promethea.incorporated

brave and steely-eyed and morally pure and a bit terrifying… /testimonials /evil /leet .ask? .ask_long?

ilzolende asked: As someone who will be replacing her computer and can probably talk people into buying her a keyboard soon, I would love to hear your sales pitch for [some pre-customized version of] vim. (Also, I have written all the HTML for a website myself, but I like Jekyll better, because I can update template-y things once and have the *computer* update them everywhere, and write pages in Markdown.)

ilzolende:

socialjusticemunchkin:

ilzolende:

socialjusticemunchkin:

I’m using [spf13-vim](http://vim.spf13.com/) with some customization; it has nice defaults and a lot of awesomeness and is very simple to install with a straight-out-of-the-box configuration that works well unless one has a synesthesia thing where stuff absolutely needs to be differently colored on different languages (a simple but non-trivial editing of the colorscheme is required then).

Basically, the idea is that one doesn’t never ever need to move one’s hands away, because every command is reachable easily from there and touch typing feels so good. Using dvorak as a layout synergizes incredibly well because one’s fingers need to leave the row much less often and the repetition between hands feels very low-effort and “lazy” in an extremely good way.

And the final component of this awesomeness is a 60% keyboard which ditches all the unnecessary keys that one can’t use anyway because one’s hands would need to leave their places, and replaces them with fn-layer keys that can be easily reached while keeping hands “glued” to their positions. They usually cost around $100 (but can be found *a lot* cheaper if one is willing to compromise a bit on quality; still superior to regular rubber-domes though) and are 100% worth it in my opinion. Geeking out over switches and sounds and keycap materials and manufacturers etc. is beyond the scope of this post but I’m way too eager to do it if requested. It’s complicated. It’s interesting. It feels and sounds so good. Your favorite shoes provide valuable evidence. And you can customize them without limits, to make your keyboard 100% perfect for yourself.

Personally, I’m using a KBP V60 with Matias Quiet Tactile switches because I wanted to prioritize softness of noise (mechanical keyboards are louder than regular ones; how much depends on a lot of factors) and a distinct tactile feel for writing. Zero regrets. My favorite shoes are a bit like knee-length combat boots but a lot softer, which is exactly what one would expect with this particular switch. Creepy how accurate that shoe thing is. I wish the keycaps were doubleshot PBT instead of ABS, but the keycap selection for Matias (=Alps) is less broad than it is for Cherry, and I can’t remember the fn key locations if I can’t see the printings (YGM), so I haven’t customized that stuff yet.

As usual, reddit has way too much info on this: https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalKeyboards/

(Note: What follows is a list of all the concerns I can think of. It might sound attacking, but my guess is that a lot of these are addressable, I just want to list them.)

(Note 2: I have the Ulterior Motive of wanting advice about how to replace my mid-2010 Mac. The one most ridiculous constraint here is that unless Inkscape’s improved a lot, I want to be able to use CS5, which I got when I got the computer I’m currently on. Unless I can get Adobe to let me activate an installation on a new Windows machine or there’s some way to run CS5 at nearly full speed in Linux, this means I need to get something that can occasionally run OS X that I can transfer my backups to.)

…if you use a command-line text editor but you also have to hold down a special key every time you need to use arrow keys, that sounds hard? Anyway, I don’t have the synesthesia thing, as long as there’s a list somewhere accessible (and even if there isn’t, tbh) of what the different colors mean in different programming languages Java and some markup languages (I’m still new), I’ll be fine.

I’m fine with learning a new keyboard layout as long as I can find a piece of plastic to put on it with the letters on it. That said, the keyboards you recommend a) cost more than my replacement hard drive did and b) seem a bit too bulky to take to class. Also, do they have cables that are removable at both ends? I have cable-breaking issues and there’s no way I’m going to get something I’ll have to replace as soon as the cable frays.

Edit: Also, I feel like running code gotten over HTTP (not HTTPS) directly from some URL-shortened link is probably not the best idea?

