I've been using this Ferris Sweep keyboard daily since Summer 2024. I didn't intend to fall down the keyboard rabbit hole, but it's been a surprisingly delightful experience!
This repository holds its firmware configuration.
I didn't start here, though; I first tweaked the thoughtful Miryoku layout and used that quite happily for some time. Now that I understand it all a little better, I'm dropping down to this level so that I can tinker a little more freely.
- Removed the button layer, since I wasn't really using it.
- Removed additional features (boot, base, tap, extra, opposite, current).
- Removed keys I didn't use (insert, RGB, power & output toggles, scroll lock).
- Added a Sturdy layer. When I tried it before, I remember a vague feeling of bouncing around the keyboard (maybe this is comes from heavier ring finger usage?), and I want more time to quantify it.
- Added a Canary layer. This may be where I end up, if it has similar metrics to Sturdy and shares many keys with Colemak. I note that the Vylet author took this path.
- Exploring non-momentary layer switching, since my thumbs get a little fatigued holding layer switches down.
Many of these are experimental layers for alternative layouts, largely inspired by Pascal Getreuer's guide. I continue to play with these in the background, curious to see if I'll find something I like better enough than Colemak-DH to take the muscle memory hit.
- Adding a Focal layer. I may have given up too soon (it has nice looking metrics!), but I had a lot of trouble with P on the inner index column, bottom row. Maybe this teaches me I want to deprioritize the inner index column in favor of heavier ring finger usage?
- Adding a Gallium layer. I didn't like the pinky to inner index lateral stretch for NG much. I've preemptively ruled out Graphite for having the same feature. So I think this means I want low LSBs, which is funny, because both of those layouts do have low metrics there. Maybe it's just the NG that gets me.
- Adding a Qwerty layer so friends could test-drive the keyboard more easily. I tried to gather interest over Christmas, and I think this is just going to be my own personal hobby, lol.
Thanks to caksoylar/keymap-drawer.