Thumb Shift with Ergodox

Ergodox enabled thumb shift.

• It is common to use key rewriting software such as DvorakJ for thumb shift in a Windows environment.
• However, DvorakJ
  • The design considers keys to be struck at the same time if the time difference between them is within a certain range, so a slight delay in keystrokes is judged as not being simultaneous.
  • Extensive damage when space, conversion, no conversion, etc. are used as shift keys by default and determined not to be simultaneous.
  • Perhaps this design causes git add -p to become gi tad d-p or "abc" to become "abC'.
    • A space or shift is pressed after the alphabet, but the alphabet is recognized late.
• Therefore, we realized thumb shift using Ergodox EZ, a firmware rewritable keyboard.
• I did what I wanted to do because I didn’t have the motivation to reproduce the placement of the symbols as per the specifications.
• Surprisingly, there are no articles about it, so I’m writing about it here.

Technical

• I put the source here.
  • https://github.com/nishio/qmk_firmware/tree/thumb_shift/keyboards/ergodox/keymaps/thumb_shift
• Shift key-like behavior is implemented directly in macros, rather than using existing key codes as thumb shift keys.
  • So there is no harm in striking empty.
  • With two more modifier keys
• Most of the key definitions are macros https://github.com/nishio/qmk_firmware/blob/thumb_shift/keyboards/ergodox/keymaps/thumb_shift/keymap.c#L22
• A related article that is not thumb shift but is helpful Implementing simultaneous thumb strike with Ergodox
  • I was worried about the size being severe, but it worked easily and without any problems.
  • his implementation and [my implementation https://github.com/ nishio/qmk_firmware/blob/thumb_shift/keyboards/ergodox/keymaps/thumb_shift/keymap.c#L81] may differ in size by one digit
• Key code sequences that cannot be simply expressed are treated as special commands when the first character KC_NO is followed by a non-zero value.
  • https://github.com/nishio/qmk_firmware/blob/thumb_shift/keyboards/ergodox/keymaps/thumb_shift/keymap.c#L144
• English letters and symbols not yet implemented.
• It would be nice to modify the arrow keys with thumb shift to Home and PageUp.

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