Test the keymat!

[EvilDragon]

@EvilDragon , @SneHebNor , I still don't have the next address o_o (Also sent you a PM)

You will get it from me tonight!
I'm just fully stuffed with work!

 

[Kippykip]

Yes, that's my major complaint with the case.
Even with the Pyra battery, there's a bit more than 1mm space there that couldn't be fixed in the molds anymore, sadly.

Well... why be , when you can be

 

[TrashyMG]

Well... why be , when you can be

Not sure what you mean by this, but if you need a legitimate reason why it can't be fixed, it's because you can't add back the metal you already cut away from the molds. I assume any kind of cheap fix wouldn't be possible, the only fix is to mill out another expensive mold.

 

[Kippykip]

Not sure what you mean by this, but if you need a legitimate reason why it can't be fixed, it's because you can't add back the metal you already cut away from the molds. I assume any kind of cheap fix wouldn't be possible, the only fix is to mill out another expensive mold.

It was supposed to say "Well... why be slicc, when you can be t h i c c" with fancy unicode text as the words but it looks like XenForo silently filtered out the characters for some reason.

 

[fahrstuhl]

While we're waiting for it to move on:
I noticed that it arrived with multiple keymats. Did you have a chance to do a comparison of the other versions? It shouldn't be necessary to mount them in the Pyra, just grab a hard cover book to set one on and see if you can tell differences between them.

I suspect that several of the alternate keymats won't actually fit properly in the Pyra case - I recall that there was a discrepancy between the keymat and the case dimensions.

@EvilDragon If the keymats manage to get scrambled along the way - is there a marking on the keymats to reveal which version they are? I.e. if someone does get creative with a screwdriver and install one of the alternates in the test case, how do we know which one is the right one to test on?

Didn't I write that the current keymat is the best one? I tested the other ones on a table and also compared them to the Pandora. They're about as stiff and squishy/non-clicky as the Pandora or a bit worse. No comparison to the Pyra.
No chance to get them scrambled, everyone can tell what the current one is just by using it

You will get it from me tonight!
I'm just fully stuffed with work!

Cool, thanks! Although I don't mind, I'll just keep showing it around
Also, there's some tape around the gaming buttons, why's that? Reducing the clearance between button and case? I didn't dare remove it, but it makes the corners of the buttons a bit sharp.
(The buttons are really good, too, btw.)

 

[0x14f]

Well, now I want that bögel den sack thingy !

 

[comradekingu]

Wrong use of exclamation point is best use.

 

[Grench]

So - I'm number 9 on the keymat test list and number 8 on the prototype pre-order list. Is there any chance that the prototype could arrive before the keymat test sample?

Assuming that the keymat averages 5 days per person including shipping time ~ 40 days out +/- for the keymat to make it's way to me.

New cases should be arriving inside of the next week(ish). The last update on the subject from ED was that Prototypes were going to use the current/existing boards with on-board modifications. It sounds like ED is doing a traditional rolled LCD cable - if those are ordered they should arrive in the next 3 weeks or so. On my prototype pre-order I shelled out for overnight delivery - so shipping on it should be quick. Keymats are finalized and maybe even ordered, right? I'm not seeing anything right now that would push prototypes more than 4-5 weeks out, so ~28-35 days? Maybe?

Yes, I know, wishful thinking.

Has it been shipped to #2 on the list?

 

[fahrstuhl]

Has it been shipped to #2 on the list?

Yeah, I sent it on Wednesday evening.

 

[ible]

@SneHebNor you are formally requested to share your pictures, videos, and/or thoughts.

 

[SneHebNor]

@SneHebNor you are formally requested to share your pictures, videos, and/or thoughts.

Will do! Is there a specific thread (this one?) for the test or shall I just open a new one?

I already posted one picture in Diaspora*: https://framasphere.org/posts/3236282
[doublepost=1494409637,1494409309][/doublepost]Btw. I had the luck, that two groups of people took a look on the Pyra prototype:

First, five of my colleagues, all of them hardware and software developers.

Second, four people of the Berlin XMPP meetup, who are software developers, students, and Linux admins.

They had some interesting remarks, I will share later - now I have to go to the post office to send the prototype to Patrick. Yesterdays attempt to send the Pyra were spoiled by Deutsche Post :~(

'til later!

 

[rygD]

@SneHebNor you are formally requested to share your pictures, videos, and/or thoughts.

Translation: Pics or it didn't happen.

 

[mati]

You guys should all make a funny picture with it and post them in a thread, the keymat that travelled the world.

It would be mildly entertaining if we each posted a picture of the keymat test device with a local landmark in the background.

I still want to see this happen! The keymat in front of Brandenburg Gate etc

 

[DrHAX]

I still want to see this happen! The keymat in front of Brandenburg Gate etc

If I hop in then you'll see it beside a goat and few chickens..

 

[SneHebNor]

More photos will follow soon, but I'll go to bed now.

Have fun:

https://framasphere.org/posts/3244705

 

[levi]

Excellent stuff. Do you have any words also about how you found the keyboard in use?

 

[SneHebNor]

OK, here my remarks about keymat and other aspects:

1. I love the transparent casing! Maybe one can later replace the black with a transparent one?
   
2. The keymat is better than expected given its size. Without a functioning system it is hard to tell, how easy it is to e.g. use vi or Emacs. The pressure point seems to be fine.
3. The keyboard is much, much better than the one of the Sharp Zaurus SL-5500, the only other handheld computer with keyboard, I ever had.
   
4. I wonder where the [SPACE] is? With the compose key?
5. My colleagues and I have strong reservations about the height of the main PCB. With the permanent stress by keyboard, USB ports, SD card slots etc. tiny connections will break sooner or later. This can be prevented by a thicker PCB. E.g. ≥ 1.5 mm.
6. Nobody of us liked the shoulder keys very much. But maybe that's because nobody of us is a gamer, so we probably don't understand the use case :~)

That's it for now!

PS: One of my colleagues fell in love on first sight with the Pyra. I'm sure, he will buy one, when it's available.

 

[Neelix]

Nobody of us liked the shoulder keys very much. But maybe that's because nobody of us is a gamer, so we probably don't understand the use case :~)

Use case when using it as a keyboard is fairly clear actually, they become left Shift, Fn, and Ctrl and Alt.

What did you dislike about them, the positioning or how they felt to press? IIUC the latter will be different once the buttons actually connect with the switches on the PCB.

-Neelix

 

[SneHebNor]

Use case when using it as a keyboard is fairly clear actually, they become left Shift, Fn, and Ctrl and Alt.

Ah, sure! :~)

What did you dislike about them, the positioning or how they felt to press? IIUC the latter will be different once the buttons actually connect with the switches on the PCB.

Yes, they did not work well. Might be much better when the Pyra is complete.

 

[levi]

It's my understanding that the shoulder button plastics don't line up with the shoulder button switches on the PCB - one of them is an older revision than the other. All you can really say regarding them in this round of keymat tests is whether you think they'd be easy to find, because pressing them should be entirely different.