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A beginner's guide to split keyboards

justinmklam.com

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Re: A beginner's guide to split keyboards

#141

Post by Symbiote »

I made a gallery of split keyboards a while ago: https://aposymbiont.github.io/split-keyboards/

It is missing some newer designs, but it at least shows that not all split keyboards are tiny things with half the keys removed.

I've been using an ErgoDash for 6 years. I have one at home and another at work. If there had been a similar keyboard with real F-keys in 2019 I would have chosen that instead, but it's only a very minor annoyance.

If I was looking now I think I'd buy the Kinesis Advantage360 (I could keep using the layout I am now used to) or Kinesis Advantage2 (dished, but has fewer keys than I'm used to).

(If anyone keeps up-to-date with split keyboards etc and wants to take over the gallery site, just let me know. I'm happy with the keyboard I have, so I don't spend time researching more.)

Re: A beginner's guide to split keyboards

#142

Post by jbstack »

wodenokoto wrote: post #114
powersnail wrote: post #106

Whenever split keyboards come up, ulnar deviation is mentioned, and non-split keyboard users are depicted to be using the keyboard like this (image from the post): https://www.justinmklam.com/posts/2026/02/beginners-guide-sp... I don't know if it's just me, but I don't use the keyboard like that. I know the illustration is said to be exaggerated, but still. There is no need to squeeze your hands in front of the keybo…

All typing guides I’ve seen recommend keeping fingers on home row. If you do that you end up pretty close to what that drawing shows. Homerow centric posture is imho the main cause of keyboard related pain.

> All typing guides I’ve seen recommend keeping fingers on home row. If you do that you end up pretty close to what that drawing shows.

I type at 130 - 135 wpm with my fingers on the home row. I don't have a posture anything like that drawing. In fact I have to make a conscious and uncomfortable effort to contort my hands into that position. It's far more natural (for me) to curve my fingers to hit the right keys rather than curving my wrists so that my hands are perpendicular to the keyboard. Like this:

https://p2.piqsels.com/preview/893/842/416/laptop-business-m...

Re: A beginner's guide to split keyboards

#143

Post by lan321 »

shiroiuma wrote: post #136
RupertSalt wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The person on the right side is sitting in a more elevated position, and so with their shoulders relaxed and upper arms at their sides, they only need to extend the forearms to reach the keyboard. The "numeric keypad" hazard also illustrates why I was motivated to switch my Sun mouse to the left-hand side, and I reversed the buttons in my X11 mappings. This was a reliable way to perplex my coworkers.

There are a few keyboards out there that move the numeric keypad to the left side of the keyboard, so that right-handed people don't have to move their right hand quite so far to use the mouse. Basically, like a tenkeyless (TKL) keyboard, but keeping the keypad. I'd love to try one of these for a while.

I use a Keychron Q14. Keypad on the left can be found by searching for "southpaw". The only issue I have with it being on the left is that I was used to sometimes pressing the numpad enter key with my thumb while holding the mouse. It does take a while to get used to using it with the left hand though. Maybe having it mirrored would help, idk.

Re: A beginner's guide to split keyboards

#145

Post by jbstack »

unfixed wrote: post #139

I am an owner of a Glove 80 and I cannot overstate how benefitial it was for me. It improved my typing speed and overall comfort. Also, it forced me to type correctly, using all my fingers and place them in the correct keys. To this day I think this is one of the best pieces of hardware that I bought.

I'm not at your stage yet, but my gut feeling is that I'll reach the same conclusion. I've bought a Glove 80 and figured that since I'm learning something new I may as well go all in and also switch to a a more modern keyboard layout (I chose Canary for it's emphasis on keyboard rolls). I love the abundance of thumb keys, and I'm planning to make good use of them in my WM and Emacs, as soon as my typing speed recovers to the point where I can function normally again.

Re: A beginner's guide to split keyboards

#146

Post by gudzpoz »

powersnail wrote: post #106

Whenever split keyboards come up, ulnar deviation is mentioned, and non-split keyboard users are depicted to be using the keyboard like this (image from the post): https://www.justinmklam.com/posts/2026/02/beginners-guide-sp... I don't know if it's just me, but I don't use the keyboard like that. I know the illustration is said to be exaggerated, but still. There is no need to squeeze your hands in front of the keybo…

Unfortunately, many Qwerty typing guides group keys in left-leaning columns [1], requiring many to twist their left wrist. And this is why I hope the angle mod [2] from the Colemak community gets more mainstream recognition: instead of learning to twist your wrist, just shift the keys to let them adapt to you. This "un-kinks" the layout, allowing your left wrist to remain perfectly straight while your arm approaches the keyboard at a natural, relaxed angle like the person in the right side of the drawing.

[1] https://www.keybr.com/

[2] https://colemakmods.github.io/ergonomic-mods/angle.html

Re: A beginner's guide to split keyboards

#147

Post by jbstack »

vim-guru wrote: post #132

I switched to a split keyboard about four months ago and decided to change layouts at the same time. Adapting to the split itself wasn’t particularly difficult, but switching layouts definitely takes some getting used to. After all this time I’m still only at around 30–40 WPM, so it’s not something I’d recommend to everyone. That said, I do believe the change will add a few more good years to my career, so I’m commit…

If you don't already know about it, I recommend https://www.keybr.com/ for learning new keyboard layouts. It introduces letters one at a time and waits until you hit a threshold speed before introducing the next one. If you commit to doing 15-30 minutes a day consistently, you can get to an acceptable speed more quickly than if you try to learn in an ad hoc way.

Re: A beginner's guide to split keyboards

#148

Post by elcapitan »

I wish I had that much typing to do that I could rationalize the expense of such a fancy keyboard :D

Also, unfortunately for the high price point it's too hard to actually try those out somewhere. Maybe works if you have friends, but I'm not going to spend hundreds on sth only to find out it doesn't work for me after half an hour. There's probably an option to send sth back, but even that is going to be a nightmare with small vendors.

Re: A beginner's guide to split keyboards

#150

Post by urxvtcd »

powersnail wrote: post #106

Whenever split keyboards come up, ulnar deviation is mentioned, and non-split keyboard users are depicted to be using the keyboard like this (image from the post): https://www.justinmklam.com/posts/2026/02/beginners-guide-sp... I don't know if it's just me, but I don't use the keyboard like that. I know the illustration is said to be exaggerated, but still. There is no need to squeeze your hands in front of the keybo…

What gets me the most is that all the "correct typing posture" images seem to indicate that it's best to keep the keyboard low, close to you, elbows bent around 90 degrees. In this position the palms are naturally positioned so thumbs are pointing up, and you need to force the palms to be level with the keyboard (that's pronation/supination if I recall correctly). That's just madness to me, I can't last more than few minutes in that position.
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