The Insider News

Why Computer Keyboards Are Dying

4-Dec-12 10:45

Data Points[^]:
During a Vermont.NET User Group presentation on single-page applications, Ward Bell, from IdeaBlade, gave us a look at an open source data access API for JavaScript that he and his team were cooking up. I was very interested. From the perspective of my experience with the Entity Framework, what I saw was comparable to using EF for client-side Web development. The API is called Breeze and at the time of this writing is in beta.

Building a data-centric web site with BreezeJS.

Terrence Dorsey4-Dec-12 9:44

4-Dec-12 9:44

doriandargan[^]:
Lately I have been considering what a next-level computing experience looks like (an integrated hardware & software solution). I’ve been imagining the role of gestural mapping, holograms & 3d space, all of which I will likely discuss in more depth at some point. But before we get to the fancy stuff, there is one aspect of the “navigation” experience that is ripe for innovation - and that is the computer keyboard.

What’s wrong with the current keyboard? And what can we do about it?

Message Closed

4-Dec-12 10:27

_beauw_

4-Dec-12 10:27

Message Closed

John M. Drescher4-Dec-12 11:52

John M. Drescher

4-Dec-12 11:52

If I could vote you would have my 5. I guess saying that is good enough..

John

Some of the responses on his blog ...

MehGerbil4-Dec-12 10:27

MehGerbil

4-Dec-12 10:27

i wish i hadak eybord now

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Sent to you from my iPad

Garth J Lancaster4-Dec-12 10:30

Garth J Lancaster

4-Dec-12 10:30

... miss the point !!!

gestures etc are 'nice to have' .. but you still need a a method of entering text .. else, you foster a mentality of 'programming is copying and pasting' Dead | X|

'g'

Re: Some of the responses on his blog ...

ed welch5-Dec-12 4:04

ed welch

5-Dec-12 4:04

Garth J Lancaster wrote:
else, you foster a mentality of 'programming is copying and pasting'

Most javascipt programming is already like that Big Grin | :-D

Re: Some of the responses on his blog ...

Jan Steyn5-Dec-12 19:36

Jan Steyn

5-Dec-12 19:36

In a meeting yesterday. The boss said: But you can just copy and paste this bit of code from that little project over there that already does something SIMILAR OMG | :OMG:

#realJSOP4-Dec-12 10:31

#realJSOP

4-Dec-12 10:31

Deceptive title - I though it was going to be about unreliable keyboards. I feel like reading it was a waste of time.

Beyond that, it's absurd to think they can make the general public accept a change to an almost 150-year old paradigm. The only way to make the keyboard better is to eliminate it completely in deference to something that is undeniably *better* - not just "better in some ways", but a reasonable and viable replacement. Until we can transmit our thoughts wirelessly to the screen, I doubt if anything "better" is in our immediate future.

".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
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You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
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"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997

AnalogNerd4-Dec-12 10:42

AnalogNerd

4-Dec-12 10:42

Transferring my thoughts to the screen would result in a lot of expletives in my code that I'd just have to clean up.

Jan Steyn5-Dec-12 19:37

Jan Steyn

5-Dec-12 19:37

Terrence Dorsey4-Dec-12 10:43

4-Dec-12 10:43

Here's the deal: any talk of touch-screen PCs is just a ruse. It's been tried. It doesn't work, for a number of reasons.

But neither Microsoft nor any of its (former) PC vendors have anything to compete in the fastest-growing segment of computing appliances: touch-screen tablets. They need to compete because traditional PC sales are down significantly. But they have nothing. So they have a touch-screen Surface that's not really a tablet, and not really a laptop. And Windows 8 is supposed to run on touch-screen desktops... if you can find one. But does anyone really want that?

It reminds me of the early days of iPod. There were... "options" if you really, steadfastly refused to go Apple. But, to be honest, the options all sucked. Zune was the only real potential player, and look how Microsoft screwed that up, too.

But I digress... Touch screen PC? Just ask yourself this: would you want to work all day at an ATM? Didn't think so.

Director of Content Development, The Code Project

Terrence Dorsey4-Dec-12 11:15

4-Dec-12 11:15

http://daringfireball.net/misc/2012/12/meeker-24.png[^]

http://www.asymco.com/2012/01/17/the-rise-and-fall-of-personal-computing/[^]

I'm not sure my point either, but they are interesting graphs. Clearly touch computing is the future. Just perhaps not Microsoft's vision of touch computing.

(That said, for what most of us do professionally, traditional PC systems remain very relevant. I do not want to write *or* code on a touch screen.)

