If you have been using an ergonomic mechanical keyboard for more than year, let us know which keyboard it is, and whether you plan to keep to keep using it for at least another year or if there’s another keyboard you are considering trying instead.

  • 𝕽𝖚𝖆𝖎𝖉𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖍
    3·
    5 months ago

    I used an ErgoDox for years. I wasn’t thrilled with the switches, and I wanted more stagger.

    For the past few months I’ve been using a Piantor. I’ve learned:

    1. Thin is sexy, but I still haven’t found anything I loved as much as buckling springs, and maybe I should have opted for less sexy, but more tactile, than what’s available in Choc
    2. I really need to focus on a bat-wing style, connected keyboard next time. While the sides don’t slide around much, it really bugs me when they aren’t exactly where I expect them to be.
    3. I need more tenting; the tenting option(s) on the ErgoDox was good.
    4. 42 keys is just a few too few for me.

    I’m a fairly fast touch typist, and while I loved the chording for, eg, the num pad, I have to have too many keys under layers and I can’t quite get the QMK settings tuned such that I’m either not getting a layer switch fast enough, or I’m getting them unexpectedly.

    I think part of my problem is something the author of kanata found out and corrected for: I sometimes type a following key before fully releasing a previous key, which gets interpreted by QMK and kmonad as a layer switch (and, with 42 keys, almost every key is doing double duty). I suspect I can make QMK do what I want, but there are a lot of knobs and it can be hard to tell what to adjust.

    Anyway, I think next time I’ll go for less thin, max tactile, more connected halves, at least a couple more keys on each side; I miss those center thumb keys on the ErgoDox. Same stagger. I’m going to have to solve the QMK programming either way.

    • markstos@lemmy.worldOP
      2·
      5 months ago

      You might like cocot46plus, although only one vendor in Japan seems it have it.

      Also check out the Vulpes Majora by Fingerpunch.

      • 𝕽𝖚𝖆𝖎𝖉𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖍
        2·
        5 months ago

        (Yah, I’m answering twice)

        cocot46plus looks fantastic; I do like to have that extra pinky column. Plus, I recently forced myself to convert to a trackball, and having one in the middle there is appealing. I also have a PowerMate that the knob could replace - just about perfect!

        The Vulpe Majoris might be even better, since I have large hands and the more aggressive stagger is not comfortable for me. And also a trackball option; these are both fantastic suggestions, thank you!

        • markstos@lemmy.worldOP
          4·
          5 months ago

          There are a lot ZOMG posts about just-built keebs. That’s a moment worth celebrating, but I was curious which designs people actually stick with.

          I’m enjoying seeing the differences and similarities in what people are posting.

          • 𝕽𝖚𝖆𝖎𝖉𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖍
            2·
            5 months ago

            I’d been wanting a new keyboard for a while, mainly to get better tactile switches and more aggressive stagger. But I tried to swap some keycaps on my ErgoDox and broke a switch, and that was enough to justify a new keyboard. I’m sticking with the Piantor for a while because I don’t want to afford to drop $250 on keyboards every few months. So, in my case, I’m sticking with it for financial reasons, not “in love with” reasons.

            I do like the better programmability, tho. Definite win, although kanata certainly filled that need adequately.