4 ms·

Keyboard Hack

20 points by mgrouchy 14y ago

papercrane 14y ago
I've always changed caps lock to be ctrl. Since it's always by the 'A' key I find it easy to find. The downside is that I'm always frustrated when I have to use someone else's computer and I'm toggle caps all the time.
- johndcook 14y ago
  I do that too. I use the caps lock for control when I have my left hand on the keyboard and my right hand on the mouse, e.g. selecting with the mouse, then C-c to copy etc. But when I have both hands on the keyboard, it feels better to use the left control key, maybe because it's more symmetric with my right hand.
  - lflux 14y ago
    For me, using left-Ctrl hurts so much after using Caps as Ctrl I never ever use it, except for the Ctrl-Alt chord for releasing the mouse pointer in VMware.
- exDM69 14y ago
  If you're a Vim user, you might want to make your caps lock an additional escape instead. It works like a charm and I've never looked back. Although sometimes I accidentally write in ALL CAPS when I'm on someone else's keyboard.
  - finnw 14y ago
    I find backspace works just as well and can be remapped in Vim itself (unlike caps lock which must be remapped in the driver, affecting all apps.)
    - exDM69 14y ago
      Caps lock as escape is surprisingly convenient in other apps than Vim too. I thought I'd run into trouble, but in fact it's very nice.
whereiswaldo 14y ago
Once you have your hands in the right starting point (using the `j` and `f` key cues) why do you need any more tactile help? Isn't the entire point of touch typing that your hands "know" where all the keys are?
- _dark_matter_ 14y ago
  Your hand eye coordination must be impeccable then. Especially on Mac keyboards, hitting the ctrl versus command key is difficult.
  - risratorn 14y ago
    On the other hand my Apple keyboard is by far the keyboard I'm most comfortable using, the logitech illuminated keyboard coming second. I generally don't like all those ergonomic keyboards, they are all too bulky and take up too much space on your desk.
  - thornofmight 14y ago
    I love the Mac keyboards but those tiny fn, ctrl, alt, and cmd keys all right next to each other do cause errors.
- debacle 14y ago
  I find most of my typos occur with my pinky. I think maybe it's just harder to hit those outer keys.
loup-vaillant 14y ago
Arghh, another otherwise knowledgeable practitioner who have chosen a Mircrosoft keyboard, believing that it's ergonomic. (Edit: not that it's his fault: there's a serious "fame bias" here.) Not that it does no better than the regular dirt-cheap keyboard. It is an improvement over that. But it still have those damn keys slanted towards the left for both hands. We could do better: http://loup-vaillant.fr/articles/better-keyboards http://loup-vaillant.fr/articles/better-keyboards I also hope he started using a Dvorak layout or similar. The learning curve is not cool if he already types fast, but the gain in comfort is noticeable.
- borplk 14y ago
  I'd love to learn Dvorak but the problem is not all computers are easily configured to Dvorak. Then when you have to use someone else's computer you'll look like an idiot or have to ask them to install/configure another keyboard layout which is not much better. I've seen it happen to people and it's quite painful. Operating systems should have a trivial way of switching between layouts (perhaps even a physical button dedicated to this).
  - risratorn 14y ago
    I find it hard to believe that dvorak or any other ergonomic keyboard layouts would have that much impact on my productivity that a QUERTY keyboard.
    - thornofmight 14y ago
      I can't imagine DVORAK adds enough enough value to justify constantly switching back and forth between DVORAK and QWERTY keyboards.
    - paul-woolcock 14y ago
      You would be surprised, I was.
  - fceccon 14y ago
    > I'd love to learn Dvorak but the problem is not all computers are easily configured to Dvorak. Changing layout on OS X and Gnome (I'm not sure about Win) is quite fast, usually if I need to type on someone else computer for more than 10 minutes I tell them and change it. Also even if I've switched to Dvorak a year ago I can still type at a good speed on qwerty.
tvon 14y ago
I'd love a keyboard with braille on top of the keys...
- jszmajda 14y ago
  A quick google search has plenty of results: http://www.keyboardoutlets.com/braille_keyboards/ http://www.keyboardoutlets.com/braille_keyboards/
  - tvon 14y ago
    I did google, but I was thinking more along the lines of a keyboard that is already known to be good that has a braille option (Kinesis, Das Keyboard, an Apple keyboard even...). Though I suppose adding braille stickers myself isn't that bad of a plan.
- astrodust 14y ago
  You could always dab on some epoxy for the same effect.
hammock 14y ago
The home keys are all a touch-typer needs; muscle memory can fill in everything else. For the same reason, a pianist doesn't need to look down at the keys unless he's making a large jump across the keyboard (and even then, muscle memory often serves him well). Nor does a guitar player need to look at the strings he's picking or fingering. A common technique is to anchor your righthand pinkie on the soundboard to serve as reference point ("home key"). From there, your muscle memory knows the rest.
- johndcook 14y ago
  I agree, but a hack can help temporarily when you're training your muscle memory. Also, musical instruments are more consistent than computer keyboards. I play saxophone, and it's easier for me to move back and forth between soprano and tenor sax than to move between desktop and laptop keyboards.
- exDM69 14y ago
  > Nor does a guitar player need to look at the strings he's picking or fingering. When playing the guitar, you can't see what your left (on the fretboard) and right (with the pick) hand are doing at the same time so muscle memory is the only viable option. Similarly, you can't really see what your hands are doing on the keyboard and what is actually being typed on the screen so you have to pick one to choose. Looking at the screen is the obvious choice, but for typing practice you might actually want to look at your keyboard. I learned more ergonomic touch typing using two tricks. The first one was to train using the Dvorak keyboard layout, although I don't use it normally. It just made me hold my hands in the right place on the keyboard. The second was getting a blank keyboard with no inscriptions on the keys and look at the keyboard, not the screen when typing.
- lelele 14y ago
  If only keyboard manufacturers - especially laptop manufacturers - agreed on where to put modifier keys other than Shift. A small difference in locations can thwart your muscle memory.
bryanlarsen 14y ago
That's a neat trick. I wouldn't use that for control since I map that to caps-lock instead, but it might be a good way to distinguish between windows/alt/function, which often move slightly from desktop to laptop.

