October 15, 2015 at 19:20Keyboard for professionals: all about UHK in Russian
Hello GT! In the debate about the ergonomics of certain keyboards, many copies are refracted, but it seems that there is one keyboard that can rightfully be called the ultimate solution to almost any problem with factory-made ergonomic solutions. Judge for yourselves: the angle of rotation of one part relative to the other is adjusted (moreover, you can set any real one at least 180 degrees). The distance between the "halves" is also. The kinematics of the switches is up to the buyer. Thoroughly laid out layout. Takes up minimum space on the table. Optimized for the blind ten-finger input method. Suitability for moddin and installation of additional accessories. Are you intrigued? Meet: Ultimate Hacking Keyboard!
In the work of each developer, programmer, copywriter or layout designer, most of the “active” time is worked only by hands and eyes: we look at the monitor, interact with the keyboard and mouse. Convenient tools allow you to work with great comfort: do routine operations faster, get tired less, pay more attention to work, and not under what conditions you have to perform it.
If with high-quality monitors everything is more or less clear, then the cat cried out for high-quality and convenient keyboards that are really optimized for working with text and the effective use of both blind typing techniques and human anatomy. Some solutions are non-universal and take up a lot of space, some try to be “all-in-one” or, conversely, offer functionality in the style of Apple (“we know better what you need” is placed higher than the interests of users). Working on the Ultimate Hacking Keyboard (hereinafter, for brevity, UHK), we tried to embrace the immensity and create a keyboard that will be customized for the user and use all the best practices for speedy typing and working with the keyboard, as with the main input source. What did we do? Let's get a look.
There were two main ideas in the creation process. The first is to use standard components where possible and the most reliable custom elements where necessary (for example, a reliable mechanism for connecting the “halves”) to create a keyboard that can be divided into two parts, so that the user can choose that distance and that angle that are really comfortable for him.
The second is to make software and keyboard hardware distributed under the ideas of Creative Commons Share-alike and the GPL V3 license.
Thus, the list of the main provisions that were used to create the keyboard was as follows:
The list of ideas is decent, and here is how we, a small Hungarian startup, implemented it.
UHK consists of two halves, which can be combined into a “classic” monoblock, or work in two halves mode, connected by a spring-loaded cable. Its connectors, by the way, are absolutely standard: a classic telephone RJ11, aka 4p4c. In which case, a replacement is not difficult to find.
Each half is based on a steel "stretcher", which provides reliable fastening of the halves in the "whole" mode (additionally, the halves are fixed with neodymium magnets). If you do not want to use the keyboard in two-part mode, the kit comes with a special screw and hexagon for it:
In the combined state, UHK does not need a connecting wire, as contacts are also on the halves themselves.
The keyboard itself uses Cherry MX mechanical switches, but it’s up to you to decide which ones to choose: classic blue, brown, red or rarer black, white or green.
Mechanical switches provide full NKRO wiring and the absence of key ghosting for the entire keyboard, are guaranteed to withstand up to 50 million keystrokes (if you press one key 10,000 times a day, the keyboard will last 5,000 days or 13 or more years). In addition, thanks to the modular design and planned maintainability, the switches themselves are easily replaced in case of damage or a desire to switch to Cherry MX switches with other characteristics and behavior.
Character engraving and the presence of an additional (ISO'shny) Backslash next to the left Shift you can also choose to your taste.
Labels are available that are specific to different operating systems - Windows, Linux, or Mac.
Of course, you can order a keyboard without any engraving at all: and let the weaklings who can’t do “blind typing” even not fit your computer!
In photos, it may seem that the keyboard is not much different from the “classic” in size. Despite the abundance of opportunities, mechanical switches and the ability to separate the halves, the UHK turned out to be tiny:
If the photo next to the LG Nexus 5 did not sadden you, look here:
We perfectly understood that compactness and convenience should not be competitors in the struggle for a place in the end the product, therefore, the keyboard itself has completely standard key cap sizes: no “small buttons” or “reduced distances”: saving purely due to the small frames and transferring some of the buttons to Mod Layout .
A special Agent application allows you to customize the keyboard to suit your needs literally “From” and “To”.
Binding profiles and layouts to running applications and their automatic switching. Working with macros and their binding not only to individual keys, but also to their combinations (which is not found on any keyboard, even from seasoned gaming brands like Razer or SteelSeries).
Work with the mouse cursor is carried out through a standard USB-HID interface, which means that you will have no problems moving the cursor under any OS or in BIOS / UEFI, and you will not need special drivers or software. 100% Plug & Play.
Fashionable trends are not forgotten: the software can work with cloud storage, in which (if you wish, of course) there will be backup copies of layouts, macros and modules. If you wish, you can share your best practices with the UHK community in the same repository.
<joke> All that is missing is the integration of github and the proprietary repository for modules that extend the functionality of the keyboard. We will do a more detailed review of the keyboard in the near future, but for now we are ready to answer your questions in the comments.
What are we talking about and why is all this necessary?
In the work of each developer, programmer, copywriter or layout designer, most of the “active” time is worked only by hands and eyes: we look at the monitor, interact with the keyboard and mouse. Convenient tools allow you to work with great comfort: do routine operations faster, get tired less, pay more attention to work, and not under what conditions you have to perform it.
If with high-quality monitors everything is more or less clear, then the cat cried out for high-quality and convenient keyboards that are really optimized for working with text and the effective use of both blind typing techniques and human anatomy. Some solutions are non-universal and take up a lot of space, some try to be “all-in-one” or, conversely, offer functionality in the style of Apple (“we know better what you need” is placed higher than the interests of users). Working on the Ultimate Hacking Keyboard (hereinafter, for brevity, UHK), we tried to embrace the immensity and create a keyboard that will be customized for the user and use all the best practices for speedy typing and working with the keyboard, as with the main input source. What did we do? Let's get a look.
