Release First prodcution samples of Pandora keymat

[Olexxy]

Like others I am happy with this solution, it's a good compromise with all the suggestions made so far.

However on the small complaint side I think the choice of the font for the letters is not the best, I would prefer something closer to usual microsoft / logitech beyboards, with all letters having the same height.

What seems to have gone wrong here is that they delivered the keyboard symbols cropped to the image inside, instead of having a consistent size. So, when you center each image on the center of the key, those with low heights (such as Y_) are offset to the center (as opposed to U*v for example). You can see this for almost every symbol, for example with G= and H`.

I agree with you polyroy

 

[lulzfish]

Just out of random curiosity, is the keyboard going to have the F and J bumps that full-sized QWERTY has for touch-typing / visually impaired users?

I felt like asking, but I don't know why.

 

[kagato]

How will the Fn Lock work? As it is written in blue above the FN key you can hardly FN it. Is it a toggle button or a long hold?

It's both. You can hold it down and press another key, but if you tap it, it will lock.
This is a little weird, and I've never seen it implemented this way, but I trust they'll make it work.

Can't say what they'll actually do, but I imagine it'll be the same as every PDA keyboard I've used:

• Hold Fn, press a key, release (like Shift on a normal keyboard)
• Press-and-release Fn (sticky mode), then press a key. One symbol only, doesn't lock.
• Press-and-release Fn (sticky) then press Fn again for Fn Lock (effectively Fn-Fn)

Shift usually works the same way. Fn-Shift, or tap Shift twice, for caps lock.

 

[quartercast]

Just out of random curiosity, is the keyboard going to have the F and J bumps that full-sized QWERTY has for touch-typing / visually impaired users?

I felt like asking, but I don't know why.

Hmmm, I wonder if the touchscreen would also end up having "F and J" bumps.

 

[darkblu]

ooh, what do we have here? a keyboard!... nice.

very close to the classy sinclair design, i like it. as for the minor glyphs misalignment - aside from the Y nothing else sticks out so i'm good.

 

[rmm2131]

This design isn't half as bad as you make it out to be. Have some class. If you have a complaint, let it be noted, but there is no point in over-the-top bitching.

-God Ginrai

Like it all you want, but I don't have to and I won't like staring at the fatty font for long. Quite a lot of my money went toward the Pandora and i'm disappointed in this design that even MWeston had envisioned differently.

My opinion is just as valid as yours so quit the juvenile forum intimidation.

First of all, you're the only one being juvenile here. I told you that if you have a problem that you are free to express it. However, you shouldn't try to debase the work of the Pandora team in such a way that you did. It's fine to complain, but being an ass for no other reason than to just be an ass is just low.

-God Ginrai

It was a complaint to get the attention of the team only and to explain how utterly unhappy I am for paying for a larger than average order of Pandoras plus accessories and ending up with that key font design(if that's what we all will get). I wasn't trying to draw the attention of someone who exists in the forums and jumps on everyone for disagreeing with what they think(yeah I remember you practically "lived" in the other forum). If i've angered you for disliking what your gods have done with my handheld, then too bad pal. I can comment how I like. This is not the best they could've done and Michael shows just what a high they can achieve if allowed to. They need to give this guy some breathing room. Too many chiefs.

Michael Weston has always impressed me the most of all the team and I think(if you and WizardStan "let" me say it again) that his was the better key layout. I believe that you really need to get a life before you respond to this post with another retort of blind devotion.
Fight the urge and step away from the keyboard before you reach your first set of 100 posts. -_-

Moving on, those clear/transparent cases can't be delivered fast enough. Like to hear how precise everything fits.

 

[gruso]

So I've had a good look at MWeston's concept and the MP sample, and unless I'm mistaken the only difference is the font? Overreaction IMO. You do have a point, and considering they have some font tweaks to do anyway, there's probably still time for them to take it on board. But there's no need to start crying "this is not what I paid for" and making George Lucas related insults, whatever that means. It's a font FFS. Present your case like a calm adult and you're more likely to be heard.

