Am I the only one that doesn't like to two color F rows?

[CalmB4tehPwn]

What I mean, is when you have a two color keycap set, and F1-4 and 9-12 are one color, with 5-8 and the print screen group are the modifier color.

I think it's ugly, and I don't see many two tone keycap sets that don't feature this. I understand it dates all the way back to the earliest keyboards, but I feel like it's a tradition we need to break.

Am I alone?

[SpAmRaY]

What I mean, is when you have a two color keycap set, and F1-4 and 9-12 are one color, with 5-8 and the print screen group are the modifier color.

I think it's ugly, and I don't see many two tone keycap sets that don't feature this. I understand it dates all the way back to the earliest keyboards, but I feel like it's a tradition we need to break.

Am I alone?

Some sets come with both!! So you can pick. Personally I have no preference either way.

[CPTBadAss]

Yes

[divito]

What I mean, is when you have a two color keycap set, and F1-4 and 9-12 are one color, with 5-8 and the print screen group are the modifier color.

I think it's ugly, and I don't see many two tone keycap sets that don't feature this. I understand it dates all the way back to the earliest keyboards, but I feel like it's a tradition we need to break.

Am I alone?

I'm not a fan of it either. I'm a little more for uniformity. Alphas one color, fine. Modifiers another color, fine. Number pad another color, fine. Function keys two colors? NOPE!

[Turbo Slaab]

I used to think it the same thing. It started growing on me though.

[kps]

I understand it dates all the way back to the earliest keyboards, but I feel like it's a tradition we need to break.

I don't think it's that old; the Model M was the trendsetter and (someone may correct me) possibly the originator.

I agree with your taste, taking the ‘logical’ side in the bikeshed keyboard colour debates.

[Techno Trousers]

I like it myself, since it breaks up that long row of F keys.

[bazemk1979]

yes

[rowdy]

I like the two-tone F-row (he says, looking at his Model M), but there again I like single F-row too.

I am too easy to please

[Tarzan]

I think it depends on the keycaps.  The Round3 set I managed to buy off of PointyFox is really nice shades, the differing colors for the Function row look nice to me.  On the other hand, a nice Wyse set with uniform Function keys is a thing of beauty. 

 

[noisyturtle]

Depends on the colors. Mostly looks tacky and try hard, but occasionally it works quite well.

[Hyde]

I used to not like it either, but then slowly I realize I only don't like the grey color two tone.  If it's a nice color then I don't mind, for example white + blue two tone. 

[rowdy]

I'm using a Model M at the moment, possibly THE canonical mechanical keyboard.

It has pearl and pebble keycap colours, which IMHO pisses all over beige and gray

The Esc is pebble, F5 to F8 are pebble, PrtScr, SclLck and Pause are pebble, the rest of the top row is pearl.

It actually looks really nice.

The 6key and arrows are also pebble, as well as the top row and + and Enter on the numpad.

The modifiers are as you'd expect, with `~ and \| in pearl.

I wonder if the all-one-colour top row came in when black keyboards became vogue.  An all-black keyboard would look silly with differently coloured F-keys, and that probably propagated to other custom keycap colorways.

[dorkvader]

I don't know why they switched. I like my older IBM keyboards with one-colour double F rows. It looks good (or better!) and makes much more sense.

[nubbinator]

I'm generally a fan of all the Function caps being the same, but I can see why some people would like two different colors. 

[Findecanor]

Having the function keys all in modifier colour is more consistent, but having them in three groups divided by colour makes them easier to hit.

But who needs a function row these days anyway? What unique functions are on there? Most programs I know that have functions on the function keys use only the leftmost and the rightmost.

I don't think that they are very good from a usability perspective: They are far above the home row, so you would have to lift your entire hand to hit them, making  you lose your bearing and needing to watch the keys. They are also labelled with numbers, which don't say anything about their function, so you would either have to remember what they do in each program, or you would have to use overlays.... although, I have not seen any overlay in the last 20 years. Have you?

I think that the two columns of textual keys to the left, like on the Sun Type 5 keyboard were better. Those keys were easier to get to from the home row position and you could develop muscle memory for using them. They also had textual labels with a consistent function in every program (that supported them).

However, I still find it to be more convenient to use key combinations of the Ctrl or Command key plus a letter key, where the letter is a mnemonic, helping me to remember the function of the command. These commands are firmly established in users' minds and are there on all keyboards without the need for a non-standard Fn modifier, so I think that they should are preferred to anything else.

BTW. Wyse function keys are all in the modifier colour. Amiga function keys were all in one colour, despite being at the top like on the Model M.

[Moosecraft]

I think it looks sexier with two colors.

[rowdy]

Having the function keys all in modifier colour is more consistent, but having them in three groups divided by colour makes them easier to hit.

But who needs a function row these days anyway? What unique functions are on there? Most programs I know that have functions on the function keys use only the leftmost and the rightmost.

I don't think that they are very good from a usability perspective: They are far above the home row, so you would have to lift your entire hand to hit them, making  you lose your bearing and needing to watch the keys. They are also labelled with numbers, which don't say anything about their function, so you would either have to remember what they do in each program, or you would have to use overlays.... although, I have not seen any overlay in the last 20 years. Have you?

