Back in the day before I got old I greatly preferred ESDF, of course that was playing Quake 3, the original half life, counter strike etc, etc
I've been using WASD for so long I would be seriously handicapped if I had to offset my hand to use ESDF.
I've been using WASD for so long I would be seriously handicapped if I had to offset my hand to use ESDF.
that's what i'm feeling right now, I'm trying to make the switch, but the small adjustment of only one key over is really screwing me up
I just wish I could use it without having to go through the process of getting used to it.
There's some saying or something about going to heaven but not earning it that applies here. :thumb:
I've been using WASD for so long I would be seriously handicapped if I had to offset my hand to use ESDF.
that's what i'm feeling right now, I'm trying to make the switch, but the small adjustment of only one key over is really screwing me up
I just wish I could use it without having to go through the process of getting used to it.
There's some saying or something about going to heaven but not earning it that applies here. :thumb:
Why are you making the switch from WASD to ESDF? What advantages would it provide you?
I've been using WASD for so long I would be seriously handicapped if I had to offset my hand to use ESDF.
that's what i'm feeling right now, I'm trying to make the switch, but the small adjustment of only one key over is really screwing me up
I just wish I could use it without having to go through the process of getting used to it.
There's some saying or something about going to heaven but not earning it that applies here. :thumb:
Why are you making the switch from WASD to ESDF? What advantages would it provide you?
it gives more buttons that can be pressed. centering the movement opens up the left some. now that I think about it, i dont really need the extra buttons, but the thought of more a more efficient setup mesmerizes me.
then again, like you said, its all about what you're used to, and i'm extremely comfortable on wasd. i'm not planning on fully switching over, as I can play excellently on wasd, but I was just experimenting really
I've been using WASD for so long I would be seriously handicapped if I had to offset my hand to use ESDF.
that's what i'm feeling right now, I'm trying to make the switch, but the small adjustment of only one key over is really screwing me up
I just wish I could use it without having to go through the process of getting used to it.
There's some saying or something about going to heaven but not earning it that applies here. :thumb:
Why are you making the switch from WASD to ESDF? What advantages would it provide you?
it gives more buttons that can be pressed. centering the movement opens up the left some. now that I think about it, i dont really need the extra buttons, but the thought of more a more efficient setup mesmerizes me.
then again, like you said, its all about what you're used to, and i'm extremely comfortable on wasd. i'm not planning on fully switching over, as I can play excellently on wasd, but I was just experimenting really
Good stuff! Thanks for sharing and welcome to geekhack! :thumb:
I find it hard enough to reach ctrl with my pinky for games that require it... No way I'm gonna move my hand even further from it. :eek:
a buddy of mine has been using a really wacky control scheme since quake 3, when he and a friend of his tried to make the most efficient setup for the game.
i'd have to ask him what everything was, but it was along the lines of:
move forward- left mouse
move backwards - right mouse
strafe left - z
strafe right - x
shoot - shift
ads - a (or in the area)
a buddy of mine has been using a really wacky control scheme since quake 3, when he and a friend of his tried to make the most efficient setup for the game.
i'd have to ask him what everything was, but it was along the lines of:
move forward- left mouse
move backwards - right mouse
strafe left - z
strafe right - x
shoot - shift
ads - a (or in the area)Show Image(http://www.phil.my/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/this_is_madness-11728.jpg)
I just use WASD but I'd consider ESDF if I needed more keys around the main movement keys.
One of my main issues with FPS games is finding a good PTT button. I currently use Z but it requires letting go of A (Left ring finger).
One of my main issues with FPS games is finding a good PTT button. I currently use Z but it requires letting go of A (Left ring finger).
I've always used the back button on my mouse for PTT. Easy button to press with your thumb while gaming without having to let go of any button while gaming.
Well, I think ESDF is obviously a better choice, but like others have said, I have nearly 15 years of gaming inertia to keep me using WASD. I am too old to learn new ways, and I will continue to use the WASD. But you younger guys should make the switch to ESDF before you get stuck in your ways like me. The other problem with using ESDF is that you have to remap the keys for every game, which is a PITA, because I'm lazy and have low impulse control, and I want to just start playing the game immediately . In fact, I find that usually I will just use the default setup and never change it. I guess I have become beaten down by the game makers. Using the default keymap, of course, screws me up when I switch games, 'cuz sometimes "E" is for activate, sometimes it's "F". Sometimes "G" holsters your weapon, sometimes it's "H". Sometimes "Q" is lean, or sometimes it's switch weapons, or sometimes it does nothing, but sometimes it's drop weapon! That's a fun one. Drop your weapon with Q. Who thinks of these things? Anyway, don't be like me. Do it the right way. Remap you keys to something rational and better, like ESDF.It's never too late :D.
I've been using esdf for years. I press control with the palm of my hands. Remapping is annoying but worth it.How do you not fat finger other keys with your whole palm?
5 years from now, people will get into heated debates over WASD/ESDF, insulting eachother and feeling superior for using one or the other... :DI highly doubt that :p There's always gonna be people saying "Call me old-fashioned but..."
And when the war comes, I'll be a lone warrior of the WASD nation
In actual fact it is more of a flex or wrist roll. With my left hand on the home keys, the bottom edge of the control key nestles into the crease of my hand. I don't know the right term but it is the first major crease... if you look at your palm there is a sort of pad behind/below each finger and then a crease/line below those. By flexing my hand I can very easily press just that key. The are not any other keys I can press that way.
An extra benefit to the ESDF cluster for people who change their caps is... you might well have a home-key variant for colemak in your set so you can put a bump/dash/deep dish on E...For uniform caps like DSA, at least. :p
I'm doing that right now and will try ESDF this week!