20 points by mgrouchy 14y ago

I've always changed caps lock to be ctrl. Since it's always by the 'A' key I find it easy to find. The downside is that I'm always frustrated when I have to use someone else's computer and I'm toggle caps all the time.

johndcook 14y ago
I do that too. I use the caps lock for control when I have my left hand on the keyboard and my right hand on the mouse, e.g. selecting with the mouse, then C-c to copy etc. But when I have both hands on the keyboard, it feels better to use the left control key, maybe because it's more symmetric with my right hand.
- lflux 14y ago
  For me, using left-Ctrl hurts so much after using Caps as Ctrl I never ever use it, except for the Ctrl-Alt chord for releasing the mouse pointer in VMware.
exDM69 14y ago
If you're a Vim user, you might want to make your caps lock an additional escape instead. It works like a charm and I've never looked back. Although sometimes I accidentally write in ALL CAPS when I'm on someone else's keyboard.
- finnw 14y ago
  I find backspace works just as well and can be remapped in Vim itself (unlike caps lock which must be remapped in the driver, affecting all apps.)
  - exDM69 14y ago
    Caps lock as escape is surprisingly convenient in other apps than Vim too. I thought I'd run into trouble, but in fact it's very nice.

whereiswaldo 14y ago

Once you have your hands in the right starting point (using the `j` and `f` key cues) why do you need any more tactile help? Isn't the entire point of touch typing that your hands "know" where all the keys are?

