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Input devices: a usage-driven approachKeyboard
From bitter experience, I don't believe that the keyboard can be improved much. Three times, and without success, I have built whole keyboards from scratch. Nevertheless, there are a few changes I would like to see done to the keyboard:
Why keyboards have gotten less ergonomicFor modifier keys, such as Ctrl and Shft, ergonomicity has declined. When they are widely spaced apart as on keyboards made in the mid '90s, these keys can be depressed easily with the side of the hand or with the outer side of the curled-up little finger, all while the thumb is facing upwards. In this way, the strenuous finger work usually associated with chording is avoided. Unfortunately, modern keyboards suffer from extraneous OS-specific keys that prevent this technique from being used. (Except if these keys are uprooted or lowered.) On a flat keyboard, such as on a notebook computer, fingers are even further restrained by the flatness from hitting keys in a variety of ways—something that is likely an ergonomic drawback. A keyboard layout proposalA keyboard layout following these ideas mentioned above is suggested in Figure 1. Below it's shown (left) how a large, comfortable belt may be placed on the left side of the keyboard, along with mouse buttons; the side of the hand (right), not the fingers, securely moves the belt. These ideas and the figure below are from AT&T Technical Disclosure A keyboard design by Nils Klarlund. |