Best input device mod 2013

[webwit]

Please suggest nominees for the Best input device mod in 2013. You have to give a short motivation for each suggestion. You cannot nominate your own projects.

Current suggestions (this list is frequently updated):

• xwhatsit's Beamspring USB controller
• Soarer's new controller
• The Happy Zifle Hacking Revision 2
• mtl's trackpoint keyboard project
• Laser prototyping project self-nomination
• Muirium's Space Saver
• matt3o for various builds and tutorials
• Komar for his work on the GH60
• hasu's TMK firmware

[Compgeke]

I strongly believe that xwhatsit's Beamspring USB controller is one of the best mods of the year. Making a beamspring board work on a modern computer has been a major issue for a while, with lots of work put into it and he has not only made it work on USB, but he also has working NKRO and doesn't destroy the original controller board.

http://deskthority.net/workshop-f7/beam ... t6044.html

[Muirium]

Seconded! My clipboard has that exact same link and you beat me to it.

[Halvar]

I will vote for xwhatsit for sure, because I got his controller yesterday and it's a marvel.

Anyways, I think Soarer should also be nominated for his awesome new controller that allows you to make a programmable NKRO USB keyboard without evnen installing a compiler. I will vote for him next year when version 1.0 is out.

[Muirium]

Indeed. Soarer's controller is a dream come true for diode happy matrix makers like me, who already use his converter on our classic boards. But Soarer won last year and will likely again when his all-integrated version 2 of the converter and controller is done. (With layer locks and lights, please!)

Xwhatsit's timing, then, is impeccable! As well as his achievement in bringing back a monumental line of keyboards.

[Game Theory]

Xwhatsit's USB beamspring controller for opening a new category of vintage to modern use.

Also agree with Muirium's Soarer thoughts.

[webwit]

Should I add Soarer's new controller or is it unfinished yet?

[matt3o]

Zifle for http://imgur.com/a/8J3Ej

mtl for http://imgur.com/a/wBI0y

(Also Broadmonkey, pasph and Muirium as soon as they post a semi final shot of their keyboards )

Actually would be nice to nominate the whole "workshop" that was a pleasure to run.

[Muirium]

Soarer's Controller is finished enough that I'm running it full time in the keyboard Matt3o rightly nagged me to post completed pictures of. Not a single glitch with it, over about a hundred hours use, including now. (More than I can say for my wiring!) Soarer's just a fussy bugger. I think he wants an excuse not to release his code yet. But the binary is top notch.

To please master Matt:


And a load more on the project thread.

[matt3o]

Muirium f*&!^*g nominated!

[JBert]

matt3o, for bringing us all kinds of builds AND tutorials, one being the "brownfox": http://deskthority.net/workshop-f7/brow ... t6050.html (the other thread was http://deskthority.net/workshop-f7/buil ... t5761.html AFAIK, maybe there's more).

Komar, for his completely open-hardware and open-firmware 60% keyboard making a drop-in replacement for the Poker. I know that technically Rev. A was released in december 2012, but that was too late for the previous DT-A round, and most of the development continued in 2013. One pretty build by Dirge can be found here: http://deskthority.net/photos-videos-f8 ... t4865.html

[webwit]

I haven't been following that project as much as I'd have liked. What is the deal here? Is it named the Komar 60% or the GH60, and is that the same thing, or is the GH60 an implementation of the Komar 60% open design?

[Broadmonkey]

The GH60 and the Komar 60% is the same design, I don't know why somebody calls it the Komar 60% as the official name, and what is written on the proto PCBs, is GH60.
Jdcarpe came up with the idea over at GH and Komar designed the PCB. It is in it's 3rd and last beta test, IIRC, and next step is production after the last bugs has been corrected. About 700+ PCBs have been ordered in the GB.

[mtl]

Hasu's TMK firmware: http://deskthority.net/viewtopic.php?t=4478. It has a lot of great features and is open source so it makes a great platform for experimental features and customization.