Ergonomic Mechanical-Switch Keyboard? 310
dotancohen writes "As wear and tear on my hands builds up, I find that I need an ergonomic (split) keyboard. It seems the vast majority of available ergonomic models are either crippled with dome-switches or have unusual designs, which place many critical keys under the thumbs (I cannot use my right thumb). The one normal-appearing contender, the Northgate Ergonomic Evolution, seems to be noisier than even the Model M — in fact, it echoes! Programmers and hobbyists geeky enough to be here today: what do you type on?"
I can tell you what I don't do (Score:2, Funny)
I don't type on a freakin' iPad touchscreen keypad.
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In the spirit of the above comment, I'd like to point out that I don't type on a typewriter, newspaper, carpet, the wind, or indeed, a pink zebra.
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Even better, I typed that post out on a touchscreen keyboard.
Bad technique (Score:2, Interesting)
Normal keyboard. Been doing it for 35 years now with no problems. Hate 'ergonomic' keyboards.
Comment removed (Score:4, Informative)
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'The fat lip at the bottom of the keys make them comfortable to rest your wrists on and the clack lets you know you've hit the key without having to constantly look up."
You can't touch-type? I know if I've not hit a key because the letter simply doesn't appear on the screen.
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If you can't touch-type, you aren't going to type fast enough to cause problems with your hands.
I've had to switch to all "ergonomic" keyboards to avoid the searing pain in my wrists and elbows, plus numbness in my middle, ring and pinky fingers (aka classic carpal tunnel). I'm well aware of all of the ergonomic advice and proper posture, bu
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Ya, I had the same problem!
Both hands bad. Exactly as you call it, "classic carpal tunnel". The MD's (all 3 of them). recommended surgery.
While hemming and hawing about it a friend of mine convinced me to go see his naprapath (ya, I know, one step less legit than chiropractors, but I was desperate to make the pain stop!)
He gave me (yup, did not even charge me for the visit or anything) a pair of wrist braces and told me to wear them when I slept and when I was typing.
Dude, I gotta tell ya, 10 years later, n
Great Forum for Input Devices (Score:5, Informative)
Check out the forum here:
http://geekhack.org/forumdisplay.php?f=31 [geekhack.org]
There are also some interesting vertical keyboards like the SafeType and the Kinesis Freestyle Ascent, but they're kinda expensive and might take a bit of relearning.
Here's a survey of ergonomic keyboards: http://nsx.underbase.org/db/kbd/keyboard-survey.htm [underbase.org]
Personally I use a DSI ASK-6600 and a Scorpius M10, and I like them both very much. The DSI keys need a bit more force to push, and it has the large "Enter" key I like from old Keytronix keyboards (as opposed to a large Backspace key and a repositioned backslash character, like the Scorpius and Model M have).
These two keyboards probably don't appeal to you because they're not curved/natural keyboards. I avoid wrist problems while using a regular (straight) keyboard because I have a custom typing style, wherein my wrists are not angled when they rest on my "home row" (e.g. index fingers rest on V and N instead of F and J). This limits my upper bound of typing a bit (under 100wpm), but fast continuous typing will only get you so far in programming and sysadmin work, whereas wrists that don't hurt are quite nice... I also remap my CapsLock key to be another Ctrl, for easy one-handed reach to Ctrl+F1-F5/etc.
While you're at it -- upgrade your mouse too! I found all my wrist problems went away when I moved to a Logitech Cordless Trackman (wish it was corded, but whatever). This has a finger-operated trackball and a thumb-operated left-click, which I find MUCH more accurate and comfortable than a thumb-operated trackball (e.g. most trackball mice on the market now). Trackball mice are usually considered to be more accurate than regular mice anyways. One of the big benefits here is the fact that your wrist isn't as twisted as with a regular mouse... if that's your main goal, there are also some expensive ergonomic vertical mice that might be comfortable.
