lagrange-keyboard VS custom-topre-guide

You can see an example in the photos of my Lagrange keyboard.

I was looking for a suitable example for a tutorial for my programmatic solid modeling CAD Gamma and a clamp seemed suitable. Well, I haven't started work on the tutorial yet, but here's a clamp-mount assembly for my Lagrange keyboard.

I had both my Expert Mouse and the Orb I'm now using, between the two halves of my Ergodox and now my Lagrange. Ergonomically, it is, I think, the natural choice, but perhaps the separation between the halves is larger than average in my setup.

As for Gamma: I wasn't really aware of CadQuery, but I did use OpenSCAD extensively, when designing my Lagrange keyboard. Gamma started as a way to address some aspects I didn't find quite satisfactory (as, to be fair, I can't say I had any real problems). Also to be fair, I used OpenSCAD through a frontend(scad-clj) translating Clojure code to its native language and some of the problems may have been due to that, but that is also one of the issues I had with OpenSCAD: why have to learn a new language when there are existing embedabble scripting languages, you might now already, of if not, which you might use elsewhere and which, having years of development, will likely be better?

This is not about the Dactyl per se, but my Lagrange keyboard supports this (or at least attempts to; it's hard to guarantee that the resulting geometry will be problem-free for a given set of parameters). The build guide goes into some detail on what you're trying to do.

I've tried it. In fact, I've designed it, I designed it as a key meant to be operated with the edge of the palm with my Lagrange keyboard. This doesn't mean it couldn't be used as a thumb key of course, but note that you could also create your own custom version of this (or other keys).

I started with an ErgoDash [1], purchased because my Microsoft/Logitech split keyboards had worn out, and at the time I couldn't find a replacement with normal (not low profile) keys. It has a few additional keys compared to the Iris. I have one at work and another at home, and to make them more similar to the broken keyboards I 3D printed angled bases. I use it for 99% of my typing.

I should probably have tried a Kinesis Advantage 2 first.

I'm partway through printing/assembling a Lagrange keyboard [2] (I'm currently stuck working out how to order the circuit boards), which is similar to the Dactyl. I will add the F1-F12 keys to my print, as they're the only thing I miss -- if a shortcut in my IDE is Ctrl+Shift+F10, it's nice for it to be that, not Ctrl+Shift+Fn+0.

I made [3] to help others see what's available.

[1] https://github.com/omkbd/ErgoDash/

[2] https://github.com/dpapavas/lagrange-keyboard

[3] https://aposymbiont.github.io/split-keyboards/

I don't use a DM, but if the question is whether something like the DM could be used as a daily driver, or whether something "less radical" would be preferable, I can say that I've been using my Lagrange as a daily driver for more than a year now. Its geometry is comparable to that of the DM and, from what I can tell, it's more aggressively curved.

I was warned by a colleague that this was a rabbit hole, then warned by people online, and I'll pass on that warning now.

I tried to help by updating and better-presenting an existing list of ergonomic mechanical keyboards: https://aposymbiont.github.io/split-keyboards/

I'm using an ErgoDash¹ with a 3D-printed tilted stand, but I intend to assemble a Lagrange² "soon".

¹ https://github.com/omkbd/ErgoDash

² https://github.com/dpapavas/lagrange-keyboard

Having spent quite a bit of time over the past couple of years designing a concave keyboard (the Lagrange) and therefore having a sort of vested interest, psychologically speaking, to say "yes, definitely!", I would say: depends what you mean by "worth it".

Topre switch would be able to achieve that. I remember niz sells individual topre switches. You should be able to make your key matrix and keyboard with this tutorial. https://github.com/tomsmalley/custom-topre-guide

Came across this while combing through my comments and thought I'd already answered, so pardon the delay.

People have certainly tried [1][2], but the big issue in the design is that the switches don't operate as a standard on/off (trivial to detect), but are instead capacitive, in that the current passing through the electrocapacitive pad on the PCB is somewhere between 1 and 0 (exclusive bounds, iirc, and simplified) at all times, dependent on how far the 'switch' above it is being pressed. This old repo seems to explain it well: https://github.com/tomsmalley/custom-topre-guide

Price and marketability are also issues. Split keebs are niche, ortho keebs are niche, EC keebs are niche, and you're talking about fusing those three together. People would 100% buy in, but it would probably be a microscopic market, to the point where the project would be financially lossy, even if you were selling them for $400 apiece.

The closest you/one might get for now is by buying two of these[3], unless you're dedicated enough to DIY.

[1]: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=97975.0

With that said, there have been a couple of attempts at a custom build: here's Tom Smalley's guide.

Making a custom Topre keyboard is very involved.

I remember this project and just came across custom HHKB-like PCB, while looking it up. There's a summary in this repo.