Director of Content Development, The Code Project

#realJSOP5-Dec-12 5:01

#realJSOP

5-Dec-12 5:01

I didn't suggest touch screens. In fact, touch-screen PCs will probably result in even worse repetitive motion injuries. As a developer, I see not use in anything but a keyboard and a mouse (short of the fore-mentioned mental-link capability).

harold aptroot4-Dec-12 10:46

harold aptroot

4-Dec-12 10:46

The problem is the unnecessary involvement of physical movement just to copy electrical data from one computer to an other. Please perfect the non-invasive brain-computer interface.

lewax004-Dec-12 10:57

4-Dec-12 10:57

The article isn't consistent, first he acknowledges ergonomic keyboards exist but aren't wide spread, then says ergonomic keyboards would be an innovation. Honestly, I can't stand them, they're so awkward, and the learning curve just isn't worth it to me. The same goes for alternate key layouts, I could swap around the keys on my keyboard, but what's the point? I don't have any issues with QWERTY, and I don't get why people think it's so problematic (I have a co-worker who uses Dvorak, but he's yet to give me a compelling reason to switch, the best I've heard is "you might type faster", but I've never been bottle-necked by my typing speed...).

PIEBALDconsult4-Dec-12 11:09

PIEBALDconsult

4-Dec-12 11:09

lewax00 wrote:
they're so awkward

Yes, especially for we who type one-handed.

Clifford Nelson4-Dec-12 12:37

4-Dec-12 12:37

As stated in my post, ergonomic keyboards are not. Not only is the qwerty layout flawed, but the position of the keys is flawed. There are some pretty good ergonomic keyboards (realitive to the ones sold by the companies like Microsoft), but they are very expensive. Then there are concepts like using cords to more efficiently type, like a stenograph. On a Dvorak keyboard, your fingers would have to move significanly less than what they do on a Qwerty.

lewax004-Dec-12 13:06

4-Dec-12 13:06

Clifford Nelson wrote:
Not only is the qwerty layout flawed, but the position of the keys is flawed.

So I hear, over and over again, but I just don't see it. I can type just fine, what's the problem? Why should it matter if my fingers need to move more?

It's like trying to argue that an entire system should be rewritten for some small efficiency gain the end user will not be able to perceive (e.g. some task finishes in 1 ms less time). I feel this is the same. Sure it looks good on paper, but why make the effort to change if I can't tell the difference?

Clifford Nelson4-Dec-12 13:28

4-Dec-12 13:28

First of all, if your fingers can type just pushing down on the key, that is a lot less movement than having to move to another key and then press. Saying you do not mind some extra movement of your finger is like saying that you would not mind going around the lake instead of building a bridge. The bridge will save you time, so will not moving your finger. There is also energy expenditure. There are also other problems, like putting a key like the A key under your little finger. Not the best placement. As to whether you shoule make the effort, probably not because then you would just have to readapt when you use another computer. Rather inconvenient. Basically it is like admitting Ethernet sucks. Well it does, but if you try to use something else you will be incompatible with the rest of the world.

Clifford Nelson5-Dec-12 6:41

5-Dec-12 6:41

Here is a page that discuses the advantage http://mctape.wordpress.com/2012/02/11/a-comprehensive-comparison/[^]

lewax005-Dec-12 7:03

5-Dec-12 7:03

I see the numbers, but they don't say much to me. For example, I don't see why finger strength is important at all, my pinky can press a button just as well as any other finger. I could press the buttons with a sledgehammer for more force too but that doesn't make it better (or a good idea). I could see if it was an attempt at endurance per finger, but I've never thought "my pinkies are tired from all this typing, but my other fingers are just fine".

However, I will note I don't type in a conventional manner either, my "home keys" are Shift, A, W, D for my left hand (much more natural spacing than a straight row, why does every layout pretend our fingers are all the same length?), and my right hand moves depending on what I'm doing (a result of learning to type from chatting in online games instead of a more formal setting). My hands also move a lot more in general, because I hit the middle section of the keyboard with either hand. Maybe if I practiced conventional typing it would all make more sense, but as it stands I just don't see how it would be of any real benefit to anyone who doesn't spend a significant amount of time typing.

Now if I could improve the efficiency of my thinking I'd be eliminating the real bottle-neck...

Clifford Nelson5-Dec-12 10:56

5-Dec-12 10:56

Much about what you say is true. If you look at a stenographer's keyboard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stenotype[^]) there is minimum movement of the fingers. This an cording allows the stenographer to type at a much higher speed than typists.

The issue about the location of the keys is part of my grip about so called ergonomic keyboards. Here is one interesting keyboard for you: http://www.designboom.com/readers/goran-bobinac-ergonomic-modular-computer-keyboard/[^], or there is http://www.kinesis-ergo.com/[^]

lewax005-Dec-12 12:49

5-Dec-12 12:49

I couldn't imagine learning to type on the stenographer's keyboard...especially if you consider what it would take to add all the symbols commonly used in programming languages (of course, it's not made for that).

Clifford Nelson wrote:
The issue about the location of the keys is part of my grip about so called ergonomic keyboards. Here is one interesting keyboard for you: http://www.designboom.com/readers/goran-bobinac-ergonomic-modular-computer-keyboard/[^], or there is http://www.kinesis-ergo.com/[^]

Those are the kind I mean when I say ergonomic keyboards are awkward. But that probably partly derives from my non-standard typing habits. (Or, even worse is this one[^])

Clifford Nelson5-Dec-12 13:20