The Linux operating system and the Vim text editor were really designed with the US keyboard in mind.
Swapping out those funky EU ISO layouts for the US layout was a real epiphany for my touch typing skill.
4 Likes
Oh man, I never even thought about using vim on a non-US keyboard. The commands are definitely optimized for that layout.
Which actually makes me wonder what the Venn diagram of Non-QWERTY layout users and vim users is.
2 Likes
My own unpopular opinions:
- Return > Enter
- ISO Return > ANSI Return
- South-facing RGB is stupid; North-facing is the way. If you hate the collisions, use a different profile or get switches with a shoulder cut.
- Keyboard weights are dumb. They cost a fortune to ship and in almost every case I’d rather not have one. My keyboards are not floating off my desk.
- I don’t understand the huge preference for linear over tactile. I know about hysteresis and gaming, but that honestly does not explain the massive slant toward linear switches. Do people just not care about tactile feedback? Or just let bottoming out be their feedback?
- Apparently I’m the sort of touch typist who doesn’t use right-shift either. Never had an issue with typing caps that I’ve noticed?
Also thank you to @wjrii for explaining the prevalence of aluminum in this hobby. I’d wondered about it for a bit, but your points about machine-ability are spot on, esp vs. the costs of injection molding. It’s all a matter of the scale – keyboards simply do not hit the scale needed for injection molding to be cost effective.
6 Likes
I can’t speak for anybody else, but I think I can tell you why I like them so much. Granted, I don’t actually prefer them to tactiles or even clickies - I like all the switch types quite a bit - but there are some things about them that satisfy my sensibilities in ways the rest just can’t. I started off preferring clickies, then found some tactiles I loved pretty quickly - it took me a little longer to get into linears but now that I am, at least of a third of my favorite switches are in the category.
-
When the weighting is right for me, a smooth linear really is very pleasant to use. I pretty much do use bottom-out for feedback, unless it’s a steep-curve short spring, in which case I use the bouncy feeling instead. (The right weighting is pretty darn important for my enjoyment here. Too heavy isn’t all that bad if tiring, but too light is a major yuck factor for my tastes; feels like I’m typing on nothing and making lots of goofs along the way.)
-
Super-clean tactiles and even clickies do exist, but proportionally I think there are a lot more linear options that fit that description - and if you’ve typed on loose, rattly keyboards your whole life, a clean set of linears can be a pretty striking experience.
-
Linears are less forgiving when it comes to just about everything in terms of keyboard builds; they don’t hide stab imperfections like tactiles and clickies do, and they lay-bare any shortcomings with switch tuning. This makes them ideal venues for flexing a great chassis, along with one’s tuning skills. A satisfying clicky board is satisfying, but pretty easy to achieve. A satisfying linear board takes a little more doing - and I think that also leaves one with more to be proud of at the end of the day.
-
Well-tuned linears have a variety of sounds, and I like pretty much all of them. Just like with the feels, there’s something pretty special about the sound of a clean linear when compared with the relative cacophony of all but the most exceptionally-clean tactiles. I’m not much of an ASMR guy, but when I’m typing on a clean linear board, I get why some folks might want a 10-hour youtube mix or vinyl record of the sound.
-
At first glance it seems like linears are the most boring, least distinctive of the categories - but once I started digging into them I realized that there’s just as much variety here as with tactiles, if possibly a bit more subtle. They also really let a spring show its character. Those more subtle characteristics (like “butter” vs “skate” travel feel, for example) have room to shine without a tactile bump defining the experience. How rigid is the bottom-out? Is there travel grain? What’s it feel like? Etc.
9 Likes
Vim for the German keyboard layout:
4 Likes
Sir, that is periodic table of the elements.
13 Likes
4 Likes
: not being on the home row? y for copying all the way down there? I would die.
1 Like
Thanks for the explanation, I think it definitely clears a bit up about it for me. For me, sound hasn’t been a super important thing for me – mostly I go for lack of it as my preference. So while I appreciate the smooth feel of a linear, the sound element tends to get lost for me. But, your point about things like scratch and spring weight being more prominent makes a lot of sense.
I have gotten some of the roller linears to try out, just trying to find the right board for them. I was thinking aluminum or brass plate, but maybe plateless soldered, as I’ve never done one of those yet.
(Plateless hot-swap seems like an exercise in masochism.)
3 Likes
As I wrote elsewhere, I like linears over other switches bc I can feel the character of each board more with linears.
With both tactiles and clickies, clicky sound or tactile bump of the switch takes center stage. With linear, it’s sound of the whole switch bouncing through the case.
While I do enjoy light tactiles and have spent a long time using both tactiles and clickies, linears is the main street where everything comes together.
6 Likes
GMK Mitclan is top 5 GMK sets ever made.
2 Likes
We are in Tokyo and I made my way into a Bic camera and tapped on a few RealForce boards. They were… fine? Nice even? Better tactility than most tactile MX I’ve tried, which is honestly not a lot, but I wasn’t wowed.
They felt kinds of like what I’ve always assumed they would: if a rubber dome membrane board were actually nicely made and good. If I ever run across a stupid good deal, I’d be happy to have one, but even at a favorable exchange rate I am afraid I don’t see the appeal at MSRP.
7 Likes
This is how I felt about stock Topre also. I just wasn’t wowed by it in any way, which was definitely a big subversion from what I had expected given how glowingly some people talk about Topre. However I will say once I did get a 660c & was able to lube the sliders & stabs it did make a pretty big improvement IMO. Nothing so crazy that I would start to use Topre exclusively, but definitely nice enough that I’ve been kicking myself for selling that 660C & really want to get another Topre board sooner than later.
5 Likes
I am tired of alert kits. I like bold colors, and there are so many beige kits. I lived through it the first time; I don’t need to see it again.
1 Like
I felt the same way after trying my first Topre purchase (FC660C), now you couldn’t pry these boards from my hands. You really need to type on them for a few days to see what they offer. Topre domes get better over time as well.
2 Likes
I’m with you. I know it’s sacrilege to say for some reason, but beige isn’t my thing. I do think that the alert stripe does help, but it’s still beige at its core. I do think alert accents have a place outside of those sets though. I really like what Keykobo did with translucent alert kit on Skidata Neo.
4 Likes