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Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

symboliclogic.io

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Re: Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

#141

Post by porker »

bxparks wrote: post #103
darthvoldemort wrote: post #34

There are probably multiple different causes for RSI in programmers, but for me, a regular keyboard is fine. Even my slouch is fine. I type with my elbows on the table and it's fine. It's the mouse that killed me. A handful of years after graduating from college, I thought my programming career was over because the pain in my neck and shoulders was so bad I couldn't type. I went to a bunch of doctors, neurologists, p…

It was the mouse for me as well. It started to cause sharp pain on the underside of my right elbow. The problem seemed to be the numeric pad on the right side of the keyboard, which pushes the mouse slightly further away from my body, stretching my arm slightly further out. The solution was to switch my mouse to the left side, where it could be slightly closer to my body. It took a few months of getting used to, but…

Yes I have had the same elbow pain. It started 5 years after switching my mouse to my left hand due to right arm pain.

A concerted programme of golfer's elbow exercises and creating a split keyboard as described have dealt with the pain.

I am now using a Slimblade trackball and not getting on with it: it causes different pain and 3 months in I am still not accurate.

Re: Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

#142

Post by beepbooptheory »

dotancohen wrote: post #69
enchiridion wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is just having a softer touch the answer?

That is half the answer. When I let people try my mechanical keyboards, especially the Cherries, I emphasize that the goal isn't to mash the key until it no longer goes down. Rather, the goal is to stop mashing somewhere between the actuation point (usually ~2mm) and the end of key travel (usually ~4mm). This corresponds to 45-60 grams of force depending on switch type, and staying in this range makes for a relativel…

This is incidentally also great advice for gaining dynamic range on a piano

Re: Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

#144

Post by ramses0 »

JeremyNT wrote: post #140
slightwinder wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Kinesis are keyboards with separated key clusters, but not split keyboards. When one says split keyboard I think they are normally talking about things like the Ergodox EZ/Moonlander Kinesis has also their freestyle-line, which are physically splitted keyboard. But traditionally, the name refers to the split of the key-segments, not the whole keyboard. Until a decade ago, there barely where any real split keyboards…

> Kinesis has also their freestyle-line, which are physically splitted keyboard. But traditionally, the name refers to the split of the key-segments, not the whole keyboard. Until a decade ago, there barely where any real split keyboards, and split segments was the mainstream. Indeed, I saw the title of this post and I wondered if the poster was looking for a setup similar to the Freestyle... and it turns out they we…

Such an awesome keyboard!!

Re: Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

#146

Post by hadlock »

and0 wrote: post #121
trashcat wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm glad that this is the way customs are headed. I love my Think6.5 V2. Gasket mounting has been game changing for me.

After Googling for an embarassingly long time I think I'm figuring out what gasket mounting is.. how does that meaningfully changed how the keyboard feels? Just makes the whole typing surface a little flexible / bouncy?

I had to google this as well. It looks like the idea is to move the surface that the key switches attach to, to a sub-assembly, which can then be mounted in a variety of slightly-more-flexible sub-assembly. This is the kind of minutae I would have loved to get into when I was younger. The closest analogy I can think of is a solid body (standard) electric guitar, vs. a semi-hollowbody electric guitar, although the mechanics are very different, ultimately you're attempting to modify the percussive effect by modifying the frame.

https://keyboard.university/200-courses/keyboard-mounting-st...

https://www.sweetwater.com/c592--Semi_hollowbody_Guitars

Re: Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

#147

Post by bsg75 »

slightwinder wrote: post #28
roganartu wrote: post #11

> I tried a few of those Kinesis split keyboards. Too squishy for me. Not far enough apart. The CherryMX Kinesis split keyboard was is too clickey for calls and screenshares. Muscle memory made it difficult to switch. This is a really cool hack, and I’m happy that the author found a solution for their pain that works for them, but this bit confused me. Kinesis are keyboards with separated key clusters, but not split…

> Kinesis are keyboards with separated key clusters, but not split keyboards. When one says split keyboard I think they are normally talking about things like the Ergodox EZ/Moonlander Kinesis has also their freestyle-line, which are physically splitted keyboard. But traditionally, the name refers to the split of the key-segments, not the whole keyboard. Until a decade ago, there barely where any real split keyboards…

I happen to be shopping Kinesis Freestyle keyboards today. A common complaint is the ABS keycaps combined with something in the case design echoes the switch noise, even with Silent Reds.

Lower quality keycaps at the Kinesis price range being be main gripe on the Freestyle Pro.

Re: Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

#148

Post by rhizome31 »

If you're not exercising regularly and you have pain triggered by programming you should give exercise a chance. It has worked wonderfully for me. In my case just running 5k every week has done the trick. Pain went away magically and never came back. I have no idea how running can prevent what seems to be unrelated pain but I swear it worked for me. I now use the most basic keyboard and mouse and I'm fine. I don't know if it will work for you but it's worth trying.

Re: Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

#149

Post by ajkjk »

rhizome31 wrote: post #148

If you're not exercising regularly and you have pain triggered by programming you should give exercise a chance. It has worked wonderfully for me. In my case just running 5k every week has done the trick. Pain went away magically and never came back. I have no idea how running can prevent what seems to be unrelated pain but I swear it worked for me. I now use the most basic keyboard and mouse and I'm fine. I don't kn…

I think having various stabilizer muscles be stronger induces you to hold your body in a healthier way. (I think this both because I've heard people say this, and I've felt it myself, although from rock climbing rather than running). It seems like the various basic work of holding your body up and out of tension is essentially free for those muscles if they are strengthened and flexible _at all_, but a sedentary lifestyle can atrophy them to beyond that.

Re: Using two keyboards at once for pain relief

#150

Post by celesian »

rhizome31 wrote: post #148

If you're not exercising regularly and you have pain triggered by programming you should give exercise a chance. It has worked wonderfully for me. In my case just running 5k every week has done the trick. Pain went away magically and never came back. I have no idea how running can prevent what seems to be unrelated pain but I swear it worked for me. I now use the most basic keyboard and mouse and I'm fine. I don't kn…

I guess you do kinda shake and move around the muscle of your hands when you're running.
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