Re:Great Forum for Input Devices (Score:5, Insightful)
While you're at it -- upgrade your mouse too! I found all my wrist problems went away when I moved to a Logitech Cordless Trackman
I can't agree with this part of the post more. I generally find that in my work, I spend a great deal more time thinking and reading other documents rather than just typing - and while I am doing those things, I find that almost all of my interaction with the PC is done via mouse, with the occasional ALT-TAB etc. As a result, I use a Logitech MX Revolution [wikipedia.org] which is very comfortable, accurate and supports my hand nicely.
Unless you do actually type non-stop, I would say a good mouse is just as important as a good keyboard.
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I agree. I love that mouse. Shame they stopped making them and the replacement for them just doesn't really match up.
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Eventually, I plan on getting one of these [newegg.com] guys, or some other cordless trackball mouse (weirdly there's only two on Newegg, and that one's the cheaper one - I guess there's not much demand for them?).
When I'm not fighting on Slashdot, I find that I spend a significant amount of time just foraging on the Internet or doing other mouse-only things; there's no reason for me to have my arm out at an unnatural angle when I could just leave it in my lap, and normally I only need a scroll wheel and enough accuracy
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Almost 14 years ago I cut off my index finger while working at a sawmill. The finger was fused stiff so the knuckle was destroyed but the finger remains mangled, but somewhat usable.
First, get some exercise a little squishy ball or if at all possible some literal weight lifting for your hands, this can include the "hand-grips" or even a forearm weight.
Hand grips
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=hand+grip [amazon.com]
Forearm weight
http://www.amazon.com/GoFit-GF-WFB-Wrist-For [amazon.com]
Ergonomic Model M (Score:5, Informative)
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You can still buy them new from Unicomp: http://pckeyboards.stores.yahoo.net/keyboards.html [yahoo.net]
They even have models with the Windows key :-)
I keep meaning to buy some new ones but mine refuse to die.... (purchased in the mid '90s).
Re:Ergonomic Model M (Score:4, Informative)
Actually.
So it turns out that one of the major injuries typists get is called RSI, and one of the major causes is that people leave their hands on the keyboard, and wind up tensing their wrists in order to keep their fingers from depressing keys. Without rest, this causes injury. One of the majorly GOOD things about these buckling spring boards is that they can support more weight.
There's a couple of things going on with this 'ergo' idea - one part is visual, reflecting the key layout. Another part to do with the support of the hand and discouragement of behaviors that cause injury. It can be very easy to confuse the two.
If you want to avoid injury, it seems like while some accessories like fancy chairs may help, the behavioral aspects are far less mystical:
1) be healthy-ish to begin with
2) avoid keeping your hands in a fixed position, and certainly not a strained one.
3) move around from time to time, whether that means a new posture or talking a break.
I used the Unicomp keyboards for a few years, but I've been through a few of them - the design simply does not adequately protect the board from spills, and if I ever buy another one I'm going to modify it before use to isolate the keywell from the circuits.
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I've seen people attempt to avoid RSI by sitting "perfectly" and typing as "perfectly" as they can, while sitting as still as possible. What part of Repetitive Stress did they not understand?
Get multiple keyboards, and switch between them regularly. Sit close, medium, and far from your desk. Wrap your leg over the chair's arm, and back again. Grab your laptop and work on your lap. Change positions like a small child. Once an hour, get up and go to the bathroom, grab a drink, or have a quick F2F meetin
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Or you could simply not drink over them. I've had a USB Unicomp at work for 3.5 years and never a solitary problem, but I'm not enough of a klutz to spill my drink into it all the time.
Then there's the genuine February 1988 Model M at home that I'm typing on right now, which has been in my possession for seven or eight years, a daily driver for that entire time. Never a problem.
Re:Ergonomic Model M (Score:5, Insightful)
I have a Unicomp Model M, and while it's not "ergonomic" it is most definitely easier on the wrists and the hands. I type faster, more accurately (though it doesn't help with spelling), and more comfortably than with most other keyboards, and at $80 I found it to be quite a bargain, since they seem to last for about 20 years or so...