  • So, for OS X there’s the option of building a hackintosh if you want a desktop, or using an apple laptop because laptops don’t hackintosh well, or keeping the old mac for CS5 purposes. OS X is Unix and therefore Correct even though it’s Corporate and therefore At Least A Bit Evil; so vim and most of the cool things should work.
    • As it happens, I’m also very very interested in doing recommendations for computers, as long as I get the specs of the budget and intended use etc.
  • The point of using vim is that you don’t need arrow keys when you can hjkl. Vi style movement keys are supported by almost every single thing in unixland, and they are as close to Objectively Correct™ as is possible in legacy code hell universe
    • (Disclaimer: standard biases and subjectivities apply).
  • Even on unmodified dvorak they are reasonably convenient
    • (“c” is down, “v” is up, “j” is left, “p” is right).
  • And when one actually needs Arrow Keys instead of just Movement Keys, these 60%ers usually have reasonable defaults; I can press down fn on the capslock location and use wasd for arrows with the remaining three fingers of my left hand in the standard gaming position. Esdf for arrows would be just a little bit better but wasd is acceptable, and on the right-hand side I have another set under pl;’, and pressing fn+return triggers hard arrows from r-shift, r-win
    • (“win” meaning “window manager modifier” to me; I use it for i3),
  • r-fn
    • (or “menu” for common layouts; I had to move r-fn to make room for a r-alt key bεçäüsæ ƒiññišĥ üšæš ωæi®δ λetters and I need to be able to write them easily
      • (yes I got all those just by r-alt-ing regular letters
        • (as opposed to alt-r-ing which just replaces every other word with “cuck”))
      • (but Finnish actually only requires me to be able to produce äöåÄÖÅ, and üÜ is useful for German
        • (although I have no idea why Finnish spells the ü sound with y instead; it’s absolutely horrible and then the y sound is written as j and the j sound has nothing)
      • the rest are for those times when I want to use a special symbol enough to have it on my kb but not enough to look up an alternate way of outputting it, which is Often™ since I have them on my kb after all, so might as well use them)),
  • and r-ctrl. I use those sometimes.
  • Dvorak is not “necessary” and most mech-kb fans are not dvorakists, I just like dvorak very very much. The best I can describe it is “fingers glued to keyboard” while qwerty is “fingers hopping around like spider-bunnies”. It might not be that much faster, and the alleged ergonomic benefits might not be that significant, but the feel is very different.
  • Mechanical keyboards cost quite a bit more than regular ones but are absolutely worth it in my opinion, if one writes a lot. The sound is heavenly, and the finger-feel cannot be described in words.
  • But then again I’m an æsthete who spends as much on both their keyboard
    • (because importing stuff to Europe sucks with the taxes and shit)
  • and their headphones as they spend on their laptop
    • (because a pre-owned one with a fried sound chip costed in the US only a third of what a new one costs here
      • (fried sound chip not being a problem at all because I’m using an external dac-amp anyway; currently a UCA-202 which gets along fine with my ohm-monster DT990pros but might eventually get modded to a lower output impedance))
  • The 60% sized ones aren’t really that bulky; I might consider it worth it to bring mine with me to a variety of places. I definitely like to use it when coding on my laptop.
    • To be specific, I’d say that my keyboard is approximately as bulky as the laptop itself; it’s lighter and shallower, but a lot thicker and just a bit wider
      • Then again, my laptop is basically a fat 10-inch tablet
        • (awesome is another thing it is; the only thing I could complain about is the shitty saturation of purples and magentas on its screen)
  • Most mechanical keyboards do feature removable cables, probably all of the ones worth serious consideration. It’s definitely a very important feature and everyone else agrees that ditching a $100 KB because a $5 part broke is not a good idea
  • I’m not keeping the laptop for CS5 purposes. Its fans run constantly, it makes weird noises when I rotate it as if stuff is rattling around inside, it falls asleep if I put my phone too close to part of it (something about magnets?), and sometimes it randomly just freezes for up to 30 seconds. CS5 is resource-intensive. I miiight keep this thing as an offline signing machine, but also I could just get another Pi if I ever needed an offline signing machine. Keeping the costs of doing art somewhat low is #important, because otherwise art will never happen. (Which might mean I end up using Inkscape for non-final things, because Illustrator can import SVGs and Illustrator probably just has more special effects and so on than Inkscape does.)
  • My parents said they would get me “a new computer” as a graduation present. I am guessing I can get ~$1200-1500 of computer out of this, that’s about the amount of computer I got the last time I got a computer for a major life event (Bat Mitzvah).
  • Dual-booting OSX and Linux for New People on a laptop was my original plan. I’m fine with carrying around somewhat heavy things, as long as I’m not causing myself long-term harm by doing so. I would like to:
    • type notes in class as much as possible, it’s great.
    • Read, write, and run Java and some other languages (IDK which ones)
    • Have ~20 tabs open in Firefox at once
    • Continue using SpiderOak. This will be easier if I’m not constantly tempted to quit the program so my computer will be quiet, damnit!
    • Use disk encryption as much as possible while ideally not having rebooting take forever
    • Put a sticky note over the webcam, if I must have a webcam, and almost never take it off
    • Record audio in Audaciy, ideally without lots of fan noises in the background
    • Use Markdown -> Pandoc -> [something] for as much writing stuff as I can get away with
    • Use Bluetooth headphones and occasionally a Wacom tablet, transfer files to/from an Android phone
  • ¥éß, Î çåñ get weird letters just by adding an alt key as well.
  • How long did it take you to learn Dvorak? Right now I type at ~70 WPM and it’s pretty nice for me, although ~concerns about long-term side effects~

1 month ago · tagged #baby leet · 19 notes · source: socialjusticemunchkin · .permalink

  1. shieldfoss reblogged this from socialjusticemunchkin and added:
    SaaS is our new business model. The laws and regulations surrounding finances change often enough that a single licensed...
  2. ilzolende reblogged this from socialjusticemunchkin and added:
    New plan: Try to get someone (maybe you?) to help me install Inkscape on current computer. It’s something about how X11...
  3. socialjusticemunchkin reblogged this from ilzolende
  4. thathopeyetlives reblogged this from ilzolende and added:
    I have never used a command line text editor that required holding down keys. ne is pretty good and has quasi-graphical...
  5. metagorgon said: raw.githubusercontent.c…
  6. lockrum reblogged this from socialjusticemunchkin