Okay. I thought since I was born and raised with full size ISO-DE keyboards, I'd never quit that habit.
I just was not able to see the advantage of the smaller designs. My hands are big enough for XL gloves. My wingspan is enough so on a normal day my mouse will rest about 6 inches beside the num block, so I did never see the advantage of a TKL. I use all those keys frequently.
Enter the JJ40.
So if a TKL did not work out for me, and also 65 and 60% layouts did not do it, why not try a 40 ? And while I'm at it, why not give up staggered keys? and since they are sitting in neat rows, why not make every single one of them 1u ?
Could this be the polar opposite of a 104 key keyboard? I mean, all there is left is the qwerty layout, and even that is negotiable.
...And what can you say, it took a week of determined focus with firing up the QMK software twice a day whenever I ran into a problem because I could not use a specific key in the manner I wanted to. Muscle memory is adjusting slowly but steadily, and I manage to hit the z key on the first try more often than not. Apart from that I really am enjoying myself on that keyboard.
With one massive restriction: Gaming. WASD games often require multiple buttons apart from WASD and usually have YXCV mapped, just as 1234.
While technically possible to map the four rows to match that setup, it's not really feasible, because I would have to either sacrifice a button to make it a toggle between normal mode and gaming mode, which would still get me into problems with games that also require ctrl and alt.
All this got me wondering whether or not a fifth row would make my life a lot easier. My SO will need to use the computer on occasion. Instead of plugging in another keyboard because 4x12 is a bit much for non trained people, she could learn to handle 5x12. I mean, all the keys she needs are there and labeled, not hidden somewhere in layer 4. Then, my gaming habits could be satisfied without the need of another keyboard.
Some things would be a lot simpler, having that 5th row with the numbers. Mapping the F keys, as well as mapping the num block.
I can see there could be a lot to gain and only very little to loose. As I said, I have big hands. I can easily reach up two rows from the home position without moving my wrists.
Which brings me to the questions:
<TL;DR> Has anyone compared ortholinear boards in 4x12 (Planck, JJ40) with their slightly bigger brethren in 5x12 (Preonic, JJ50) ? What have been your experiences?
Where can I get a 5x12? Preferably second hand and cheap, but I will buy new or even buy parts and solder myself. In Europe would be a big bonus.
</TL;DR>
