Best input device innovation 2015

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The Keyboard Oracle
The Answer Lies Within The Question

14 Dec 2015, 21:24

The nominees in the category Best input device innovation 2015 are:

E3E's hot-swappable LED complicated Alps • E3E created a switch and LED hotswappable, backlight-capable Alps 60%, and provided an extremely detailed build log as a template for others.

Hypersphere rings • Hypersphere worked with companies that make custom parts from various polymers and foams with the goal of duplicating or even improving upon the silencing rings used in Topre RF and Type-S HHKBs. These are now known as the Hypersphere rings.

Matt3o's Topre PBT spacebars • Although the Realforce and HHKB are excellent keyboards, one feature that has always been lacking is the prone-to-shine ABS Spacebar. Thanks to Matt3o we got the first ever standard 6-unit Topre spacebar in PBT material, in different colours.

Topre for their analog switch and actuation point control • Topre showed some really interesting technology in a demo: an actuation control, which is a dial to adjust the actuation point, and pressure sensitive switches, so you can control the walk speed of a game character, emulate a piano, etc.

Zslane's SHIFT-legend fix • Finally, thanks to zslane's great work, Signature Plastic's SHIF T legends have now been fixed, and we can now all have proper SHIFT keys from Signature Plastics groupbuys.

And the Wingnut for Best input device innovation 2015, as voted for by the members of deskthority, goes to...
Spoiler:
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E3E created a switch and LED hotswappable, backlight-capable Alps 60%, and provided an extremely detailed build log as a template for others.

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It took a lot of patience and diligence to get this build done.

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E3E

14 Dec 2015, 21:25

*faints, does not perform acceptance speech*

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7bit

14 Dec 2015, 21:26

Congratulations!
:cool:

One day, somone must explain to me what this project was about.
:?

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webwit
Wild Duck

14 Dec 2015, 21:28

Well done! I found it an epitome of what this hobby is, among others, about. Got lost in the flood at GH, this one is for the Unknown Soldier.

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scottc

14 Dec 2015, 21:34

Nice one, E3Eves! I better go research your project now since apparently it's quite good. ;)

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E3E

14 Dec 2015, 21:46

7bit wrote: Congratulations!
:cool:

One day, somone must explain to me what this project was about.
:?
Well, it... Was really something that started when I saw that no one had ever documented a build with full -backlit -complicated alps-, but then it kept evolving and evolving into more. It turned into a hotswappable build after being inspired by the Smart 68 and some really nice posts on reddit and LinusTechTips of people trying to do their own hotswapping builds (I think I'm the first to try it on Alps). Lastly, it involved converting areas of the PCB which were not configured for Alps to, well, use Alps switches!

The hotswapping sockets alone needed me to widen every pad hole on the PCB, and for the positions not accounted for, I had to manually drill new positions for Alps.

I was also a little outgoing in trying to use a 60% universal plate, which really wasn't designed with Alps in mind, due to having no spot for plate-mounted stabs of any sort, and using it for my build.

In the end, I ended up having to use Cherry stabs, but thanks to Badwrench's successful Alps DCS modifier GB, one of the first sparks to set Alps on fire this year, I was able to create a functional board!

I could have done stem swaps for every cap, as I did for the space bar, but there is something meaningful in putting his caps on my board, because he really did raise a lot of interest, or at least renewed it.
scottc wrote: Nice one, E3Eves! I better go research your project now since apparently it's quite good. ;)
Oh, please do check out the build log! It's very detailed, and I tried to put the most I could into it to show the steps I went through in making the board.

Again, thanks to you guys who supported me. I wasn't sure if I'd come out over Topre, but I am very grateful.

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DanielT
Un petit village gaulois d'Armorique…

14 Dec 2015, 21:48

Congrats :) I really liked your project!

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HzFaq

14 Dec 2015, 21:49

I read the whole thing shaking my head, muttering "he's fucking nuts". Good job dude.

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DanielT
Un petit village gaulois d'Armorique…

14 Dec 2015, 21:54

Yep he is nuts! That was a lot of work and the end result is something unique :)

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trenzafeeds

14 Dec 2015, 22:19

Nice one :D

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Khers

14 Dec 2015, 22:22

HzFaq wrote: I read the whole thing shaking my head, muttering "he's fucking nuts". Good job dude.
That was my thought as well... Awesome project.

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Madhias
BS TORPE

14 Dec 2015, 22:28

Now I have to look at that project, switches hotswappable? Indeed crazy! Congratulations!

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E3E

15 Dec 2015, 00:21

Wow, I just noticed that I won by two votes! It was really down to the wire for this one. The fact that it was so close, man... That really gets me! Thanks again to everyone who voted for me. Your votes REALLY counted.

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ramnes
ПБТ НАВСЕГДА

15 Dec 2015, 00:26

Great job, comrade!

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Hypersphere

15 Dec 2015, 01:01

Congratulations, E3E! I am looking at your project with considerable interest, as I would like to build a 60% board with Alps switches, preferably in a HHKB layout.

I feel honored to be nominated, but making flat plastic donuts is not nearly as complicated as producing a keyboard with hot-swap switches!

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E3E

15 Dec 2015, 01:06

Hypersphere wrote: Congratulations, E3E! I am looking at your project with considerable interest, as I would like to build a 60% board with Alps switches, preferably in a HHKB layout.

I feel honored to be nominated, but making flat plastic donuts is not nearly as complicated as producing a keyboard with hot-swap switches!
Thank you very much, Hypersphere!

I plan on offering conversions or hotswapping as a service for anyone interested! If you manage to get a Duck Viper as you wanted, then I can definitely work on it for you to ensure you can indeed use the HHKB layout (which isn't natively supported in the Alps layout :( ). The only thing we'd have to get is a plate that works with that style of case!

A carbon fiber one like the sort I've used would be easier to shape down into that layout. Aluminum wouldn't be that much more difficult. Stainless steel might pose a problem. :?

Oh, and I should mention that if you do go with the Viper, there is sadly no 6u layout available as it was designed with 7u in mind. Oh boy, am I derailing my own award thread? XD

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Chyros

15 Dec 2015, 01:35

Many congrats on the well-deserved win! :)

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vsev

15 Dec 2015, 10:34

Nice job E3E, congrats !

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E3E

15 Dec 2015, 19:05

One more big thanks to you guys! I might not have a -tiny- amount of posts on here, but I'm certainly more of a poster on GeekHack, with most of my posts on DT being pretty simple and focused on neat finds, haha. If I had an e-cycler hook up or something and could bring back hauls, I'd be posting about my finds all day, as I feel that's the true core of this forum. Vintage love. :D I looove vintages, but I can't afford too many without going bankrupt. :P

Anyway! I'm honored to have been part of the awards ceremony and winning this is an amazing way to end my year in this hobby! I'm super happy that all my hard work was noticed and appreciated! Thank you again to everyone who voted for me and to everyone who organized these awards.

Damn, I'm hokey, huh? :P

mtl

15 Dec 2015, 19:13

Congrats, E3E! Well deserved. :D

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