Keyboard: from idea to hardware
There were two main ideas in the creation process. The first is to use standard components where possible and the most reliable custom elements where necessary (for example, a reliable mechanism for connecting the “halves”) to create a keyboard that can be divided into two parts, so that the user can choose that distance and that angle that are really comfortable for him.
The second is to make software and keyboard hardware distributed under the ideas of Creative Commons Share-alike and the GPL V3 license.
Thus, the list of the main provisions that were used to create the keyboard was as follows:
- Optimization of the layout of the tenkeyless keyboard (without the Num-lock block, and, in this case, without the block of arrows and controls for the text cursor of the keys) so that when using alternative modes you do not have to move your hands from the “main position” in which you are printing .
- Four different layouts on one device:
1. Entering text and special characters;
2. Mod layer mode , in which such keys as arrows, PgUp / PgDn, Home, End, Delete, Insert, etc. are available. in one click;
3. Fn layer mode , which is responsible for working with multimedia buttons and launching the most popular system functions, such as search or calculator;
4. Mouse cursor control mode: sometimes it’s necessary, sometimes it’s convenient, sometimes it’s simply impossible without it, because there is no place in the server room. In general, the presence of a feature is usually better than its absence. ;)
- The ability to reprogram the keyboard behavior the way you want. Custom layout? Dvorak? Vim? Your hotkeys? Easy peasy!
- Work with any OS, with any tasks: programming, games, daily operation - none of the tasks should rest on the keyboard.
- Reliability. The keyboard (especially good) is a rather expensive element of the periphery. So it should be reliable, like a Kalashnikov assault rifle. And it’s just as easy to repair and upgrade if something happens.
The list of ideas is decent, and here is how we, a small Hungarian startup, implemented it.
UHK consists of two halves, which can be combined into a “classic” monoblock, or work in two halves mode, connected by a spring-loaded cable. Its connectors, by the way, are absolutely standard: a classic telephone RJ11, aka 4p4c. In which case, a replacement is not difficult to find.
Each half is based on a steel "stretcher", which provides reliable fastening of the halves in the "whole" mode (additionally, the halves are fixed with neodymium magnets). If you do not want to use the keyboard in two-part mode, the kit comes with a special screw and hexagon for it:
In the combined state, UHK does not need a connecting wire, as contacts are also on the halves themselves.
The keyboard itself uses Cherry MX mechanical switches, but it’s up to you to decide which ones to choose: classic blue, brown, red or rarer black, white or green.
What do Cherry MX colors mean?
Cherry MX Blue - clicker and tactile feedback switches. They have excellent kinematics and are best suited for printing;- Cherry MX Green - a copy of the “blue” switches, but with a stiffer spring: require more effort to press;
Cherry MX Brown - "intermediate" switches: they have tactile feedback, but are devoid of separate "clickers", which makes them quieter (and slightly faster) than the "blue" series;- Cherry MX Clear / White - the same kinematics as the "brown", but a stiffer spring;
Cherry MX Red - are considered “gaming” due to the absence of a pronounced tactile feedback and “clickers”, they are pressed as easily as scissor laptop keys and practically do not make noise;- Cherry MX Black is the same kinematics as the “red” ones, but a stiffer spring.
Mechanical switches provide full NKRO wiring and the absence of key ghosting for the entire keyboard, are guaranteed to withstand up to 50 million keystrokes (if you press one key 10,000 times a day, the keyboard will last 5,000 days or 13 or more years). In addition, thanks to the modular design and planned maintainability, the switches themselves are easily replaced in case of damage or a desire to switch to Cherry MX switches with other characteristics and behavior.
Character engraving and the presence of an additional (ISO'shny) Backslash next to the left Shift you can also choose to your taste.
Labels are available that are specific to different operating systems - Windows, Linux, or Mac.
Of course, you can order a keyboard without any engraving at all: and let the weaklings who can’t do “blind typing” even not fit your computer!
Dimensions
In photos, it may seem that the keyboard is not much different from the “classic” in size. Despite the abundance of opportunities, mechanical switches and the ability to separate the halves, the UHK turned out to be tiny:
If the photo next to the LG Nexus 5 did not sadden you, look here:
We perfectly understood that compactness and convenience should not be competitors in the struggle for a place in the end the product, therefore, the keyboard itself has completely standard key cap sizes: no “small buttons” or “reduced distances”: saving purely due to the small frames and transferring some of the buttons to Mod Layout .
A few words about software
A special Agent application allows you to customize the keyboard to suit your needs literally “From” and “To”.
Binding profiles and layouts to running applications and their automatic switching. Working with macros and their binding not only to individual keys, but also to their combinations (which is not found on any keyboard, even from seasoned gaming brands like Razer or SteelSeries).
Work with the mouse cursor is carried out through a standard USB-HID interface, which means that you will have no problems moving the cursor under any OS or in BIOS / UEFI, and you will not need special drivers or software. 100% Plug & Play.
Fashionable trends are not forgotten: the software can work with cloud storage, in which (if you wish, of course) there will be backup copies of layouts, macros and modules. If you wish, you can share your best practices with the UHK community in the same repository.
<joke> All that is missing is the integration of github and the proprietary repository for modules that extend the functionality of the keyboard. We will do a more detailed review of the keyboard in the near future, but for now we are ready to answer your questions in the comments.