The idea of a trackpoint on my desktop keyboard is what led me to pull the trigger on one of these: https://ultimatehackingkeyboard.com/
Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
31–40 of 73 posts
Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#32I wish more keyboards had the trackpoint, ideally a brown switch or clear switches.
Trackball under one thumb would be awesome. Then split the keyboard to have two independent parts so you can type with your arms parallel (even better, add a half-keyboard holder at the end of each of your chair armrests).
I miss when laptops had trackballs. It was the only time in history when I preferred the pointing device on laptops to a standard mouse! (back in the 90s I used to use trackballs on my desktops)
Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#33The idea of a trackpoint on my desktop keyboard is what led me to pull the trigger on one of these: https://ultimatehackingkeyboard.com/
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Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#34Nice build! Thanks for the xinput trick. I'm actually surprised it went so well. If you're not a fan of putting this whole thing together yourself these guys in Taiwan make a really nice mechancial keyboard called the Tex Yoda 2. Kinda hard to get though...
Or for half the price, the Unicomp EnduraPro. http://www.pckeyboard.com/page/FeaturedProducts/UB40PGA
A colleague of mine has that and the trackpoint on it is useless. I tried it and it feels super stiff, no acceleration, and the mouse buttons are very hard to press, too. The keyboard is very nice if you like buckling springs. Buy their normal keyboards if those are your thing, but don't buy the EnduraPro. It's nothing like a ThinkPad trackpoint.
Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#35That annoying ugly "button" in the middle of the keyboard is the main thing that makes me rule out lenovo laptops in general before I even look at them. I find it very hard to understand why anyone would want to add one!
I find it interesting that your criteria for selecting a laptop seem to be primarily aesthetic.
I would guess that you are in a small minority here on HN, with most people selecting based on price, feature-set, and possibly brand loyalty/aversion (i.e. "Never buying an Acer again!"). Even if they don't use the nib personally, it's quick to disable and then it's just a visual feature on the keyboard.
Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#36The idea of a trackpoint on my desktop keyboard is what led me to pull the trigger on one of these: https://ultimatehackingkeyboard.com/
As someone who debugs programs often, and renames files with f2, I like f-keys. It looks like a great keyboard, aside from the lack of f-keys.
Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#37That annoying ugly "button" in the middle of the keyboard is the main thing that makes me rule out lenovo laptops in general before I even look at them. I find it very hard to understand why anyone would want to add one!
Instead of dismissing the trackpoint because of how it looks, try using it exclusively for a week to understand why people really like them.
Not OP, but I did give it a chance (couple of weeks) and I just can't seem to get used to it. I have no issue with alternative input types (I frequently switch between anything in mouse keys, trackpad, regular mouse and both finger and thumb operated trackballs), but I was just super inaccurate with the Trackpoint, the pointer kept flying off all over the screen it for some reason. Tweaking sensitivity/acceleration helped a bit, but not by much.
I can definitely understand the appeal - having a mouse on the home row is pretty damn cool - but damn didn't I have a good experience. Using it for a couple days doesn't mean you'll like it.
Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#38Earlier quoted context omitted.
They’re essentially strain gauges, with a nub. But I don’t think you can just convert one. IBM invented them (I worked a tj Watson research where they had a display case dedicated to its development). When I was a IBM I had a mouse with a nub, it was much better than the wheel for scrolling, but the concept didn’t take off... They’re seem to be some on alibaba..!?
"When I was a[t] IBM I had a mouse with a nub.." I'ver never wanted anything so badly! Link to Alibaba?
That sounds like the ScrollPoint mouse, which was made by both IBM and Lenovo. If it's not a current product, you might try eBay.
Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#39That annoying ugly "button" in the middle of the keyboard is the main thing that makes me rule out lenovo laptops in general before I even look at them. I find it very hard to understand why anyone would want to add one!
Instead of dismissing the trackpoint because of how it looks, try using it exclusively for a week to understand why people really like them.
On the flip side if you use a Mac track pad for a week you’ll never need a track point.
Re: Adding a Trackpoint to an Inexpensive Mechanical Keyboard
#40The idea of a trackpoint on my desktop keyboard is what led me to pull the trigger on one of these: https://ultimatehackingkeyboard.com/
I'm pretty excited to get my hands on my Raise [1], although it is taking longer than expected which I guess is par for the course with Kickstarter.
[1]: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/deilor/dygma-raise-the-...