
Qwerkywriter: Typewriter-Inspired Mechanical Keyboard - bhsiao
http://www.qwerkywriter.com/
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TheCraiggers
> Qwerkywriter is a celebration of those who have chosen the path least
> traveled, the underdogs, the ones with the impractical college major.

This sentence makes me want to go crush the life of something beautiful. So
goddamn pretentious and hipster.

~~~
organsnyder
Where have I heard that before...

> Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The
> round pegs in the square holes.

Oh, right. Those people might have been rebellious in 1984, but they're
mainstream today.

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DanBC
It is beautiful. I'd probably get one if I had the money.

> Qwerkywriter's Patent-Pending keycaps features typewriter inspired keycaps.

WHAT THE FUCK.

~~~
kybernetyk
Yeah, I certainly have seen similar keycaps before. No idea what's so novel
about those particular caps that they need a patent.

~~~
userbinator
Plenty of prior art if you mean "round old-typewriter-style keycaps on a
computer keyboard":

[http://steampunkworkshop.com/keyboard-
shtml/](http://steampunkworkshop.com/keyboard-shtml/)

A company also sells these (although they're much more expensive than the one
in the article):

[http://www.datamancer.net/keyboards/keyboards.htm](http://www.datamancer.net/keyboards/keyboards.htm)

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bryanlarsen
With none of the joys of actually using a mechanical typewriter.

Typing on a real mechanical typewriter is really fun, at least until you get
tired. You have to put so much force on the keys that your forearms get into
it. Stressed? Take out your frustrations on the typewriter. But the best is
that carriage return lever -- SLAM! I used to slam that thing so hard that the
typewriter would slowly migrate across the desk, and I'd have to readjust it
when feeding a new sheet.

~~~
yellowapple
As someone who owns two typewriters (a 1949 Royal Arrow and some electric
Smith-Corona that I haven't thoroughly identified yet), I'd love to someday
build a typewriter-style computer keyboard that operates by actually smacking
electrical contacts, just like how a proper typewriter works. Or perhaps have
the levers interact with some photoelectric or Hall-effect sensors instead of
relying on direct electrical contact. Whatever the case, it would be fantastic
(albeit probably annoying to anyone within a 100-meter radius of my desk :) ).

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userbinator
It's funny, since the only memory I've had of using an actual mechanical
typewriter with that sort of keyboard was the tiringly high actuation force
and getting my fingers stuck between the keys... I suppose this wouldn't have
the former characteristic though.

I think it's odd they chose to include Pause/Break and PrintScreen/SysReq, but
omitted the Insert key.

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melling
Making a keyboard pretty is not innovative. Making a faster and more ergonomic
keyboard is what we need. A few more companies like this, for example:

[http://shop.keyboard.io](http://shop.keyboard.io)

There are several more efficient keyboard layouts too:

[http://xahlee.info/kbd/dvorak_and_all_keyboard_layouts.html](http://xahlee.info/kbd/dvorak_and_all_keyboard_layouts.html)

[http://patorjk.com/keyboard-layout-
analyzer/#/main](http://patorjk.com/keyboard-layout-analyzer/#/main)

Ergonomics is key:

[https://h4labs.wordpress.com/2015/07/16/the-model-01-an-
heir...](https://h4labs.wordpress.com/2015/07/16/the-model-01-an-heirloom-
grade-keyboard-for-serious-typists/)

------
Luc
Not my cup of tea but it seems nicely done, and Stephen Fry likes it so
there's that:
[https://twitter.com/stephenfry/status/643785572419506176](https://twitter.com/stephenfry/status/643785572419506176)

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kybernetyk
$300 is a little steep. You can get those keycaps that will fit on any cherry
MX switch keyboard for $80-$100. Add a TKL keyboard (one without the number
block) for $80 and you have your desktop typewriter.

~~~
falcolas
$300 isn't out of the ordinary, particularly when you throw in a custom metal
base and effectively one-off production costs on top of your $200 starting
figure.

The Ergodox will cost you nearly as much in materials, more pre-assembled.

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Frenchgeek
So, it's a run of the mill wireless keyboard with typewriter-ish keys glued on
it ...

And the carriage return lever seems to be only for show, it would have been
nicer if it actually was a return key...

~~~
scholia
Which run of the mill wireless keyboards have mechanical key switches?

~~~
kybernetyk
There are quiet a few. For example Matias offers wireless models with Alps key
switches. Filco has bluetooth models with Cherry MX switches.

~~~
yellowapple
I think the point of the parent comment was that mechanical keyboards (except
for maybe the junk Razer sells) aren't considered to be "run-of-the-mill"
compared to the millions (if not billions) of rubber-domes floating around,
and a _wireless_ mechanical keyboard would be particularly far outside the
"run-of-the-mill" classification.

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thechanceg
What is that to the right of the keyboard on the third slide in the top banner
area? Is that some kind of mouse?

~~~
sleighboy
Evoluent Vertical Mouse. They edited out its' bright glowing logo from that
shot which is at the bottom on the rear of it.

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TheGrimDerp1
Are the caps change-able? need me that sweet sweet Dvorak