For the record, I think the font could use a diet too. It's not high on my list of things to spend time thinking about though.

 

[Esn]

For goodness sake.

It's fine. Thicker letters are easier to see. Probably as many people would prefer slightly thicker letters as slightly thin ones, and most of us just don't care.

Just fix the alignment issues and we're ready to go.

You'd think that some folks WANT the project to be delayed even further for something pretty trivial.

 

[lulzfish]

Well, I think the bike shed should have Comic Sans lettering!!
I agree, arguing about fonts only complicates things. Please just fix up the alignment and get the keymat into production.

 

[lingenfr]

Agree with Gruso. Not worth going off the deep end, but the fonts could be better. The keyboard samples look fine, but they look more like a keyboard for an industrial device than a mini laptop. Not a deal breaker for me either way, but I do think a thinner and maybe different font would look better.

 

[God Ginrai]

Like it all you want, but I don't have to and I won't like staring at the fatty font for long. Quite a lot of my money went toward the Pandora and i'm disappointed in this design that even MWeston had envisioned differently.

My opinion is just as valid as yours so quit the juvenile forum intimidation.

First of all, you're the only one being juvenile here. I told you that if you have a problem that you are free to express it. However, you shouldn't try to debase the work of the Pandora team in such a way that you did. It's fine to complain, but being an ass for no other reason than to just be an ass is just low.

-God Ginrai

It was a complaint to get the attention of the team only and to explain how utterly unhappy I am for paying for a larger than average order of Pandoras plus accessories and ending up with that key font design(if that's what we all will get). I wasn't trying to draw the attention of someone who exists in the forums and jumps on everyone for disagreeing with what they think(yeah I remember you practically "lived" in the other forum). If i've angered you for disliking what your gods have done with my handheld, then too bad pal. I can comment how I like. This is not the best they could've done and Michael shows just what a high they can achieve if allowed to. They need to give this guy some breathing room. Too many chiefs.

Michael Weston has always impressed me the most of all the team and I think(if you and WizardStan "let" me say it again) that his was the better key layout. I believe that you really need to get a life before you respond to this post with another retort of blind devotion.
Fight the urge and step away from the keyboard before you reach your first set of 100 posts. -_-

Moving on, those clear/transparent cases can't be delivered fast enough. Like to hear how precise everything fits.

If you only wanted to get the attention of the team, an e-mail would be much better suited. When you make a post in a forum, it is open for discussion. That's what forums are for. This isn't like an e-mail, it's a multifaceted conversation where anyone can join in. If you don't understand the concept of forums, then get the fuck out.

I have told you 3 times now that I have no problem with you complaining. My problem is you being an ASS. Bitching that your money was being wasted and likening the work to that of George Lucas was obviously meant to be an extraordinary insult. And that is no way to treat anyone on a forum, unless it be through Private Message.

I see no need to defend myself against your personal attack, seeing as how you resorted to it because you couldn't come up with a good comeback.

-God Ginrai

 

[Kramy]

OMG there's no Windows Key! What else am I going to catch by accident to interupt my game? :wink:

Heh... quite often I've gotten stuck in a locked up game, and had to use that Windows key to get out. When At+Tab fails, WinKey never does! (hence the name)

Except, it always fails under Linux, since you can't use it as a modifier key and an action key at the same time, and it doesn't seem to have the same power as in Windows.


@Others - Regarding Tab,

Software may have to be improved if using Tab is awkward. Windows has had path completion since... Win2k, about a decade ago? It makes suggestions, you press Up/Down to pick one, then keep typing. No need for pressing the Tab key.

Regarding usage in programming, it'd be nice to have, but any smart IDE can replace spaces with tabs on empty lines. For identing it isn't required, though it might be nice.

