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I'm 100% with you on this but I will admit there was one concept / short run project that actually looked like it was on the right track: The Optimus Maximus ke

I'm 100% with you on this but I will admit there was one concept / short run project that actually looked like it was on the right track: The Optimus Maximus keyboard[1]. The keyboard itself was not good for a bunch of reasons, but the idea was gold. Individual, mechanical keys which could change their legends to suit the current context. You wouldn't have to memorize every possible layout before using it, and you could change the layout to suit whatever you're currently doing. The closest equivalent I've seen would be the pre-mouse-era keyboards which could accept laminated paper legends for specific applications. The next closest, tho in the opposite direction, would be modern configurable keyboards with support for multiple layers layers. 1: https://www.artlebedev.com/optimus/maximus/ https://www.artlebedev.com/optimus/maximus/

gyomu 2y ago
There's this great article on the Optimus Maximus, and how it directly lead to the now popular Stream Deck (by Elgato, not the Steam Deck by Valve) https://www.theverge.com/c/features/24191410/elgato-stream-deck-art-lebedev-optimus-maximus-keyboard-retrospective https://www.theverge.com/c/features/24191410/elgato-stream-d...
warp 2y ago
The flux keyboard seems to be a modern attempt at the same concept. They're taking pre-orders, I don't know if they've shipped any yet or how close they are to shipping. https://fluxkeyboard.com/ https://fluxkeyboard.com/
regularfry 2y ago
The fundamental problem with a dynamic layout is that you need to look at it to know what the keys are. The one huge, underrated benefit of a static layout is that it's constant across the environments that you use it in, so it's (always to some degree, rarely perfectly) memorised. Qwerty doubly so, because so many people have it memorised. It avoids the problem with the Maximus that in order to take advantage of the dynamic layout, you really want to be able to see through your fingers. Your fingertips by default block the information you need. I can see the Maximus being useful for switching between and learning new layouts - so if you want to give colemak a try you can, without needing to swap all your keycaps (even if that's possible on your keyboard), or swapping to blanks and forcing yourself to learn everything by heart. But I think the reason you don't see this idea repeated much is that it's self-defeating.
- taeric 2y ago
  Do you have to be looking at it? My keyboard has blank keys. I used to use vim, which had a modal input scheme. My music keyboard has modes where different keys play different instruments. I agree that having the legends are good for affordances when learning. But they oddly hurt training. Specifically, they make it harder to remove the visual from the feedback loop. When training typing a long time ago, you wouldn't even look at the screen til you typed it all.
  - Analemma_ 2y ago
    That's exactly the opposite scenario though: the reason you can get away with having blank keys on a keyboard or a modal input in vim is that the inputs never change, you can commit them to muscle memory and then never consciously think about it. That all gets blown away if the interface is dynamic.
    - taeric 2y ago
      But they do change? Depending on the mode of my editor, they do different things. There is some stability, but not absolute. Similarly, if I play a game using me keyboard, which keys control my character will be in contrast to what is displayed on the keyboard. Now, constant change would be bad. But I'm assuming that isn't what is being proposed?
      - TeMPOraL 2y ago
        It is, in the sense that, if there's a way to display a dynamic label on individual keys, some UI/UX designers will make use of that to create interfaces that can't be learned, as they change depending on tasks, environments, and from version to version. Consider that touchscreen is very much this, and ever since phones got them, you can no longer do anything without looking at the screen. Interfaces are not stable enough to learn (and not reliable enough to operate without looking).
        taeric 2y ago
m463 2y ago
reminds me of: https://www.jwz.org/blog/2016/09/searching-for-finally-got-my-emacs-setup-just-how-i-like-it-yields-excellent-results/ https://www.jwz.org/blog/2016/09/searching-for-finally-got-m... and https://www.jwz.org/blog/2021/03/cursed-keyboard-image/ https://www.jwz.org/blog/2021/03/cursed-keyboard-image/

gyomu 2y ago

There's this great article on the Optimus Maximus, and how it directly lead to the now popular Stream Deck (by Elgato, not the Steam Deck by Valve) https://www.theverge.com/c/features/24191410/elgato-stream-deck-art-lebedev-optimus-maximus-keyboard-retrospective https://www.theverge.com/c/features/24191410/elgato-stream-d...

warp 2y ago

The flux keyboard seems to be a modern attempt at the same concept. They're taking pre-orders, I don't know if they've shipped any yet or how close they are to shipping. https://fluxkeyboard.com/ https://fluxkeyboard.com/

regularfry 2y ago

The fundamental problem with a dynamic layout is that you need to look at it to know what the keys are. The one huge, underrated benefit of a static layout is that it's constant across the environments that you use it in, so it's (always to some degree, rarely perfectly) memorised. Qwerty doubly so, because so many people have it memorised. It avoids the problem with the Maximus that in order to take advantage of the dynamic layout, you really want to be able to see through your fingers. Your fingertips by default block the information you need. I can see the Maximus being useful for switching between and learning new layouts - so if you want to give colemak a try you can, without needing to swap all your keycaps (even if that's possible on your keyboard), or swapping to blanks and forcing yourself to learn everything by heart. But I think the reason you don't see this idea repeated much is that it's self-defeating.

taeric 2y ago
Do you have to be looking at it? My keyboard has blank keys. I used to use vim, which had a modal input scheme. My music keyboard has modes where different keys play different instruments. I agree that having the legends are good for affordances when learning. But they oddly hurt training. Specifically, they make it harder to remove the visual from the feedback loop. When training typing a long time ago, you wouldn't even look at the screen til you typed it all.
- Analemma_ 2y ago
  That's exactly the opposite scenario though: the reason you can get away with having blank keys on a keyboard or a modal input in vim is that the inputs never change, you can commit them to muscle memory and then never consciously think about it. That all gets blown away if the interface is dynamic.
  - taeric 2y ago
    But they do change? Depending on the mode of my editor, they do different things. There is some stability, but not absolute. Similarly, if I play a game using me keyboard, which keys control my character will be in contrast to what is displayed on the keyboard. Now, constant change would be bad. But I'm assuming that isn't what is being proposed?
    - TeMPOraL 2y ago
      It is, in the sense that, if there's a way to display a dynamic label on individual keys, some UI/UX designers will make use of that to create interfaces that can't be learned, as they change depending on tasks, environments, and from version to version. Consider that touchscreen is very much this, and ever since phones got them, you can no longer do anything without looking at the screen. Interfaces are not stable enough to learn (and not reliable enough to operate without looking).
      - taeric 2y ago

m463 2y ago

reminds me of: https://www.jwz.org/blog/2016/09/searching-for-finally-got-my-emacs-setup-just-how-i-like-it-yields-excellent-results/ https://www.jwz.org/blog/2016/09/searching-for-finally-got-m... and https://www.jwz.org/blog/2021/03/cursed-keyboard-image/ https://www.jwz.org/blog/2021/03/cursed-keyboard-image/