Hey there,

I’ve been doing a lot of typing lately on my shitty old Compaq keyboard (it has a good build quality, but keys require relatively much force to be pressed) and I experience some discomfort in my fingers.

Would anybody suggest any specific keyboard or keyboard type that would help me ease the strain? I know absolutely nothing about keyboards lol!

  • redtea@lemmygrad.ml
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    1 year ago

    I’d go for something slimline. I don’t know how people use chunky mechanical keyboards… That said, there needs to be some clearance. I used a macbook with the butterfly keys and that was attricious.

    I used a Cherry ultra thin usb keyboard and it wasn’t too bad. It’s not ergonomic, it’s just thin like a laptop keyboard so there’s not much distance to press down.

    Have you considered that it might not just be your keyboard? Four things that made a real difference for me:

    1. An upright mouse.
    2. Dictation software. It takes a while to get used to and putting on a rhotic accent can help if you don’t already speak with one. The one built in to OSX is better than the one built into Word, but it may depend on what you’re writing about. Expect copious editing – which is where the upright mouse comes in handy.
    3. A lumbar support cushion. This will help your posture so there’s less strain on your neck, shoulders, elbows, and wrists. Mine is cylindrical. It attaches to my office chair. You don’t have to get a cylindrical one but don’t get one of those cheap mesh things as they don’t provide any support. You could try wedging a rolled up towel between your chair and lumbar spine to see if it helps before forking out.
    4. Set up your office chair so your feet are flat in the floor with your knees bent at roughly 90°. Sat upright, your shoulders should be relaxed and your elbows should be open at roughly 90–100° and your wrists resting on either a dedicated support sponge thing or a rolled up towel. I had to cut an inch from the desk legs to achieve this; otherwise either my knees were too low below my hips, my wrists too high above my elbows, or my traps were tensed up. When you’re sat upright, put an arm straight out; you should just be able to touch your screen. Make sure the screen is titled upwards and the top of the screen is below your eye level.

    Hope this helps. It makes typing much more comfortable.

    • 201dberg@lemmygrad.ml
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      1 year ago

      10000% behind the ergonomic/upright mouse. Saved my wrist. I will never use a regular mouse for anything other than some occasional games.

      Edit: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00BIFNTMC This one is the one I use now and it has lasted longer than any other I have had yet. (I’ve gone through 3 others) It’s only down side is battery power but a pair of good batteries lasts a good long while.

      • redtea@lemmygrad.ml
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        1 year ago

        Incredible how much of a difference it makes. Got to wonder why the traditional shape is used at all nowadays.

      • So I have mostly been a laptop person my whole life using trackpads (And the occasional trackpoint here and their) my whole life, I find them egonomic, my new job has me using a mouse and keyboard, and boy does my wrist start to hurt, and I wish I had an upright mouse or a trackpad