Life is too short to use a crappy keyboard, sit in a crappy chair or sleep on a crappy mattress. having items of high quality that work well will materially improve your life. If you sit all day at a computer, having a good keyboard and a good chair that is properly sized mean that at the end of the day you just feel better. Also having a good monitor that is sharp and clear will leave your eyes less strained. Sleeping on a good mattress means you will sleep deeper and will have better days. Life is also too shore to drink shitty coffee or eat crappy ice cream, but that's another post.
Ditch the shitty keyboard that came with your Dell or your Mac and get something that works well. You won't be sorry, and besides, you'd just waste that $80 on strippers or something anyway...
Keyboard love (Score:4, Informative)
Natural Ergonomic keyboard (from Microsoft)
http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/mouseandkeyboard/productdetails.aspx?pid=043
The best a man can get...
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This is exactly what I have. I do have to admit a few issues with it, though.
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Worked for me out-of-the-box on Ubuntu 10.4. Might be a KDE vs gnome thing.
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I LOVE that keyboard; I have two spares in my closet for the possibility that my current one breaks down. Never happened, ofcourse.
Pros: - very good design
- no wireless, fast response
- does not break or fail
Cons: some keys are hard to reach, for instance the '7' key is a bit tough
- the 'extra' keys are useless, I never used the calc button and the browser and mail buttons are annoying if pressed by accident
- the 'f' modifier (for the function keys' is useless.
Text To Speech (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Text To Speech (Score:4, Funny)
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Dear Aunt, let's set so double the killer delete select all.
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Cherry Mx (Score:2, Interesting)
Elite Keyboards [slashdot.org] is a good place to buy them at.
You can read more about Mechanical Key switch keyboards here: Mechanical Key siwtch keyboards demystified [hothardware.com]
the louder the better (Score:3, Funny)
The one normal-appearing contender, the Northgate Ergonomic Evolution, seems to be noisier than even the Model M — in fact, it echoes!
Isn't that a good thing?
IMHO the louder the better. Keyboard noise level is the only metric my boss uses to measure my productivity since he's code illiterate. Thanks to my trusty model M, I have one of the best job in the world - cybering for a living.
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Keyboard noise level is the only metric my boss uses to measure my productivity since he's code illiterate.
You don't need to be code literate to know whether a program works and was completed on time.
It's all about the Negative slope! (Score:4, Interesting)
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Love that keyboard, don't much like the wireless though, had one previously and I find that the batteries don't last all that long and that the signals aren't sufficiently unique for a large office to have a bunch of them.
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The problem with Microsoft's "ergonomic" keyboards is that they are made for people who have longer pinkies than index fingers. They slope the exact wrong way, forcing you to stretch more than you would with a normal keyboard.
If you really want an ergonomic keyboard that's shaped for your fingers and not your palm, Maltron make some of the best. They're not cheap, though.
But really, for most "normal" users, the best thing they can do is get a keyboard without a keypad on the right. Having to move the ar
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I use a plain old MS comfort curve 2000:
http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Comfort-Curve-Keyboard-B2L-00002/dp/B0009ZBRS0 [amazon.com]
Cheap, and negative slop if you want one too iirc, via flop tabs.
Dvorak too. Neo is supposed to be even better (in german, but can't imagine english is too different):
http://pebbles.schattenlauf.de/layout/index_us.html [schattenlauf.de]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keyboard_layout#Neo [wikipedia.org]
truly ergonomic (Score:4, Informative)
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These use the individual cherry switches also used in the Cherry G80-3000 series. They keep forever and are very god for typing.
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There's a reason why the best arcade buttons use Cherry microswitches. They're nearly indestructible!
Have you used one? (Score:2)
So you know someone who has?
I kinda doubt it as the thing seems to be unreleased at this point. As such recommending it is rather premature. Until it is on the market, and has been tested saying "This is the thing to use," is misleading. Maybe it is a brilliant design. I'll look at it for sure. However you really don't know that at this point.
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Microsoft 4000 (Score:3, Insightful)
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Mod up, this is my favorite keyboard as well.
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True, but there's a reason (Score:2)
Mechanical keyboards are not so ergonomic. The pressure required to trigger a key is part of ergonomics, in addition to shape. IN fact a 4000 has different pressure for different keys. It is slight, but it matters.
