this post was submitted on 26 Mar 2025
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ErgoMechKeyboards

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Ergonomic, split and other weird keyboards

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Posts must be of/about keyboards that have a clear delineation between the left and right halves of the keyboard, column stagger, or both. This includes one-handed (one half doesn't exist, what clearer delineation is that!?)

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¹ split meaning a separation of the halves, whether fixed in place or entirely separate, both are fine.
² ortholinear meaning keys layed out in a grid

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If I'm getting an Orthodox split for the first time would it be worthwhile to learn a different layout at the same time since I've heard the learning curve is already pretty rough? I'm thinking of colemak-DH specifically but if there is a better option I'm open to hearing it.

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[–] peto@lemm.ee 5 points 6 days ago

Honestly if you can already touchtype an ortho isn't going to be that big a learning curve. At least for me (going to an ortho with strong stagger), it finally meant that the keys felt like they were in the right place. I don't think the benefits of other layouts are quite as big if the keyboard actually fits your bone structure.

If you are going to a cut size layout, it's better to add in features incrementally onto something you already know rather than having to learn colemak and layers and thumb clusters.

If you have the time of course to re-learn how to type sure, do it all at once, but any time you spend on another layout (like, say, in the office) is going to make the transition harder. And as I said, layouts designed to make typing on a normal keyboard better make less sense on an ergo.