5 ms·

Is there any purpose to this article besides complaining about the keyboard preferences of other people? Some people like the way certain things look or feel, a

by yannyu 10y ago

Is there any purpose to this article besides complaining about the keyboard preferences of other people? Some people like the way certain things look or feel, and they pay money for it. I agree that having a "hacker keyboard" probably won't make you a better programmer, but then people pay thousands of dollars for top-end laptops when they could probably do just as well with lower-end ones.

avonwodahs 10y ago
Additionally, for an input device you use for 8 hours a day for the rest of your career the price is trivial. Nothing is worse for me than the mushy feel of rubber dome switches.
- JohnBooty 10y ago
  > the mushy feel of rubber dome switches. Yes. I find rubber dome keybaords much more tiring. It's not really clear when the key activates; I wind up essentially mashing the keys. I pretty much refuse to use them. Scissor key (laptop style) keyboards are a great compromise for me: cheap and precise. Almost as good as mechanical keys for me. Mechanical keyboards are best for me, but not always practical due to noise and expense. (Note: mech keyboards with Cherry keys can easily be made much quieter with O-ring dampeners; this is what I do)
  - berberous 10y ago
    Is there any downside to using o-rings? How come no keyboards seem to ship with them by default? I just ordered an MX Brown keyboard, wondering if I should buy o-rings.
    - lowmagnet 10y ago
      I have only one downside: if you use your keyboard to play games, it feels weird to hold keys like shift down if you have an o-ring on them, because it compresses slightly. I found my hands getting fatigued after a while of running this way, and have since removed all the rings.
      - JohnBooty 10y ago
        This hasn't been my personal experience; I don't find they really compress much. That's not to say you're wrong or anything. Everybody's hands and preferences are different of course! Just out of curiosity, which o-rings are you using? Here are the ones I'm using: http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Rubber-Ring-Switch-Dampeners/dp/B00AZQ2OF8 http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Rubber-Ring-Switch-Dampeners/dp...
    - JohnBooty 10y ago
      None whatsoever in my opinion. The people who dislike them seem to really enjoy slamming their keys down all the way; they say O-rings makes the keyboard "mushy." I'm not going to say anybody's using their keyboard incorrectly; it's all personal preference. But imho they're missing the entire intended purpose of mech keyboards; they offer tactile/aural feedback when the key activates so you don't have to slam the damn key all the way down. Again, if anybody disagrees, you're not wrong... type however you like. :) > How come no keyboards seem to ship with them by default? Good question. I know some manufacturers like WASD let you order them preinstalled as an option. Answer is probably because it wouldn't be profitable. They're pretty time-consuming to put on, honestly. I've done it to two keyboards and it took me a half hour or so. No big deal really, I just did it while I was watching TV or something.
falcolas 10y ago
> Is there any purpose to this article besides complaining about the keyboard preferences of other people? Making money from affiliate links? Trolling the internet at large? Based on previous interactions with Xah Lee on usenet, I'd say both are quite possible.
- xahlee 10y ago
  I did not submit this article. This article got submitted i believe because this morning i tweeted my new keyboard blog on twitter, and my keyboard blog mentioned this 6 years old rant. And somebody submitted that here. For over a decade 1997 to 2007, when my website is most popular, linked all over from universities and schools at, I did not have any ads nor ask any donation. I despise those so-called "hackers", because people like you. I don't know who you are, but there are handful who will badmouth me whever my name appears. In the past I have simply ignored them. But, i'm getting old, and feel like responding, for what's worth.
xahlee 10y ago
that keyboard rant is written 6 years ago. Back then many programers will praise Das all over, but not aware that many keyboard in gamer community are cheaper even with better quality. Das was primarly marketing to programers, but recently they are marketing to gamers. (disclaimer: opinion only.) I mentioned that old article recently in my new keyboard blog. I think that's how the rant resurfaced.

by yannyu 10y ago

avonwodahs 10y ago

Additionally, for an input device you use for 8 hours a day for the rest of your career the price is trivial. Nothing is worse for me than the mushy feel of rubber dome switches.

JohnBooty 10y ago
> the mushy feel of rubber dome switches. Yes. I find rubber dome keybaords much more tiring. It's not really clear when the key activates; I wind up essentially mashing the keys. I pretty much refuse to use them. Scissor key (laptop style) keyboards are a great compromise for me: cheap and precise. Almost as good as mechanical keys for me. Mechanical keyboards are best for me, but not always practical due to noise and expense. (Note: mech keyboards with Cherry keys can easily be made much quieter with O-ring dampeners; this is what I do)
- berberous 10y ago
  Is there any downside to using o-rings? How come no keyboards seem to ship with them by default? I just ordered an MX Brown keyboard, wondering if I should buy o-rings.
  - lowmagnet 10y ago
    I have only one downside: if you use your keyboard to play games, it feels weird to hold keys like shift down if you have an o-ring on them, because it compresses slightly. I found my hands getting fatigued after a while of running this way, and have since removed all the rings.
    - JohnBooty 10y ago
      This hasn't been my personal experience; I don't find they really compress much. That's not to say you're wrong or anything. Everybody's hands and preferences are different of course! Just out of curiosity, which o-rings are you using? Here are the ones I'm using: http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Rubber-Ring-Switch-Dampeners/dp/B00AZQ2OF8 http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Rubber-Ring-Switch-Dampeners/dp...
  - JohnBooty 10y ago
    None whatsoever in my opinion. The people who dislike them seem to really enjoy slamming their keys down all the way; they say O-rings makes the keyboard "mushy." I'm not going to say anybody's using their keyboard incorrectly; it's all personal preference. But imho they're missing the entire intended purpose of mech keyboards; they offer tactile/aural feedback when the key activates so you don't have to slam the damn key all the way down. Again, if anybody disagrees, you're not wrong... type however you like. :) > How come no keyboards seem to ship with them by default? Good question. I know some manufacturers like WASD let you order them preinstalled as an option. Answer is probably because it wouldn't be profitable. They're pretty time-consuming to put on, honestly. I've done it to two keyboards and it took me a half hour or so. No big deal really, I just did it while I was watching TV or something.

falcolas 10y ago

> Is there any purpose to this article besides complaining about the keyboard preferences of other people? Making money from affiliate links? Trolling the internet at large? Based on previous interactions with Xah Lee on usenet, I'd say both are quite possible.

xahlee 10y ago
I did not submit this article. This article got submitted i believe because this morning i tweeted my new keyboard blog on twitter, and my keyboard blog mentioned this 6 years old rant. And somebody submitted that here. For over a decade 1997 to 2007, when my website is most popular, linked all over from universities and schools at, I did not have any ads nor ask any donation. I despise those so-called "hackers", because people like you. I don't know who you are, but there are handful who will badmouth me whever my name appears. In the past I have simply ignored them. But, i'm getting old, and feel like responding, for what's worth.

xahlee 10y ago

that keyboard rant is written 6 years ago. Back then many programers will praise Das all over, but not aware that many keyboard in gamer community are cheaper even with better quality. Das was primarly marketing to programers, but recently they are marketing to gamers. (disclaimer: opinion only.) I mentioned that old article recently in my new keyboard blog. I think that's how the rant resurfaced.