EDIT: I don't need help any more. I got it working thanks to Leslieann and piit79. I've posted pics of my final result lower down in the thread.
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Hi. I've never handwired anything before, but want to try making a thin macropad strip with 8 keys and a rotary encoder - something like this (The leftmost key in the picture would be the rotary encoder):
I've ordered a Teensy 2.0 for it, and for the plate and housing I'm sawing off bits from the steel plate of an old broken Corsair keyboard.
I want this thing to be as compact as possible. So I want it very narrow, and I'm going to actually put the microcontroller
underneath the keys, on a separate 'storey' (I want the width and length of the macropad to be small, but I don't mind how big the depth is - it's going to be attached 'floating' somewhere below my monitor, with the keys facing towards me). Space inside the housing will be tight, so I'm thinking that this might be a little easier to achieve with direct wiring instead of a matrix. I have a pack of insulated jumper wires of many different lengths, which should make the wiring process relatively straightforward. Since there are only 8 keys, I guess a matrix isn't actually needed, right? Though all the the guides I've found relate to matrix keyboards, so I'm a bit in the dark about how to go about it.
I have lots of questions, so I'll list them point form for clarity:
--Does doing it matrix-less sound like a sensible idea?
--If so, how do I wire it?
--Do I still behave as if it's a matrix, treating each left pin as a 'row' and each right pin as a 'column', as if it were a 64-key keyboard?
--Do I still need diodes?
--Does doing it matrix-less complicate the QMK firmware process? If so, how?
Thanks in advance.
EDIT: Actually, now that I write this, it occurs to me that a matrix-less build would probably involve more wires rather than less. In which case, what would be the most efficient (ie. compact) way to wire this?