Support for Alternative Layouts
This is a summary of how alternative layouts have been supported by kits such as Colevrak and Homing. It is not a discussion of alt layout performance and development, but if that interests you I highly recommend starting with Pascal Getreuer’s A guide to alt keyboard layouts (why, how, which one?). It’s a concise and comprehensive overview with links to some great sites that go deeper. He also has a separate Links about keyboards page. The Keyboard layouts doc he recommends explains layout goals and metrics in detail, summarizing the alt layouts discussed here as well as more than one hundred others. Sculpted-profile The majority of custom keycap sets are sculpted-profile (Cherry, SA, MT3, KAT, etc. - more on profiles generally here) so let’s start there. Because each row has a unique keycap shape, alt layouts require a unique keycap for each legend that moves off its QWERTY row. At first there were two The Dvorak layout was patented in 1936 by August Dvorak & William L....
Apr 23, 2024
[EDIT] See Zeal's post below, could be my keycaps causing the ruckus.
Keyclack's 1965 set is SA profile. Those caps don't have any cross support whatsoever underneath.
Cherry profile caps look like this: https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3686/12545216905_11dec30cbe_b.jpg (Photo credit: Photoelectric) Note the cross supporting the keycap stem? That's what dampens the bottom out when paired with these clips. With taller caps such as SA and OEM profile, that supporting cross either doesn't exist, or is too high up to reduce bottom out noise.
That said, the clips still reduce the upstroke sound on any keyswitch as the thin rubber layer touches the stem on the rebound.
From the recent Massdrop: https://massdrop-s3.imgix.net/product-images/tai-hao-purple-pbt-doubleshot-keycap-set/MD-18228_20160421182347_743dfdd5d5df7a17.jpg?auto=format&fm=jpg&fit=crop&w=1023&dpr=1
I do already have O-rings and MX browns, so these probably wouldn't add (or more correctly, subtract) much with the TH keycaps then? I have Jessica's Plum GMK keycap set coming soon. Since that's Cherry profile, I'd have much better luck with these clips on there? I'm trying to reduce the sound when my SO is trying to sleep.
Sorry for all the questions, and thank you for responding so quickly!
With Cherry profile keycaps, no orings are needed. The clips will silence both bottom out and upstroke. Just make sure the switch is logo facing top, LED hole down!