Advice requested
Feb. 9th, 2005 06:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
stormdogI need suggestions. I know there are a number of people who read this who use a keyboard for long hours on a daily basis. I have been one of these people ever since I started playing with my parents' Commodore 64 in elementary school. Now that I am working at a computer support center, this is even more true. Counting work, I easily spend ten hours a day sitting in front of a computer keyboard.
For a long time, the repetitive strain didn't really get to me. I might be a little sore in the wrist from time to time, but it was never really bad and never chronic. Now however, the situation is changing. Since I broke my left wrist about three years ago, I've had the odd bit of pain and discomfort there. Working at the factory made this ten times worse and I'm glad to be gone from there. I'm so much happier where I am now. However, this job is starting to do the same thing to me.
I've realized that my posture and typing position is really bad there so I'm actively correcting that. The desk and chair are at the wrong height so today I started putting my keyboard on my lap to type. This has made things a little better, but I'm still getting a lot of pain in my wrist and I am frankly rather concerned about this. I'm going to buy a wrist brace at my mother's suggestion, but as someone who expects computers to be a large part of his livelihood for the rest of his life, I need to figure out how best to keep my typing anatomy happy and comfortable. To that end, I'm checking out some ergonomic keyboards and I want advice from people who've needed them and used them.
I have a few options here. I could simply buy one of the Microsoft ergonomic keyboards (or knockoffs thereof) like this one. My mother uses one much like that and says it helps her a lot.
Then there are more exotic options.
There are a bunch of them here.
From that lot, The Kinesis Ergonomic Contoured Keyboard seems like it would feel really good. Just looking at the pictures of this keyboard, with it's buttons placed into recessed cups that fit the curve of one's hand, makes me think it would be a really natural fit and reduce a great deal of the hand/wrist stress I'm experiencing.
Then, there's this one. Yes, it looks like something from the bridge of the original series Enterprise. Yes, it might take a little getting used to. However, just holding my arms out the way this keyboard would necessitate, straight out with palms standing vertically and facing each other, makes my wrists feel so much better.
I'm willing to pay the necessary sum for a really good ergonomic keyboard. It's something I'm going to be spending a lot of time with and having the best product for my comfort and health is more than worth it to me. I'm just not sure what that product is, and if I'm going to spend $150 to $200 dollars on a keyboard I want one that's going to work. I probably couldn't form an objective opinion at this point even if I were able to try them out since anything besides what I'm used to is going to automatically be much better by comparison until it's been long enough for any aches and pains from the new model to make themselves known.
Advice from anyone who'd had these issues or has tried any of these or other keyboards or any other methods (Ergonomic mice? Foot pedals?) to combat them is greatly encouraged.
For a long time, the repetitive strain didn't really get to me. I might be a little sore in the wrist from time to time, but it was never really bad and never chronic. Now however, the situation is changing. Since I broke my left wrist about three years ago, I've had the odd bit of pain and discomfort there. Working at the factory made this ten times worse and I'm glad to be gone from there. I'm so much happier where I am now. However, this job is starting to do the same thing to me.
I've realized that my posture and typing position is really bad there so I'm actively correcting that. The desk and chair are at the wrong height so today I started putting my keyboard on my lap to type. This has made things a little better, but I'm still getting a lot of pain in my wrist and I am frankly rather concerned about this. I'm going to buy a wrist brace at my mother's suggestion, but as someone who expects computers to be a large part of his livelihood for the rest of his life, I need to figure out how best to keep my typing anatomy happy and comfortable. To that end, I'm checking out some ergonomic keyboards and I want advice from people who've needed them and used them.
I have a few options here. I could simply buy one of the Microsoft ergonomic keyboards (or knockoffs thereof) like this one. My mother uses one much like that and says it helps her a lot.
Then there are more exotic options.
There are a bunch of them here.
From that lot, The Kinesis Ergonomic Contoured Keyboard seems like it would feel really good. Just looking at the pictures of this keyboard, with it's buttons placed into recessed cups that fit the curve of one's hand, makes me think it would be a really natural fit and reduce a great deal of the hand/wrist stress I'm experiencing.
Then, there's this one. Yes, it looks like something from the bridge of the original series Enterprise. Yes, it might take a little getting used to. However, just holding my arms out the way this keyboard would necessitate, straight out with palms standing vertically and facing each other, makes my wrists feel so much better.
I'm willing to pay the necessary sum for a really good ergonomic keyboard. It's something I'm going to be spending a lot of time with and having the best product for my comfort and health is more than worth it to me. I'm just not sure what that product is, and if I'm going to spend $150 to $200 dollars on a keyboard I want one that's going to work. I probably couldn't form an objective opinion at this point even if I were able to try them out since anything besides what I'm used to is going to automatically be much better by comparison until it's been long enough for any aches and pains from the new model to make themselves known.
Advice from anyone who'd had these issues or has tried any of these or other keyboards or any other methods (Ergonomic mice? Foot pedals?) to combat them is greatly encouraged.