Really the original poster needs to ask what they really want: A mechanical keyboard for fun/geek cred, or a keyboard designed for the best ergonomics?
If ergonomics are key, the MS 4000 is the way to go.
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It is, but they're quite nice. Certainly better than the $5 dome-switch junk most bundled keyboards are.
I've used MS Natural keyboards for a long time. My 1996 original PS/2 Microsoft Natural is sitting at my office right now, I've used it every day at work for years, and most days at home for years before that. Still works great. I can't imagine how many novels worth of typing I've done on that thing.
Natural keyboard selection is very difficult. There are very few naturals for Macs, for example. You can
Re:Microsoft 4000 (Score:4, Informative)
Half Height Ergo? (Score:2, Interesting)
Northgate Ergonomic Evolution, you say? (Score:2)
"seems to be noisier than even the Model M — in fact, it echoes!"?... yes please! :>
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I'm sure you can get a PC utility which will play a 120 dB jet-engine-level 'click' if you should so wish :P
Let's leave things as silent if possible and have the option for it to make a clicking if we *want*.
Coding Horror... (Score:3, Interesting)
Jeff Atwood had a post on a remarkably similar subject last Friday:
http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2010/10/the-keyboard-cult.html [codinghorror.com]
that references the geekhack site.
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That's exactly what I was thinking. I read that post, but the thing that stood out to me was "what about natural keyboards?" I think that was one of the first comments someone posted.
I've had my original model MS Natural for 14 years. I'd hate to have to try to replace it.
Full sized laptop key style (Score:3, Interesting)
Before even owning a laptop/netbook, I fell in love with the low-depth, nearly silent click of laptop keyboard keys made for the full size keyboard. However, there's quite a number of people who like this, so it's not entirely easy to find them anymore.
Counterintuitive? Definitely. You see, once all the millions of keyboard manufacturers noticed the trend, they started making short/shallow keys with the exact same switch as standard keyboards. So, while it looks like a laptop keyboard, they're quite frequently normal crap keyboards whose downward press, if slightly off-angle, produces a scrape within the switch that slows/messes up typing or completely blows a gaming experience.
I can't buy keyboards online anymore because I just need to test it out myself. "Slime" and "Laptop style" just isn't enough to convince me.
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The typing experience is superb! Although the layout is slightly different from the classic 104 key standard, I found I was able to touch type from day one, including cursor keys, I am also able to type faster and with less fatigue. I often prop up the front edge on a wrist rest to gain a reverse tilt
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No need for a DNA test then.
Kinesis Advantage (Score:4, Insightful)
http://www.kinesis-ergo.com/contoured.htm [kinesis-ergo.com]
Granted, by default they have stuff done with your right thumb, but I believe the keyboard is fully remapable, so you can fix that. They don't say what kind of switches they use, but they are very clicky, with a nice feel. I have used them for years, and really like them.
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Wikipedia says they use Cherry switches
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Amiga 4000 keyboard? (Score:4, Interesting)
Goldtouch (Score:2)
Build one yourself? (Score:3, Interesting)
You could get a cherry G80-3000 in one of the 3 characteristics (hard-click, soft-click or linear) in a layout of your choice. It has individual switches of excellent quality.
Then arrange them on solder-dot epoxy PCB's just the way you like and wire them to the controller in the original matrix. This may take a day or two of work, but it will give you exactly what you need/want, and these cherry switches keep forever. For most keys, you should be able to keep the original key-caps, but standard-sized key-caps are also available for these switches.
End result may not be too pretty and this is significant effort. On the other side, you would get exactly what you think you need and could even change things later.
Ergonomic keyboards are becoming rare. (Score:2)
Best of luck.
