geekhack Community > Ergonomics

What is the most optimized layout recently?

(1/13) > >>

knowsnokb:
With programmable keyboards,and the ability to put any key where you want, what layout/s are the most optimized for...

1) english writing (novelist, bloggers)
2) programmers

Have they been scientifically tested? or at least have a lot of supporters?

And let's ignore the time it takes switching from qwerty or whatever layout you have gotten used to.

Just wondering what layout, for english writers and programmers have been shown, and studied to be the most optimal.

davkol:
That's simple: Dvorak Simplified Keyboard and Maltron layouts.

Colemak isn't interesting, if you don't care about transition from QWERTY or shortcut compatibility; its typing properties are very similar to Maltron THOR, except for vowel separation (and usage of a thumb for a letter). The closest thing is MTGAP or carpalx, but that's still the same in principle, only with slightly different (arbitrary) design criteria and even less usage in practice.

Snarfangel:

--- Quote from: davkol on Mon, 07 March 2016, 10:07:13 ---That's simple: Dvorak Simplified Keyboard and Maltron layouts.

Colemak isn't interesting, if you don't care about transition from QWERTY or shortcut compatibility; its typing properties are very similar to Maltron THOR, except for vowel separation (and usage of a thumb for a letter). The closest thing is MTGAP or carpalx, but that's still the same in principle, only with slightly different (arbitrary) design criteria and even less usage in practice.

--- End quote ---


I tweaked MTGAP software a bit (well, cheated by taking space and e out of the equation and putting them on the thumbs), and am currently using the following at home on a Kinesis:



I may move the Q under the I on the left, then tweak the punctuation a little (move double quote where Q was, and hyphen where double quote was, plus a few other minor changes). I'm also not completely sold on the numbers, specifically the shift 6789, though I like having all of them on the right. I've gotten so I can type without my cheat sheet, though slowly, and the rolls from one letter to another are fun.

bcredbottle:
Ergodox. I have shift, ctrl, and space on the thumb keys so I don't have to leave home row/contort pinky every time I start a new sentence or want to copy paste.

jacobolus:

--- Quote from: knowsnokb on Mon, 07 March 2016, 08:07:29 ---[...] Have they been scientifically tested? or at least have a lot of supporters? [...] Just wondering what layout, for english writers and programmers have been shown, and studied to be the most optimal.
--- End quote ---
There has been no scientific testing, and not much informal study either, any time in the past ~30 years. It’s all just people’s personal preferences/biases, and their computer optimization programs built on ad-hoc untested heuristics.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

Go to full version