Mocking up keyboards with 3D software

[warty]

I'd like to do some mockups of some custom keys I'm thinking of ordering (maybe a GB if interest). I haven't used 3D software in a few years (10) -- the last time was LightWave. I assume blender is still around. I think there was a google project for free 3D -- but maybe it got killed off?

Anybody have a lead?

I won't be using this in a game or anything, I just want to play with colors and font faces. Is there already somebody some IBM models they would share?

[Muirium]

Good question. We were debating this / complaining about the options recently here:

http://deskthority.net/off-topic-f10/gu ... 9-120.html

Seems to be that 3D software and CAD fell off the improvement train the last few decades. Software that's used by people trained specifically to use it … uh oh!

[matt3o]

SchetchUp is pretty good actually http://www.sketchup.com/ (from google)

Blender is very good but it has a pretty high learning curve.

Lightwave is still around but it has been superseded by Modo (founded by former lightwave devs). http://www.luxology.com/

Silo is a very nice, easy to use and affordable alternative. http://www.nevercenter.com/silo/

I believe there are also free/educational versions of 3dsmax which is pretty easy to get started with and maya (admittedly a bit overkill).

[Mechanoid]

I think there was a google project for free 3D -- but maybe it got killed off?

It's called Google SketchUp and it's alive

http://www.sketchup.com/intl/it/product/gsu.html

[damorgue]

The reason why people seem to complain a lot about their CAD software is that they find these obscure free softwares. The only good free CAD software that I have used is Blender. I have yet to see a decent solid or surface modeling program which is free unfortunately.

[Daniel]

Who made the mockups for the DSA retro groupbuy? I know he's a member of geekhack, but unfortunately I don't remember his nickname:
http://deskthority.net/marketplace-f11/ ... sa%20retro

[warty]

It looks like someone has a 3D model they are using. THere is some talk of automating it as a web site, so you could go and change colors yourself, and it would render it. But looks like that could be quite far away. But that's exactly the thing I was looking for.

http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=392 ... #msg977794

I used 3D software all day long for a few years, and what I can say in general is that each one uses it's own completely different UI rules, so it is incredibly frustrating moving from one tool to another.

[warty]

I gave up on the 3D thing: too much time required to get 'back in the saddle'. I did some 2D mockups instead, they work well enough I think...

[matt3o]

lovely, indeed

[Muirium]

Tasty caps on a superb mock.

[Daniel Beardsmore]

What's the fire extinguisher key for? Fear of a Fanless Planet?

Interesting ISO vs ANSI question — which one has the more appealing breaks in symmetry in a layout such as this? Neither one solves the lack of black cap left of 1, but ISO prevents the additional gap below backspace at the cost of more snaggletooth.

Though that key left of 1, in the US and UK, is only useful for the *NIX terminal, so for most people you could put a black key of some kind there. Or maybe use that slot for Esc.

[warty]

Yeah, the symmetry isn't quite right. I saw someone with their `~ key over on the numpad, that seems as good a place as any. Then put the esc next to the 1.

The red fire extinguisher is "force-quit" on my mac, or Ctrl-alt-del with a shift key. I wish I had a better icon for that, but I'm trying to hold it to TWO fonts total, and that's as close as I could get to the idea of "emergency! emergency!" with font awesome. It might also be nice to have a blue or yellow version of that, or some other key, sometimes 1 or 2 keys of a different color look like of nice. I would say no more than 1 of each color tho. Something like this?

Having done this mockup, it has 1 more advantage: you get an extra Fn key over the left hand side, which is helpful for getting to the cursor keys under JKLI. But the colors on the right don't look very good imho. Straight black is probably a better fit.

[webwit]

Careful now. This can only end badly.

[warty]

great. now my eyes are bleeding. thanks webwit.