I'm using an MS Natural at the moment. I made the mistake of getting the 4000 or whatever it was called, but it's a serious POS. It died in a month's time, but I disliked it so much I bought a new keyboard instead of exchanging it. Sadly, this is no longer the rich market of the 1990s. It seems like there are only 3 kinds of ergo keyboards in the $20-50 range, and none of them can seem to last more than a year. The next bracket starts around $250 and goes up to $2000. My favourite out of
fix your health not the keyboard! (Score:5, Interesting)
i know this is going to sound strange - you asked one question but get an answer to another, but the root cause of the problem isn't the keyboard, it's the fact that you're hunched over it, tensed up, locking out the blood supply from your arms and screwing up your hands.
to fix that, you should AT LEAST be doing the overarm stretch: stick hand straight up, bend elbow so that hand goes behind head with elbow still up in air, then take other hand onto elbow, pull and lean geeeently sideways so that entire side stretches
you should also be doing "horse stance" from tai-ji, which is really quite complex to describe, but imagine that you're sat on a horse: your legs are apart, knees bent, and hands outstretched imagine holding reins _but_, the actual tai-ji "horse stance" has some quite complex and specific positions and purpose. the primary purpose is to stretch tendons on the *underside* of your arms and in fingers (forearms as well) as well as elevating the heart-rate.
so, you have to push your elbows outwards so that your upper arms are 45 degrees from vertical, but forearms are absolutely horizontal. hands you have to imagine that you are holding two basket-balls, one in each, palms down but slightly elevated a fraction, fingers splayed as far wide as you can go.
get it right and you should feel loots of tendons stretching under your armpits, at your elbow-forearm _and_ wrists _and_ the thumb and little finger tendons! and that's exactly what you need - to stretch out that which you've utterly cramped out and damaged.
the horse-stance itself results in quite seriously elevated heart rate: you're bending your knees and staying there, so you should be breathing deeply and fully. stay there for as long as possible, increase until you get to 5 minutes. you will be surprised: horse stance for 5 minutes is one hell of a long time.
the other one is the yoga position where you sit on the floor, put one leg bent into your crotch and the other straight out, then lean over and grab ankle (or as close as you can get it). with each breath out, go down a little further. DO NOT "shake". if you feel yourself shaking, BACK OFF.
what i do with this yoga position is, rather than stay going down straight is i roll _sideways_ after a while, so that i get more stretch on the insides of my arms and side, which is exactly where you need the circulation increased, to get bloodflow back to your arms and fingers. repeat on the other side but come up SLOWLY - don't just try to jolt yourself out because you _will_ pull a muscle that way, especially at full stretch.
all of these exercises are designed to increase the circulation on the _underside_ of your arms (at the top) as it's here which is actually causing the blood flow to decrease, toxins to build up, tension to happen and damage to occur.
so - yeah. fuck the keyboard - get your health sorted out.
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Along this line of logic, you might also consider getting some baoding balls. They will increase the circulation and improve your health. Like the OP, I was running into health problems in my late 20s due to too much computer use. I started training tai ji, walking, qi gong... eventually worked up to full blown kung fu training. Pay attention to what your body is telling you... move around, get the circulation going, rehabilitate what feels weak. The body is amazing. It can heal just about anything.
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tl:dr
While having the proper posture and maintaining good health goes a long way, the keyboard is part if not most of the problem. Put your hands on the home keys on a regular keyboard and note the angle your hands make in relation to your arms. This kink will cause problems down the road. Now imagine using a split keyboard and compare the angles your wrists make while your hands are on the home keys. That kink will have decreased if not disappeared altogether.
My split keyboard actually separates and I plac
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10 years ago i got the people at work to pay for a swivel chair and a split keyboard that was mounted on the arm-rests. it was well fucking cool. despite being a touch-typist for 15 years at that point i still found it took me 2 weeks to get used to typing on a keyboard that was out of sight: i learned quickly that even peripheral vision was getting me to move my hands to the right places. the funniest bit was the space-bar: there were two of them. but, i wasn't _quite_ the touch-typist i thought i was.
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Avant Stellar (Score:2)
I have CVT Avant Stellar keyboards on the two PCs I use most. They're not the "ergonomic" style (I don't think I have whatever problem those solve) but they're supposed to be designed by whoever did the original Omnikey keyboard (which I have on another machine and love), and indeed they have the same wonderful clicky feel and metal back. I like them so much that I bought a spare (even though it was $189) since I didn't want to go through withdrawal when one of these dies, but it's never happened. Once i
Model M (Score:2)
I have an 1990 model M at work and a 1994 one at home. The 94 is sadly one the the inferior lexmark ones.