[)amien
I've heard of people doing this, but it seems really strange. What is the benefit of doing this and when do you do it for gaming? I guess it's kind of like adding another finger, but it seems really uncomfortable, and I can't think of a time I would need to do something like that.It's more comfortable than it sounds. I bind crouch to control. I can therefore move while crouching very easily because it does not require a finger. Very useful in situations where you want to move slowly while possibly needing to do something else like heal or reload.
I've heard of people doing this, but it seems really strange. What is the benefit of doing this and when do you do it for gaming? I guess it's kind of like adding another finger, but it seems really uncomfortable, and I can't think of a time I would need to do something like that.It's more comfortable than it sounds. I bind crouch to control. I can therefore move while crouching very easily because it does not require a finger. Very useful in situations where you want to move slowly while possibly needing to do something else like heal or reload.
It all started with what I believe were the default keys in Duke 3d, where control was the fire key and I played without a mouse. Once the habit was formed by that game I never lost it.
I'm not conscious enough to be sure, but I think I use it for copy paste etc also. I hear of people who swap caps and control because they find control awkward to press, but I find it easy.
I have no idea why this post came it grey.
I used ESDF for a while-- was forced into it by the design of a particular 2KRO keyboard...Hey, me too! I haven't used that keyboard in a long time, though. I don't game much these days.
As a side note: using "~" next to the "1" key is a good tip, few games (I can only think of Guild Wars 2) utilises this key.That's the standard key to bring up the console. ;)
As a side note: using "~" next to the "1" key is a good tip, few games (I can only think of Guild Wars 2) utilises this key.That's the standard key to bring up the console. ;)
Well, I stand corrected in the sense that you have a logical reason for preferring WASD. Probably a keyboard issue though if CTRL and ALT are easier to use when your hand is not in the default homerow position, but this forum is no stranger to issues with standard and nonstandard keyboard design.
Since I have migrated to a columnar split matrix keyboard (Ergodox, TECK (what I am using), waiting on the Axios project), I switched to ESDF. My only game at the moment is Wildstar, so my action set keybinds are 1, 2, Q, W, 3, R, 4, T, 5, X, Z, and A (I think). Works pretty well for this type of keyboard, since WASD are very wrongly placed once you get a keyboard layout that is columnar and adjusted rows based on finger lengths (https://www.trulyergonomic.com/store/index.php). Kind of forces you into the ESDF setup.
I have the most spammed keybinds set to Q, W, R, and T so that my fingers don't have to move off the base position very often. S and F are set up for Strafe, and there are no keybinds on my keyboard for rotate left or rotate right, as that is all handled via mouse. Making this commitment really freed me up to use fewer overall keys and keep my hands in the home position. This is critical for an MMORPG game like Wildstar where the combat is very action oriented. In my days playing WoW years ago, this was less of an issue. I don't play first person shooters, but I would imagine that this setup would work well for those, too.
I was a WASD holdout in my WoW days. And until I started using the TECK, for what it is worth. When I was using a lot of modifiers for my billion keybinds in WoW, I felt the need to have my pinky finger resting on the CTRL, and SHIFT keys for all those combos. FWIW, I am looking forward to the Axios keyboard so I can have the thumb for the modifiers, rather than that horrible pinky.
I've been using WASD for so long I would be seriously handicapped if I had to offset my hand to use ESDF.
I recently switched to an Ergodox and I found WASD to be awkward on it. I switched to ESDF and I like it more. I do like the WERD and ASDX people mentioned here, I might have to give those a shot.
Interesting. I just roll my thumb towards my palm and extend my pinky to Alt + tab or hit those keys individually. That being said, I have relatively big hands and I used to play classical piano, which might or might not help.
a buddy of mine has been using a really wacky control scheme since quake 3, when he and a friend of his tried to make the most efficient setup for the game.
i'd have to ask him what everything was, but it was along the lines of:
move forward- left mouse
move backwards - right mouse
strafe left - z
strafe right - x
shoot - shift
ads - a (or in the area)Show Image(http://www.phil.my/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/this_is_madness-11728.jpg)
I just use WASD but I'd consider ESDF if I needed more keys around the main movement keys.
One of my main issues with FPS games is finding a good PTT button. I currently use Z but it requires letting go of A (Left ring finger).
2: I play some games that have WASD hard-coded into their control scheme, and changing hidden config files manually is just not what I want to be doing in my spare time. Ugh. You'd think they would have stopped doing that in 1994. ...Hard-coded? Need an example. I have yet to see a WASD-based game which won't let a player redefine key bindings.
2: I play some games that have WASD hard-coded into their control scheme, and changing hidden config files manually is just not what I want to be doing in my spare time. Ugh. You'd think they would have stopped doing that in 1994. ...Hard-coded? Need an example. I have yet to see a WASD-based game which won't let a player redefine key bindings.
I don't personally mind the "inconvenience" of checking through (and changing settings in) every menu and submenu when I first play a new game - it's a great way to quickly learn what all your (half-undocumented) options and controls really are and really do.
...but then I got into Tribes 2, which defaulted to ESDF. It was clearly obvious why when you look at all the bindings: one key to throw grenades, another to throw mines, yet another to place beacons, one more for packs and another for medkits, so on and so forth. I hadn't switched back since, because the advantages were obvious and I tend to rebind controls manually first time I start up a game anyway. (For starters, gotta make every game reload via middle mouse click instead of R...)
I use WASD because I'm not some hipster that insists on remapping every key for every game just to be different.