[nojster]

Curious as to why you are interested in 100%+ Keebs.

I know that everyone has a different comfort zone, especially for their daily driver (which is a 60% split for me) and the only reason I can think of (besides aesthetics, of course) is a „feeling of power“ when handling a larger battlestation.

I’m not shaming or judging in the slightest yet am genuinely curious.

[zh3]

For software that uses F-keys extensively - especially with shift/control/alt combinations - having f-keys on the left is hugely easier than awkward top-row-reaching. Plus having a 24 programmable F-keys along the top (MCK-142 Pro mentioned above) is great for long sequences that are only used occasionally (mine are a mix of long 'cd's, mail checks, ssh to various hosts and one to paste links to HN stories into the local wiki).

[SuperNinKenDo]

Definitely the feeling of power is one of the appeals, but I think it's backed up by the presence of actual power.

To summarise without writing a small essay on my opinions on where modern computing is going wrong, I think that modern computing comes with a lot of impedance nowadays, and one of the things that makes people nostalgic for retro computing is that feeling of less impedence. Think of all the articles we've seen on the front page about using old IDEs and word processors like WordStar.

Ironically (given I just targeted "modern" computing in that critique) one of the things I want to remove impedence from is Emacs. I absolutely love Emacs, but after using it for so long, I'm convinced that modifier keys are a terrible way to do computing. They should be a last resort way of cramming in rarely used functionality, not your main interface to commands. I'd really love to have loads of keys for binding mode-aware macros and such for Emacs. One issue with Emacs is that the only safe "namespace" for keys is extremely limited and behind a keychord requiring modifier keys, making it clunky as hell. Big keyboards like this mitigate these issues.

This also becomes an issue navigating between different layers of the desktop experience. Virtual machines, embedded X sessions, key conflicts between your window manager and a program, etc.

I probably have ADHD (psychiatrist was a bit on the fence about it) and this kind of impedance drive me nuts and can really kill my focus sometimes. The less impedance I face in getting to a command or action, the smoother my thinking is and the less frustrated and distracted I become.

So yeah, I want lots of buttons so I can get to things as quickly as possible. Even holding shift to type symbols (on top-row numbers) annoys me. I have a numpad for numbers, just give me the symbols up top.

Also, stuff like this just tickles something pleasant in my brain aesthetically.