4 ms·

1. Roughly how heavy is it? It looks big but not too dense. 2. How easy is it to remap keys on the keyboard and trackball? For example, I'd probably want to

1. Roughly how heavy is it? It looks big but not too dense. 2. How easy is it to remap keys on the keyboard and trackball? For example, I'd probably want to swap the Alt and Space keys, the Shift and Up/Del keys, and the Primary/Secondary Click and macro buttons. Are we talking config file change or manually patching firmware? 3. How generic is the SoM connector? Are there any existing alternative SoMs I might be able to stick in there? 4. How many times can I open the body without running into issues? For example, if I swap out the batteries every day for a year, am I going to run into problems? 5. It looks like you opted for a barrel jack instead of USB-PD for charging. Why'd you choose to go that route? 6. Why the lack of USB Type-C ports? 7. "The keyboard not only works as a USB HID device, but it also has a direct UART cable connection to the system controller on the motherboard. By pressing the Circle key, you can interact directly with the system controller, bypassing the main SoC." That sounds really cool. Do you have more info about that? How hackable is it? Edit: I like where you're going with the project, and I think I could easily turn this into my daily driver. Keep up the great work!

danbolt 6y ago
I don't really have MNT's answers to your questions, but I do know that for (7) they have the source for the keyboard firmware on gittea here: https://source.mntmn.com/MNT/reform/src/branch/master/reform2-keyboard-fw https://source.mntmn.com/MNT/reform/src/branch/master/reform...
mntmn 6y ago
Thanks for your questions and encouragement. Answers: 1. ~1.9kg fully loaded with batteries, WiFi card and SSD. 2. Currently you need to rebuild the firmware, which is "make" and then "flash.sh", but it's absolutely feasible to make a nice keymap editor. 3. The connector itself is generic and cheap (SO-DIMM), you stick a bare PCB in it (card edge). There's currently no other SoM with this pinout, though. We'll work to change that. 4. Haven't run into issues yet, and opened and closed mine many many times. 5. Simplicity. 6. Type-A is still much more common. The next version could have Type-C or a mix possibly. 7. Totally hackable. The sources are already in our Git / on GitHub but I'll post an article about this during the campaign.
- zenexer 6y ago
  1. That's pretty damn good, especially given the size. 2. Since it's all in git, I'd consider `make && ./flash.sh` fine; that's not really any more difficult than a config file. 3. I particularly like the potential for switching architectures without needing a whole new device. 4. Awesome 5 & 6. I've been refusing to buy new portable electronics unless they have Type-C ports and support USB-PD, since it's simplified my life a lot--one charger for everything. That being said, I'm normally making that decision under the assumption that I won't be able to upgrade what I buy today, and I don't want it to hold me back tomorrow. That's not an issue with your device, but I'd definitely love to see USB-PD down the road, even if it's an external accessory or a DIY guide. 7. That's definitely something I'd love to learn more about. From my perspective, the integrated-yet-fully-hackable HIDs are key selling points.

danbolt 6y ago

I don't really have MNT's answers to your questions, but I do know that for (7) they have the source for the keyboard firmware on gittea here: https://source.mntmn.com/MNT/reform/src/branch/master/reform2-keyboard-fw https://source.mntmn.com/MNT/reform/src/branch/master/reform...

mntmn 6y ago

Thanks for your questions and encouragement. Answers: 1. ~1.9kg fully loaded with batteries, WiFi card and SSD. 2. Currently you need to rebuild the firmware, which is "make" and then "flash.sh", but it's absolutely feasible to make a nice keymap editor. 3. The connector itself is generic and cheap (SO-DIMM), you stick a bare PCB in it (card edge). There's currently no other SoM with this pinout, though. We'll work to change that. 4. Haven't run into issues yet, and opened and closed mine many many times. 5. Simplicity. 6. Type-A is still much more common. The next version could have Type-C or a mix possibly. 7. Totally hackable. The sources are already in our Git / on GitHub but I'll post an article about this during the campaign.

zenexer 6y ago
1. That's pretty damn good, especially given the size. 2. Since it's all in git, I'd consider `make && ./flash.sh` fine; that's not really any more difficult than a config file. 3. I particularly like the potential for switching architectures without needing a whole new device. 4. Awesome 5 & 6. I've been refusing to buy new portable electronics unless they have Type-C ports and support USB-PD, since it's simplified my life a lot--one charger for everything. That being said, I'm normally making that decision under the assumption that I won't be able to upgrade what I buy today, and I don't want it to hold me back tomorrow. That's not an issue with your device, but I'd definitely love to see USB-PD down the road, even if it's an external accessory or a DIY guide. 7. That's definitely something I'd love to learn more about. From my perspective, the integrated-yet-fully-hackable HIDs are key selling points.