Hello Everyone,
fantastic forum! It really has helped me a) learn more about mechanical keyboards and b) start tackling some of my RSI issues. I just got a used kinesis advantage and can't wait to give it a shot!
I've become addicted to the trackpad on my macbook air, and also have a magic trackpad lying around the house from a previous purchase. When I use the trackpad on my laptop I feel completely fine, but tap to click drives me nuts so I only use the physical clicking feature. However, using the keyboard and trackpad on the macbook isn't really ergo friendly as it means i have to either throw my arms on the table or get all cramped up trying to type. I also feel less productive using a traditional mouse, so I thought that the magic trackpad could reposition my arms along with a keyboard like the kinesis so I can both be productive and comfortable.
Turns out that magic trackpad is actually really painful to use. Since it's at an angle sloping down towards your hand, your wrists tilt upwards causing discomfort. I know that you can flip the trackpad around and use it that way, but that means clicking with my index finger rather than my stronger thumb, which is also quite uncomfortable.
I was wondering if anybody had thoughts about and/or experience building a riser of sorts that would lift the feet up to make the trackpad both level and clickable? Do you think that lifting it up would exacerbate the issue (since it would then be higher than the surface of the desk?) I found this base, but it's just a few magnets and an aluminum sheet for 20 bucks and still keeps the positive angle from what I can tell:
http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/mac/entry/magic-connector-magic-trackpad-basePerhaps such a "platform" would make it more comfortable? Or alternatively, it would allow it to be mounted to the middle of the kinesis without losing the ability to click?
It seems like the stupid battery compartment makes things all wonky. One could let the battery part hang from the side or the front of the desk which would make the trackpad portion low and flat with the desk, but that limits the positioning of the trackpad. It would almost be better to just cut the damn battery compartment off somehow and wire it to usb for power... Thankfully I don't have the tools to do such a thing
Any ideas on making an otherwise great device more ergo?