Okey, I know there are some threads floating around here, but I wanted to ask a pretty specific question: What about the HHKB's layout is it that makes it superior to all other layouts? Is it only for programmers using specific programs it is so damn good, or is it for all everyday users? I'm extremely intruiged by the keyboard, and I'm really considering jumping straight to it.. after my next paycheck.
However, I'm defo not a programmer, and all I'll be using my KB for is gaming, browsing, typing (I'm a psychology student, AKA I will be writing lots of essay like papers), and just general use.
As always, I know everything is personal preference, but I want to hear your opinions!
I wouldn't call it superior to all over boards, but it's definitely the best Topre board out there for sure. I want one really badly, but I couldn't use one it's just too small for me, 60% boards don't cut it for me, I need a 75% board or nothing at-all .
If they made a 75% HHKB, then I'd jump on that in a heartbeat.
If you use 75% for the arrow keys, then there's the Leopold FC660C. If you use the F keys a lot, there's the Realforce TKL.
As for me, I'll stick to my consistent and moddable MX switches on a 60% layout with usable arrow keys and home and end in decent places, thanks.
The leopold is definitely an interesting board.. the thing is that the asymmetry bothers me a lot )
I've had the chance to buy the HHKBPro 2 for about 280$ as of right now.. I decided not to buy it just yet though!
<start off-topic rant>
Well, if you're into symmetry there are only a few boards that qualify
Truly Ergonomic, ErgoDox, some symmetrical stagger boards, my custom DIY board, AcidFire's Axios project, etc.
"Normal" layout boards are all asymmetrical, the Q and A rows are horizontally staggered by 1/4 keyspace, so it's impossible to make them symmetrical. This is a legacy of the original "Type-Writer" keyboard designed by Christopher Sholes. It was designed so the levers for the strikers could lie next to each other and be centered on each keycap. The layout was also designed to prevent letters in close physical proximity from being struck too soon after each other due to the strikers relying on gravity to return to their default position. The machine sold well, so we got stuck with the QWERTY layout on all subsequent Typewiters, even though Sholes had designed a better layout for his 2nd model 5 years later which used springs to return the strikers (Remington & Sons refused to change the layout, arguing that too many people were already used to QWERTY). Then, when they first electrical and electronic keyboards were made they stuck to the staggered row layout for the same reason of familiarity. So now we have 2 outmoded, unergonomic, inefficient and downright bad "features" common to practically all modern keyboards when there is no reason other than familiarity and tradition to keep them. There is certainly no
practical need to keep them, since we don't have mechanical levers under the caps that need to lie next to each other and the characters can be typed in any order at any speed without "jamming" the system.
Another thing we can blame on the legacy of "it's always been done that way" is how much we overload the pinkie with modifiers and other functions. In the beginning, everything was typed in upper case, so there were only the alpha and number keys with a few punctuation keys. When the shiftable carriage was invented, they added shift keys which actually moved the whole carriage, then came Shift Lock, carriage return, Tab, etc... All these had to be added on around the outside of the existing layout so as to keep the layout "familiar", but instead of making the space bar smaller and putting them on the thumbs, they ended up on the left and right sides, operated by the pinkies. This practice continued in the electronic era, so now we have Esc, backspace, Ctrl, Alt, Win, Menu, etc also. Most of which we have to use pinkies for.
It's ridiculous how much legacy "junk" we put up with in the name of familiarity. Silly thing is that now our kids are learning to use this mishmash of unergonomic ad-hoc components, too. I think it's time for a change.
</end off-topic rant>