two times pressed to simulate an additional key. 63! you can add the question mark, internationalization and even emojis!

Oh man! An embarrassment of keys! I will definitely do this, after I finish my cybernetic fingers.

Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#143

Post by StavrosK »

slig wrote: post #138
StavrosK wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's fantastic, I have tens of them because I constantly use them around the house, in things like alarm clocks ( https://www.stavros.io/posts/do-not-be-alarmed-clock/ ), cat toys (no writeup there), scales (maybe later) and other random things. At $2 each, they're fantastic.

Can you share which version you bought a Banggood? Thanks!

BangGood isn't great for electronics components, I buy those off Ali, and any version you get there is good.

Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#145

Post by gumby »

KMnO4 wrote: post #26
throwaway744678 wrote: post #23

Falsehoods programmers believe about hands: - they have 5 fingers Joking aside, that's a really nice project: congratulations!

Well, digits; a thumb is not technically a finger:)

> Well, digits; a thumb is not technically a finger:)

Since you used the word "technically": actually the thumb is considered a finger in anatomical use (which is about as "technical" as you can get) just as the hallux (in popular jargon, "big toe") is anatomically considered a toe, despite having its own name.

In a prior life in pharmaceutical development we had a drug program in which this was specifically important.

Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#146

Post by gnicholas »

mnw21cam wrote: post #72
jnwatson wrote: post #11

This is called a chorded keyboard [1]. Like seemingly everything invented in the following 40 years, it was introduced by Douglas Englebart in the Mother of all Demos in 1968. Englebart had a iOS app that allowed you to chord type as well. 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chorded_keyboard

I'm sure I remember an Asimov story where a reporter is hiding one of these in his pocket and taking notes unobtrusively, hoping nobody will notice the small hand movements.

Just like Matt Damon in The Departed, texting on a flip phone in his pocket, betraying Martin Sheen while standing right next to him.

Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#147

Post by gumby »

Very nice work.

I remember in the late 70s seeing keyboards like this for sale (via ads in the PC magazines of the day, like Creative Computing). What was most notable was they were built on a hemisphere (dome) which feels like a more comfortable shape for extended use.

I don't know how useful this might be for your friend (thankfully I have no idea what the inside of an ambulance looks like) but this configuration could be mounted on the armrest of a chair or even better on the side of the chair so you could use it with your hand hanging straight down. (Or on your belt if you wanted to go full nerd, I suppose.)

Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#148

Post by ghaff »

weinzierl wrote: post #62
KMnO4 wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, digits; a thumb is not technically a finger:)

Are you telling me that I have four fingers in English but five Finger in German? I'm confused, but Collins dictionary agrees with you: "Your fingers are the four long thin parts at the end of each hand." https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/finger

Though here is the definition from Merriam-Webster, which I'd consider the standard reference for US English.

any of the five terminating members of the hand : a digit of the forelimb especially : one other than the thumb

That seems more correct to me because I don't think in normal usage saying that "most people have 10 fingers and 10 toes" would be considered an inaccurate statement. And, if someone said they have four fingers on their right hand, you'd assume they meant they were missing a digit.

And even the Collins dictionary has a countable noun meaning with the usage example: "The fingers of a glove are the parts that a person's fingers fit into."

Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#149

Post by gumby »

jnwatson wrote: post #11

This is called a chorded keyboard [1]. Like seemingly everything invented in the following 40 years, it was introduced by Douglas Englebart in the Mother of all Demos in 1968. Englebart had a iOS app that allowed you to chord type as well. 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chorded_keyboard

I used a nice IBM chord keyboard in the late 70s but can't find a photo. It had the space bar sticking out to the side for your thumb; the other keys didn't just have a divot on their tops, as with a typical keyboard today but also on the faces and corners to encourage you to press multiples. With some practice you could get pretty fast.

Re: Show HN: I made a 5-key keyboard

#150

Post by fudged71 »

muddi900 wrote: post #144

Why not just use voice note? Dictation apps have been around since forever and there more voice to text solutions than ever.

What you want is a bullet outline using dictation with a throat mic. It would be great to combine dictation with keypresses to inform the structure!

So hold the Digit1 button for a new heading, hold Digit2 for a subheading, hold Digit3 for a sub-subheading, etc.

Provide auto-transcription for each line with a custom dictionary (medical terminology). And keep the original audio in case transcription fails.

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