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-#+TITLE: My new keyboard
-
-I have been using [[http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs][GNU Emacs]] for a few years now, at first only in my
-spare time, and for about 1.5 years also for work. Since I've started
-using it for work my [[http://org.ryuslash.org/dotfiles/emacs/init.html][init file]] has exploded in size and my knowledge
-of both emacs and emacs-lisp have as well.
-
-As a result of using it full time, I have started paying more
-attention to what I'm doing and how I can do it faster or more
-efficiently. Sometimes this means writing a function, and possibly
-hooking it up to some key combination, but sometimes it also means
-changing the way you use your PC.
-
-The first change was trying more and more to leave the mouse behind
-and use the keyboard for everything. In emacs this is easy, there are
-many window managers that offer this, mostly tiling, and for browsers
-this is somewhat more difficult.
-
-After switching to an almost completely keyboard-based system, I was
-starting to feel pain in my left pinkie. It was getting tired of
-always having to travel to the lower left bottom of my keyboard in
-order to press that darn ~CTRL~ key that I use oh so very much. So I
-switched my ~CTRL~ and ~Caps Lock~ keys, as is suggested by many an emacs
-user.
-
-Following that, much later, was the desire to type more efficiently.
-I've read a long time ago already that QWERTY was designed to be slow
-and that it is unbelievable that we all still use it. Now, as I don't
-like mangling my keyboard by using a layout that it was never designed
-for and which was never designed for it, like dvorak, I chose [[http://colemak.com][colemak]].
-I've now gotten the hang of it, for the most part, and I'm happy with
-it, it types pretty nicely and still fits well on a QWERTY keyboard.
-
-At this point, I'm at the stage where a friend of mine commented to
-me, once, that he would just love to see a burglar/thief make heads or
-tails of the setup I'm using, since my keyboard doesn't show the keys
-in the right place, when you log in you're greeted by an empty screen
-with no hints on how to proceed, the ~CTRL~ key is not the ~CTRL~ key and
-the mouse does absolutely *nothing*.
-
-*But*, after a while of using colemak and paying attention to my typing
-and paying attention to tips about how to type, like use the modifier
-on the opposite side of the keyboard in relation to the character you
-have to use with it, I got frustrated by my keyboard. Using the
-modifier opposite of the key you're using with it doesn't work well if
-they're hidden away from your hands, all the way down in the lower
-right and left corners. So I started keeping an eye out for keyboards
-that would better fit my needs.
-
-After weeks, months, of seeing absolutely nothing that interested me I
-finally came across [[http://xahlee.org/index.html][Xah Lee]]'s [[http://ergoemacs.org/emacs/ergonomic_keyboards.html][Ergonomic Keyboards Gallery]], I see my
-vision has come to life. [[http://www.trulyergonomic.com/][The Truly Ergonomic Keyboard]] seems like
-exactly what I'm looking for, *finally* a keyboard that has /big/ modifier
-keys on /both/ sides.
-
-From the moment I saw it I knew I wanted it, but impulse buys are
-never a good idea, so I slept on it, talked to some people I respect
-and I thought about it, it is €230 after-all. Then after a few days
-there I am, ordering it, having just weeks before proclaimed that I
-couldn't fathom ever paying more than some €20 for one.
-
-Unfortunately it was still in production, or at least this batch was,
-and I had to wait. I went to pick it up a few days ago, an extra
-charge of €64.12 was added by customs. The people that brought me
-there were intrigued and surprised by my purchase and didn't really
-understand it, but they thought it looked cool nonetheless.
-
-Now I have it and have been using it for a few days. *Man* is it
-different. It's like learning colemak all over again, although
-luckily this seems to be going faster.
-
-The few moments I have where I don't screw up every single word and
-have to type everything at least thrice I feel comfortable using it.
-Having both the Control and Shift keys near the sides of my hands, big
-and high up is convenient. Being able to press ~RET~ with either my
-thumbs or my index fingers is much more comfortable than my right
-pinkie. It also makes a nice sound when I'm typing and the keys are
-not all that resistant, so I don't have to press hard, on either the
-modifiers or the keys, which would be a pretty big downer.
-
-Of course it's not all perfect. I still have to press ~M-x~ with just
-my left hand, since the right ~ALT~ key is an ~AltGR~ key, which is
-completely different and doesn't seem to be recognized as a modifier
-by any program, instead being a direct switch on the keyboard itself.
-But in this case I could look into reprogramming the keyboard's
-firmware, which it supports and allows, to switch the two alt keys, or
-I could use xmodmap. Having my ~Super~ key in the top-center portion of
-my keyboard is an adjustment, I usually use it as /the/ modifier key for
-everything window-manager related. And, of course, having often-used
-keys such as (back)slashes and brackets/accolades in far-away places
-is different. But I'm sure I will overcome these difficulties once I
-get a little more used to it.
-
-Well, writing this post should help, I feel my proficiency has grown
-about 10%.
-
-Anyway, if you're writing a lot on the computer, or you use a lot of
-modifier keys with programs like emacs, I won't yet recommend buying
-it, but I will recommend taking a serious look at it, it might be /just/
-what you are looking for, even if you don't yet know you're looking
-for it. In the end it cost me €293,12 and I haven't regretted it yet.
-In fact, I already felt completely lost when using my netbook, to
-which I did not connect my new keyboard.