I have a stack of 20 model m keyboards (Score:2)
I have a stack of at least 20 good model m keyboards, not sure I will ever get to use any of my spares. They are built like a abrahms tank so the chances of me breaking one are pretty close to nil.
Curls (Score:3, Interesting)
get a 10 to 20 pound weight (it should feel light but tire you after 20-30 reps) and do forearm curls.
Don't overbend the wrist.
Part of your issue may be tendonitis in your forearms (which these exercizes exhaust and release).
Also upright rowing (a lot of "wrist" issues are really shoulder/back issues) gain with medium weights (feels light- but tires you after 20-30 reps).
ABS M1 & Wrists Up! (Score:2)
It's not split, but the mechanical switches in the ABS M1 (USB) have nice rebound. I was happy with it at $70 but have seen it as low as $20 on Newegg. As a bonus, people on the phone can hear it so they know when I'm doing terminal work and they don't keep interrupting. It reminds me very much of the Apple Extended Keyboard II, for those for whom that means something.
Make sure your hand/arm positions and wrist rest are configured properly first before going looking for exotic keyboards, though. I've ha
orbiTouch (Score:2)
You could try something completely different, like the orbiTouch [orbitouch.com].
Goldtouch adjust height & split (Score:2)
Personally, I like the Adjustable keyboard [goldtouch.com]. Ball adjustment locks in place. Standard QWERTY, no thumb keys (no big transition to flat QWERTY). Possibly membrane, but I don't mind even though I've used Model "M"s for decades.
For me, the big deal is reducing wrist angle. I adjust kbd up as high as possible to make my wrists more vertical, and somewhat apart to keep arm-middle-finger phalanges in line. This kbd goes much higher than most others.
Maltron Keyboards. (Score:2)
The Maltron -- http://www.maltron.com/ [maltron.com]. It's been a lifesaver -- not only a better shape (curved, to match your hands) but a better layout of letters (to avoid "single-finger hurdles" and other problematic movements). See also http://www.red-bean.com/kfogel/maltron.html [red-bean.com].
Unicomp Customizer (Score:2)
If your hands hurt , (Score:2)
Dvorak Model M (Score:2)
It's a bit of effort and not quite what you were looking for, but I've found that the absolute best decision I ever made to reduce RSI and other such effects was to switch to the Dvorak layout with an IBM Model M. It's actually pretty easy to learn Dvorak with an M too since it's so easy to rearrange the keycaps. But yea, it's more of an investment (in terms of time), but I would say it's worth looking into.
Real programmers don't need ergo keyboards (Score:3)
Real programmers have evolved on to see in dimly lit caverns typing on the QWERTY keyboard. I have to wear special corrective lenses to see in daylight. I get arthritis just thinking about typing less than 220 WPM, and walking upright may cause a herniated disk.
Custom Job (Score:2)
I hacked together a glove consisting of 10 leads with an accelerometer attached to each palm. By rotating the angle of the glove, I am able to control the specific characters being typed. It works well, keeps me productive, and gives me a lot more space on my desk. Plus I can fit it into my pocket!
Yeah, I wish something like this existed. Ergonomic keyboards, for all their supposed benefits, still take up a lot of space and demand repetitive actions on a frequent basis. You can try one, but I don't think th
Simple (Score:2)
Get yourself dual wireless programmable keypads, put them on the arms of your chair, embed a trackball into the arm of the chair.
Wireless USB connector dongle and go.
Alternative Keyboard recommendations? (Score:2)
Piggybacking on this subject, does anyone have a favorite alternative keyboard? Has anyone actually used the FrogPad [frogpad.com], AlphaGrip [alphagrips.com], or the OrbiTouch [keybowl.com]?
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Get a Das or something with some cheery browns. They are a light lighter (require less force) and you only have to press about halfway down. They are also one of the quietest mechanical switches--just don't bottom out and it will feel and almost sound like you're typing on a cloud. They have ergonomic browns, too.
