I've experimented with putting some or all of my modifier keys under non-pinky keys like O on my ergodox. My problem with that is that it forces me to drastically slow down my typing. Otherwise typing a word like "word" will register as 'w ctrl-r d'.
I have not found a timeout value that will always register "word" when I'm typing at 110wpm and also Ctrl-r when I'm just lazily hitting that single hotkey :/ It's either too fast or too slow for some use cases.
I have read some posts from people that use layouts like that and it either seems they already type pretty slowly or they have RSI problems and it is worth it to them to slow down.
I had this problem too, so I don’t have any of my normal letter keys as dual-function.
The pointer-finger vertical-middle keys that they default to Hyper and Meh, I changed those to both be Cmd on MacOS (would make them Ctrl on Linux). I set the bottom row and pinky keys to also have lots of modifiers & layer toggles, and my pinky-fingers can hit those modifiers/toggles when needed. Then moved basically all symbols to another layer on easy-to-reach keys.
This means I can type regular words as fast as I want, and can easily reach any symbol when I need it. Only downside is that it takes some adjusting and practice, but I personally think it was worthwhile
Yah, my typing speed is far slower on my ergodox just from lack of practice I suppose (maybe 1 year?), but that doesn't stop me from the occasional "zv" instead of "ctrl+v".
I can't remember a time where I've held z too long accidentally, but yes, z is less commonly used than e.g. O.
I’m two weeks into the ergodox ez, using the onyx trainer a bit each morning. It is just okay, almost wish there was something better. It lags and stuff typing Alice.
How are y’all handling shift? Left Shift is my pinky’s biggest pain. I saw this hold the key for shift option, people using that?
I have not found a timeout value that will always register "word" when I'm typing at 110wpm and also Ctrl-r when I'm just lazily hitting that single hotkey :/ It's either too fast or too slow for some use cases.
I have read some posts from people that use layouts like that and it either seems they already type pretty slowly or they have RSI problems and it is worth it to them to slow down.