Blank Keyboards (Das) | Hacker News Reader

Blank Keyboards (Das)

maximharper.co.uk

12 pointsMaximHarper36 comments

Mechanical keyboards are amazing. Typing on one is actually a pleasurable experience. I could go on about the benefits but other people have written guides that are much better than what I could post here. Here is one great guide. http://www.overclock.net/t/491752/mechanical-keyboard-guide

What I will say is that for anyone that has a job that involves massive amounts of typing I really recommend you invest in one.

I personally do not like Das because of the glossy finish which makes smudges and fingerprints very noticeable. I currently own a leopold tenkeyless with cherry brown switches, which I find to be great. The guide I posted goes into great detail over the different types of switches and the value of keyboards so you should read over it if you are interested.

Unless you're willing to spend in excess of £300 on a keyboard you can't buy a mechanical keyboard that is also ergonomic. And I think it's more important for a keyboard to be comfortable rather than enjoyable. As long as you keep replacing the cheap ergonomic keyboard every few years you're still better off, I think.

Too bad about the gloss on the new Das. I have an older one (second-gen I think) and it has a matte finish. If I could somehow remove the logo and the Num/Caps/Scroll lock icons without messing up the matte finish I would :)

How noisy is it? Can you type at midnight with someone sleeping near you?

> Can you type at midnight with someone sleeping near you?

No, you can't. Not even with the "silent" model.

I have been using the Das ultimate for a couple of years now. Typing IS much faster, although using the windows version on a Mac can be frustrating at times, especially if you've used it on Windows first.

I also noticed some wrist fatigue at first, although I put this down to the lack of wrist support (I'd been used to working with a high support integral to my keyboard before this, and laptops where the keys are the same height as the wrist rest). A £7 wrist gel thingy has served me fine from a week after the Das arrived, although it does now look a bit dirty.

I've used it in two offices, for years, noone has complained about the noise ever.

And finally, I really like the number pad, especially when the numbers across the top have no markings - I still mash the wrong symbol keys at the top fairly frequently.

My blank apple keyboard: http://www.flickr.com/photos/deadsunrise/4338226640/in/photo...

It took me about 3 hours to sand all the keys.

That's amazing!

QUOTE : >"In 2005, in a personal quest to improve his own typing speed and accuracy, Metadot Corporation founder and self-proclaimed “Uber Geek” Daniel Guermeur asked to have a totally blank keyboard created. To his surprise, his typing speed doubled after just a few weeks of use."

When reading the history of Das Keyboard I get the feeling that the founder (Daniel Guermeur) felt an increase in typing speed due to the "blank" keys?

As hackers tend not to look at the keyboard when typing, is there any reason to have blank keys other then the badass feeling of it?

I started using blank keyboards about three years ago and it did in fact force me to touch type and has increased my typing speed a lot. Even after ten years of programming I was a 4-6 finger hunt & peck typist. Once I started using a blank keyboard I quickly broke the habit of looking at the keys and picked up proper touch typing form naturally.

Plus it is badass.

The only reason I can think of is to confuse your coworkers. Maybe it's to force people to learn to touchtype by going cold turkey on the visual aid?

As far I as I can tell it's just an overpriced gimmick.

I think the price is fairly standard for a mechanical keyboard... not that it is cheap.

When I was about 15, I painted over my key caps with a few coats of acrylic paint to create a blank keyboard, with the same idea - a forcing function to learn to touch-type. It especially prevents you from subconsciously looking down for the occasional key, e.g. the rarer symbol keys.

It didn't hurt that I was using Dvorak layout - the alphabetic keys would be misleading in any case. I chose Dvorak for similar reasons, so that looking would not give any benefit. (I type about 110wpm.)

Badass feeling - forcing yourself to remember the most obscure symbols - ultimate customizability

I can agree on that.

I actually did have a blank keyboard as a teenager, and altho I type pretty fast (90+ wpm) my technique is bad: only using my index and middle finger on the right hand. I don't know why really, just got used to it and never bothered to rethink.

Anyone recognize themselves?

BTW: After reading your blog post Maxim, I ordered a Das keyboard myself. I still think it's overpriced, but hey, I guess we all need our gadgets.. dont we? :)

We'll I'm still a teenager just about - so maybe it's a phase. I hope you enjoy it!