Michael's clear design was the best for the Pandora so why not use it? This new one looks like utter crap. Main keys font too blobby and underrepresented, too large(TAB { } %), or too small(space) and Pandora key too squished. Everything looks so amatuerish.
This was great: http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa99 ... _mike3.jpg
This is shit: http://www.pandoratr.com/images/gallery ... matPSB.jpg

I hope it gets polished up with some serious talent. At least put the fonts on a diet please.
Did George Lucas come up with this revision? I didn't pay for this.

Ahh yes. Let me resize that for you. Assuming you have a 96DPI monitor, it'll be about this big:

My, those symbols are awfully tiny.

 

[Tom`]

rmm21 and God Ginrai:
Please discontinue the argument. rmm21, you are ranting. If you have such a serious problem with the font or layout used that it would affect your order status, please take it up with a member of the Pandora team.

Any more violations of our rules may be removed without notice - violations in more contentious threads being proportionally more likely to receive this attention. PM me or another moderator if you require clarification on any of these points.


As you were. :wink:

 

[God Ginrai]

rmm21 and God Ginrai:
Please discontinue the argument. rmm21, you are ranting. If you have such a serious problem with the font or layout used that it would affect your order status, please take it up with a member of the Pandora team.

Any more violations of our rules may be removed without notice - violations in more contentious threads being proportionally more likely to receive this attention. PM me or another moderator if you require clarification on any of these points.


As you were. :wink:

Understood.

-God Ginrai

 

[j.pickens]

I can certainly live with this layout.
How many of these test run mats were made?
I would guess that the real run mats will have the corrections for the Y, J, etc.
If they can save some money by finishing off the test mats with the shiny key treatment, I'd be fine getting one of these.
As someone mentioned on the unofficial blog, the test run would differentiate earlier Pandoras from later ones.
Save money for devs, unique keyboards for first batchers...WIN!

And I really like that the layout has less useful (to me) symbols, like foreign currency, near the Fn key.
That way, two fisted typing will be able to hit Fn (right thumb), Functioned key (left thumb) quickly.
Also, having the TAB key next to the Fn key will work nicely.
Hit Fn, Fn (Lock Fn), Tab, Tab, Tab, etc.... with quick pokes of the thumb in the same area. Sweet!

 

[God Ginrai]

I can certainly live with this layout.

My only problem is the choice to actually have the Text "Ctrl" and "Alt" on the Start and Select buttons, seeing as how they are game buttons, and should be treated as such in labeling.

-God Ginrai

 

[lulzfish]

I'm a little confused by the presence of Start and Select buttons.
They almost never actually do anything at all in-game.
I suppose they're necessary for emulation, but they're one of the things that really bother me about the GBA / NDS.

THE BUTTONS DON'T DO ANYTHING. Usually.

 

[BackAssward]

I'm a little confused by the presence of Start and Select buttons.
They almost never actually do anything at all in-game.
I suppose they're necessary for emulation, but they're one of the things that really bother me about the GBA / NDS.

THE BUTTONS DON'T DO ANYTHING. Usually.

Well, that might certainly be true of native games, because they are console buttons. So basically every Emulator uses them. Also, anything ported from a GP2X, Wiz, and other portable consoles will be programed to use them for functions.

Why not just them remap to the keyboard you might say? It has a much more limited number of simultaneous key presses than the game buttons (Re: GPIOs). I am pretty sure on that last point, but of course MWeston could expand on it (I'd search the other blog for that info, but well, obviously I can't do that right now).

 

[gruso]

^ That's my understanding. The Start/Select/Pandora buttons are on their own GPIO, so they're not affected by the key combo limitation of the QWERTY. People with three thumbs rejoice.

 

[Teajunky]

^ That's my understanding. The Start/Select/Pandora buttons are on their own GPIO, so they're not affected by the key combo limitation of the QWERTY. People with three thumbs rejoice.

I remember them saying the game controls were not restricted by the Qwerty. Nice thing about the Ctrl and Alt is they are close enough you could hit them both with 1 thumb if you wanted while pressing your third button with the other.