I think that the two columns of textual keys to the left, like on the Sun Type 5 keyboard were better. Those keys were easier to get to from the home row position and you could develop muscle memory for using them. They also had textual labels with a consistent function in every program (that supported them).

However, I still find it to be more convenient to use key combinations of the Ctrl or Command key plus a letter key, where the letter is a mnemonic, helping me to remember the function of the command. These commands are firmly established in users' minds and are there on all keyboards without the need for a non-standard Fn modifier, so I think that they should are preferred to anything else.

BTW. Wyse function keys are all in the modifier colour. Amiga function keys were all in one colour, despite being at the top like on the Model M.

In software development tools the function keys are used a lot.  F9 to run, F8 to step over, F7 to step into in one I used, plus additional functions for more F-keys.

[xmagusx]

No, you're not the only one, my preference is for something that looks uniform or has a themed decoration (gradient color change, camo, etc). Four beige, four taupe, four beige holds no particular appeal.

I don't really think it's a tradition though, so much as "just another option". For, you know, those people whose aesthetic tastes are not perfectly identical.

[Photoelectric]

I really like 2-tone function row personally.

[Quardah]

Live and let live.

If it ain't your keyboard, leave the customization to its user. You have the right not to like it, but please do it quietly.

No offence of course.

[TheSoulhunter]

I prefer single color...

[nubbinator]

Live and let live.

If it ain't your keyboard, leave the customization to its user. You have the right not to like it, but please do it quietly.

No offence of course.

I think the point is that many group buys and some cap sets don't let you end up with the caps the way you want them.

[Photekq]

I personally love the two-toned f-row. I feel it adds more balance to two-tone sets.

[The_Beast]

Live and let live.

If it ain't your keyboard, leave the customization to its user. You have the right not to like it, but please do it quietly.

No offence of course.

I think the point is that many group buys and some cap sets don't let you end up with the caps the way you want them.

You can't appease everyone....

Otherwise you'll end up with an Italian ANSI set with a 1x backspace and 1.75x bottom mods

[Halverson]

Live and let live.

If it ain't your keyboard, leave the customization to its user. You have the right not to like it, but please do it quietly.

No offence of course.

I think the point is that many group buys and some cap sets don't let you end up with the caps the way you want them.

You can't appease everyone....

Otherwise you'll end up with a 1x backspace

Yes, that is correct sir.

[Quardah]

Live and let live.

If it ain't your keyboard, leave the customization to its user. You have the right not to like it, but please do it quietly.

No offence of course.

I think the point is that many group buys and some cap sets don't let you end up with the caps the way you want them.

You can't appease everyone....

Otherwise you'll end up with a 1x backspace

Yes, that is correct sir.

1x backspace isn't so bad. I have 1x backspace on my 7G and it does the trick fine. Using it with right-hand pinky it ain't sooo bad considering you are not retarded and do little mistakes.

I mean when you type all day long you start getting your words straight...

[TheSoulhunter]

I wish all sets would offer HHKB style \| = Backspace + 1x1 numrow `~ and \|

[Quardah]

I wish all sets would offer HHKB style \| = Backspace + 1x1 numrow `~ and \|

Now that you pointed that out, yeah, indeed, HHKB layout is slick.

[wiredPANDA]

In software development tools the function keys are used a lot.

This be the reason I use the hell out of my F keys.  F2, F5, F8, F9, F11, F12 -- all abused when I code/script.  And I often remap F1 with AHK for certain tasks.

Regarding the coloring - I'm good either way.  The split coloring helps to visually identify the keys, but then again, on most modern Full-size/TKL boards, they're spaced in 4-key clusters, as is.  I just use that small spacing as my visual queue, if I need to look at the keys.

[GeeGee]

It just depends on the colors. If they look good together, the two color F rows will look good.
It's that simple

[CalmB4tehPwn]

I'm not trying to tell anybody they can't like what they like, but even when they're colors that go well together, I would much rather have a solid color row, with an accenting escape of course.

I was just curious if I was the only one, because as it's been mentioned, a lot of the group buys don't seem to cater to both groups, only offering the alternating F row

[GeeGee]

I'm not trying to tell anybody they can't like what they like, but even when they're colors that go well together, I would much rather have a solid color row, with an accenting escape of course.

I was just curious if I was the only one, because as it's been mentioned, a lot of the group buys don't seem to cater to both groups, only offering the alternating F row

I guess it is supposed to look 'cool'. If GB's are the issue, just contact the person organizing it.
But most key cap sets are sold with different F row colors. It's just what people like .
So to answer your question, you aren't alone, but in the minority.

[Findecanor]

In software development tools the function keys are used a lot.  F9 to run, F8 to step over, F7 to step into in one I used, plus additional functions for more F-keys.

Yeah, I have suppressed my memory of Visual Studio's debugger ...

[tns]

So to answer your question, you aren't alone, but in the minority.

edit : "sadly" huhu

What I mean, is when you have a two color keycap set, and F1-4 and 9-12 are one color, with 5-8 and the print screen group are the modifier color.

I think it's ugly, and I don't see many two tone keycap sets that don't feature this. I understand it dates all the way back to the earliest keyboards, but I feel like it's a tradition we need to break.

Am I alone?

I guess we are few... I like : uniform, checked and rainbow