If you get a Cherry G80-3000 (that are the ones with the high-quality individual switches), take care that they come in 3 switch characteristics:
hard-click (loud, distinctive click, close to a model M, metal click element), soft-click (quiet, rubber click element), and linear (quiet, just the spring). You can get the exact model numbers from the Cherry data-sheets. I have both a hard-click one and two soft-click ones and I am very happy with them. The hard-click is unsuitable though if anybody else works in
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Yeah, I'd pick an Apple USB keyboard as well, unfortunately they restrict my choices so much I expect their keyboards to be missing the vowel characters until I sync my keyboard to my system and load the $10 Vowel Firmware Update.
Been typing for close to 30 years and have never had any wrist pain or "cut and paste pinky cramps" either. Possibly, some people aren't meant to type, or they have a bad idea of what ergonomics can do for or against them.
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I find the minimal travel to be more comfortable too. I once had to type on an older Apple keyboard (the plastic one before the aluminium models) and then on an old IBM Model M keyboard and I kept tripping on the keys of both because of their height.
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for open parenthesis eye equals zero semicolon eye less than five semicolon eye plus plus close parenthesis
see out less than less than eye semicolon
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You can wash it in the top rack of the dishwasher, then dry the crap out of it; viola - clean keyboard. It got the sticky Pepsi out of an old USB keyboard I had, left it looking and typing like new. Except another other user removed all the screws and lost some, but otherwise totally harmless to the 'board.
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This must be true for only certain keyboards, because so far, running a keyboard through the dishwasher and letting it dry a few days has always resulted in a dead keyboard or a sticking membrane for me.
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Get over it. I have one in the office and at home. Some of us don't live in cubicles though.
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Man, anyone with a Model M that works in an office environment deserves a swift kick in the nuts. It's incredibly inconsiderate to the rest of your coworkers.
The "silent" keyboard on my Dell at work rattles so much every time you type that it's louder than any keyclick.
Seriously, unless you work in an office that is absolutely silent, keyboard noise is not an issue. I spent this afternoon having to listen to phone call on speakerphone from 3 offices down. I couldn't say anything like "please close your door" because the offender is "important". I really feel sorry for the people who were closer than me.
noise cancelling headphones. (Score:2)
And it's just at the edge of being passive aggressive.
Though I find that treating people with equality garners more respect.
Storm
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Noise-canceling won't work for those. They will only work for a predictably repetitive noise, such as a jet engine while you're in an airliner.
Better off to use a pair of in-canal earphones, or an inexpensive pair of shooter's earmuffs.
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I have a fairly spacious cubicle as things go, about 8 feet by ten feet. If I can hear someone typing from two cubicles over, I'm not going to stay sane for long. I don't even like to hear the cooling fan of my notebook running. I have the quietest keyboard that I could find in storage at work attached to my desktop, and it's still irritatingly loud. I spend more and more time on my notebook these days because of it. If someone in my area brought in a Model M, I'd probably end up beating them to death
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Yesh, before I drop $1000 on that, I'm going to have to know if its something more than a prop from a bad sci-fi show.
Just bought a Das Keyboard, myself. Love it.
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Obligatory(?) Futurama [wikipedia.org] reference.
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If I see you using two monitors and two keyboards, I'm going to assume you're attempting to reproduce by division.
Not that there's anything wrong with that.
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You minions are almost as bad as using a text to speech engine - at least those things put apostrophes in the right places (assuming they get the word right) and capitalize letters properly.
one size fits all (Score:2)
i prefer durex featherlite (non-latex) oh wait, not that size? right, right _keyboards_, riiight. hey, do you mean the microsoft ergonomic one with the full-sized up/down/left/right arrows? those are brilliant, i got 2 of them because i actually wear keyboards out within 2 years. if you can find a MS keyboard (with full-sized arrow keys) GET IT because they're gorgeous. avoid the ones with the 3/4-sized arrow keys like the plague. see? smaller _isn't_ better. okay, now i'm really confused. what are