Can anyone speak to the difference in key feel between using one of these and using one of the more traditional modern-day Model M clones (e.g. Unicomp/http://pckeyboard.com)? I love the idea of getting a mechanical keyboard, but can't shake the feeling that the blank keys is just something of a gimmick.

Cherry MX Blue switches are similar in feel to the Model M style buckling spring switches but have I think a slightly shorter travel and require a little less force. Cherry MX Brown switches have a lighter touch and less of a click when the switch activates.

Probably you need to try them out for a while to decide which keys work best for you.

I used a Unicomp keyboard happily for a few years but am most comfortable with an MX Blue keyboard now.

Mainly I use the blank keys to intimidate people who shouldn't be touching my computer :)

I am a big fan of mechanical key switches; blank keys are partially a gimmick but also can be a useful tool to force you to touch type. I use a Filco tenkeyless board with cherry blue switches and blank key caps today and am very happy with it.

I have a Das Ultimate in the closet but overall I didn't like it. The usb controller was flakey and occasionally froze or doubled key strokes, hopefully they have fixed this issue but it was just too much. Other than that, it has a glossy finish that shows dirt and smudges too much and the size is overwhelming; I like to keep my trackpad close to the right side of the keyboard and having the number pad on that side meant a long movement.

A tip for typing one handed, shift your hand from it's correct position to its mirror opposite i.e. from jkl; to asdf or vice versa it's easier than you would think to translate key memory if you do it like that, though it's still not exactly ergonomic.

I believe you can get footswitches and/or software that flips the keyboard for you so you don't have to move the hand back and forth if it's a more permanant situation.

If you want to try this you can go the cheap way and just stick black stickers on your existing keyboard.

Or just stop looking at it. I've never understood this. Why does it need to be blank?

Forced touch-typing really is a useful learning mechanism. I have this experience, and I notice it seems to be true for most people: I know most common keys, but am not aware of the positions of less-common ones even if they are more important. I always look down, for example, when I type a backtick (`) - probably in part because it's in different places on the keyboards on my two laptops and on my own Happy Hacking II (which I love dearly.) "Stop looking at it" isn't as intuitive or simple as it sounds; in practice, I have a feeling pretty much all of us look at the keyboard sometimes, even if we don't realize it.

Because expensive keyboards make more profit than black stickers and people love showing off how badass they are.

Because you may think you're not looking, but -- unless you're a trained touch-typist -- you actually are looking. Even if only occasionally noticing something in your peripheral field of vision. 'Looking' is not necessarily a conscious act.

I thought we were all trained touch-typists?

How on Earth would we work if we didn't? That'd be like having a workstation with 256MB of ram.

Again - I don't get it. If you look at the keyboard ever, you're Doing It Wrong.

If you don't look at the keyboard, then it doesn't matter if there are letters on it or not.

Buying hardware is not the solution to "I don't know how to touch type".

Well it is a solution. Because you won't be able to look at the keyboard, you will learn much faster and get rid of the last looks at your keyboard. Another (cheaper) solution is to put a cloth on your hands when typing so you don't see the keyboard.

no, the mechanical part is important as well! far more important.

Its a beautiful keyboard... perfect for us dvorak users. I unfortunately had to leave my das in rochester with my main desktop because it couldn't be fitted in to the car.

I am typing this on a scissor switch keyboard...

I wish they made tenkeyless. I'm trying to buy a Leopold but stuck in that "Paypal can't ship to a country that isn't the one you live" problem (I want to use a forwarding service).

Check out Geekhack.org or Deskthority.net. You may be able to find a keyboard from a member that's in your country or someone willing to act as a forwarding service.

I was able to buy, the seller generated a custom invoice for me. Thanks for the tip anyway. (There are some Model M's in Brazil, but it takes too much desk space IMO).

I have a blank Das keyboard and after a lot of typing I find the extra pressure very noticeable and even fatiguing. I eventually switched back to my mac keyboard because of this.

I have two, one for home and one for the office. If you balk at the price thing about how much RSI surgery will cost. Best Keyboard Available!

I type by muscle memory, but I wouldn't use a blank keyboard. Brainfarts happen.

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