Gregory's ServerThere are many reasons to use a split keyboard, but this is without a doubt the most important one.
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73 comments
@mxtthxw The only issue is you need to be quick enough to push the two halves apart when your cat eventually decides to spread on a wider area :)  @GracelessHippo It depends on your habits and on the keyboard layout, but it likely won't work out the box, you'll need to re-learn quite a few things and play with layers and macros. This kind of keyboard is usually made to be highly customizable. It's definitely worth it in the long run though. If you want more info on this one you can take a look here: https://keyboard.io *bookmarked* ta👍 I had a quick look but I'm not in the market fer another keyboard yet. I'll have a proper look when I'm next in need. I think they might be the way to go though.  @ice @GracelessHippo I have a Dygma Raise, which is a split keyboard with extra thumb keys, and with a normal, staggered layout instead of columnar. It took me about 30 minutes to get used to it. I've been using it for 9 months, and it's the best keyboard I've ever used. (I personally don't believe columnar or ortholinear are better than staggered. Fingers aren't arranged in literal columns, and I don't hold my hands parallel to the key rows/columns anyway. I type 150wpm, 99.9% accuracy) @ice @GracelessHippo (I don't type any faster on the Raise than on a non-split keyboard, but it's more comfortable, and the extra thumb keys are really useful for text editor stuff!) I quite often lose my place on my current keyboard. I think that's a problem I wouldn't get with the split type. @cancel @GracelessHippo In my case it's a bit complicated, I use a weird custom layout based on international qwerty but with a variety of tweaks and macros to allow quick access to French-specific characters. I agree it's certainly much faster to get used to a split keyboard if you mainly type in English. And yeah, thumb keys are great :)  @GracelessHippo @ice I have one, and had it's predecessor. Here's my blog post reviews of them:  @ice What keyboard is this? It looks like the ’6’ Key is on the right hand. Most split keyboards get it wrong and put the ‘6’ Key on the left hand, because it makes the split between the two halves straighter. @PirateRoberts It's a Model 100: https://keyboard.io/ -- the legends are a bit misleading though, I'm using a weird custom layout to support French characters and various shortcuts. @ice Can you post a pic of the right hand side? The website has a clear shot of only the left half. My split keyboards is vertical, which is fine for touch typing. @PirateRoberts Here’s the whole keyboard, it’s symmetrical. But keep in mind I’ve mixed keycaps from two different sets, the default qwerty set and the linear A set. Outside rows and thumb clusters are linear A. @ice @PirateRoberts Very pretty board, this is one of the few splits I've seen that is nice to look at! @ice @PirateRoberts I've never seen a keyboard this beautiful in my life. Unreal. @ice @PirateRoberts@defcon.social here’s one with the QWERTY-cap set. https://appforce1.net/blog/keyboardio-model-100-initial-review  @riley In fact the cat warmer is right behind him, he's lying half on my knees and half on the desk :)  @ice These cat + split keyboard combinations have even their own subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/catsbetweenkeyboards  @ice As someone who *loves* their keyboard shortcuts, is there a trick to adapting to no longer having a dedicated function key row? I'm all about that F2 to rename / edit, F10 / F11 being used as a fullscreen toggle in some games etc. @DigitalStefan You can remap every key to any other key, create complex macros, add various layers that can call even more layers, etc. There are mouse controls, a lockable numpad, space cadet modifiers... In my case, for example, I've set up the two bottom thumb keys as two different layer keys, but they are also used as spacebars when pressed quickly. When holding the right thumb button, F1-F10 are available on the numbers row, F11 and F12 are set on Q and W. It can be customized endlessly. @Sylvhem I also experienced first-hand that it also works great when you spill some liquid where your keyboard is supposed to be :)  @ice You can almost see the thought bubble: "Bugger! Now what do I do to stop that horrible typing racket?" @grumpygrimnir Generally he just ends up rolling left or right, depending on his mood :) @ice The cruelty of people posting their beautiful keyboards with nary a model number in sight! I quite like yours. The dark wood grain is lovely, and makes me think of the lovely editing machines used in The Final Cut, the 'guillotines' @cathos Not yet, I’ve managed to confuse him because I have a trackball on the left and a vertical mouse on the right :P @ice Sometimes you need to rearrange your setup. Or someone will rearrange it for you. If that toot with my cat and my keyboard reaches 1000 boosts I swear to stop playing Stardew Valley compulsively and actually make my own Stardew Valley inspired game, which was initially my plan.   @ice I've never managed to use a split keyboard because I never learned to type properly and my muscle memory gets messed up with keys around the center of they keyboard. This is a factor in wanting to try again though. I hadn't considered it. |
@ice This is amazing, I have a cat right in front of me now who would approve.