_dark_matter_ 14y ago
Your hand eye coordination must be impeccable then. Especially on Mac keyboards, hitting the ctrl versus command key is difficult.
- risratorn 14y ago
  On the other hand my Apple keyboard is by far the keyboard I'm most comfortable using, the logitech illuminated keyboard coming second. I generally don't like all those ergonomic keyboards, they are all too bulky and take up too much space on your desk.
- thornofmight 14y ago
  I love the Mac keyboards but those tiny fn, ctrl, alt, and cmd keys all right next to each other do cause errors.
debacle 14y ago
I find most of my typos occur with my pinky. I think maybe it's just harder to hit those outer keys.

loup-vaillant 14y ago

Arghh, another otherwise knowledgeable practitioner who have chosen a Mircrosoft keyboard, believing that it's ergonomic. (Edit: not that it's his fault: there's a serious "fame bias" here.) Not that it does no better than the regular dirt-cheap keyboard. It is an improvement over that. But it still have those damn keys slanted towards the left for both hands. We could do better: http://loup-vaillant.fr/articles/better-keyboards http://loup-vaillant.fr/articles/better-keyboards I also hope he started using a Dvorak layout or similar. The learning curve is not cool if he already types fast, but the gain in comfort is noticeable.

borplk 14y ago
I'd love to learn Dvorak but the problem is not all computers are easily configured to Dvorak. Then when you have to use someone else's computer you'll look like an idiot or have to ask them to install/configure another keyboard layout which is not much better. I've seen it happen to people and it's quite painful. Operating systems should have a trivial way of switching between layouts (perhaps even a physical button dedicated to this).
- risratorn 14y ago
  I find it hard to believe that dvorak or any other ergonomic keyboard layouts would have that much impact on my productivity that a QUERTY keyboard.
  - thornofmight 14y ago
    I can't imagine DVORAK adds enough enough value to justify constantly switching back and forth between DVORAK and QWERTY keyboards.
  - paul-woolcock 14y ago
    You would be surprised, I was.
- fceccon 14y ago
  > I'd love to learn Dvorak but the problem is not all computers are easily configured to Dvorak. Changing layout on OS X and Gnome (I'm not sure about Win) is quite fast, usually if I need to type on someone else computer for more than 10 minutes I tell them and change it. Also even if I've switched to Dvorak a year ago I can still type at a good speed on qwerty.

tvon 14y ago

I'd love a keyboard with braille on top of the keys...

jszmajda 14y ago
A quick google search has plenty of results: http://www.keyboardoutlets.com/braille_keyboards/ http://www.keyboardoutlets.com/braille_keyboards/
- tvon 14y ago
  I did google, but I was thinking more along the lines of a keyboard that is already known to be good that has a braille option (Kinesis, Das Keyboard, an Apple keyboard even...). Though I suppose adding braille stickers myself isn't that bad of a plan.
astrodust 14y ago
You could always dab on some epoxy for the same effect.

hammock 14y ago

The home keys are all a touch-typer needs; muscle memory can fill in everything else. For the same reason, a pianist doesn't need to look down at the keys unless he's making a large jump across the keyboard (and even then, muscle memory often serves him well). Nor does a guitar player need to look at the strings he's picking or fingering. A common technique is to anchor your righthand pinkie on the soundboard to serve as reference point ("home key"). From there, your muscle memory knows the rest.

johndcook 14y ago
I agree, but a hack can help temporarily when you're training your muscle memory. Also, musical instruments are more consistent than computer keyboards. I play saxophone, and it's easier for me to move back and forth between soprano and tenor sax than to move between desktop and laptop keyboards.
exDM69 14y ago
> Nor does a guitar player need to look at the strings he's picking or fingering. When playing the guitar, you can't see what your left (on the fretboard) and right (with the pick) hand are doing at the same time so muscle memory is the only viable option. Similarly, you can't really see what your hands are doing on the keyboard and what is actually being typed on the screen so you have to pick one to choose. Looking at the screen is the obvious choice, but for typing practice you might actually want to look at your keyboard. I learned more ergonomic touch typing using two tricks. The first one was to train using the Dvorak keyboard layout, although I don't use it normally. It just made me hold my hands in the right place on the keyboard. The second was getting a blank keyboard with no inscriptions on the keys and look at the keyboard, not the screen when typing.
lelele 14y ago
If only keyboard manufacturers - especially laptop manufacturers - agreed on where to put modifier keys other than Shift. A small difference in locations can thwart your muscle memory.

bryanlarsen 14y ago

That's a neat trick. I wouldn't use that for control since I map that to caps-lock instead, but it might be a good way to distinguish between windows/alt/function, which often move slightly from desktop to laptop.