I’ve been doing so much Emacs writing lately, so I guess it’s time I get my Emacs pinky (which is a form of RSI). I made a quick reference to it three days ago and got a lot of responses.What happened?I started to feel a strain last week, but at first I didn’t think much about it. Sometimes my pinky rests awkwardly on the keyboard because I’m used to using the Caps Lock key, but it’s usually a hand-position issue. After I readjust and let my pinky rest, it goes away.This time the strain didn’t go away, and my pinky kept rebelling.My keyboard, Kinesis Freestyle Edge (the one here is the RGB+, the original RGB is discontinued), has a prominent Caps Lock key that just screams “use me as control!” For years, that’s what I did. As you can see in the picture, with my pinky resting on it.The last week has been busy. I didn’t leave my small Manhattan apartment for two days, working straight from morning to evening, then gaming and sleeping. This isn’t normal for me and has taken a toll on my hands, and the RSI got worse.I think my new screen also exacerbated the problem somehow. It’s much bigger and has higher resolution, which I’m still adjusting to by how I sit and how I move my head and neck. I also have a standing desk I usually use in its standing position in the morning, when I write these posts or work on projects — these are easily my longest writing sessions, sometimes going for two hours straight without a break, especially in the last couple of weeks, and that’s all Emacs and pinky work.When I thought about Emacs pinky in the past, I mostly thought of it with a smirk. I mean, it’s your pinky. How can you not read a comment about someone having their little finger hurt and not chuckle a bit? But folks, let me tell you, once you have it, you realize how much you depend on that one small finger, especially as an Emacs user.My work, my organization, even my gaming in the evening (as it turns out), it’s all going through that little finger. Sure, it’s my “fault” for using Emacs, but if you’ve been reading this blog for a while you’d know that I owe many things to Emacs (including, among other things, my current job).What am I doing about it?For now, I’ve started using the keyboard’s dedicated control key again and changed how I use my hands. I try to use my right thumb, all the way to the side from the home row (my keyboard is huge, I will get to that in a minute) for when I need to use the left side of the keyboard, and then fold my pinky and use my knuckle to press it when I need the left control, for when I use the right side of the keyboard, as you can see in this picture:This adjustment is the easiest, since I know where these Control keys are by muscle memory. I turned off my Caps as control on my Mac to make sure I don’t get tempted to go back to my old habit. It’s been working OK, and that’s what I’m doing right now for writing this post.Other Emacs users have suggested several things, and I’ve been considering and trying a few of them.god-mode came up a couple of times. It creates a chord (two keys pressed at once) key binding that triggers a control press. For example, sd, and then x s (separately) to save a file in Emacs — same as C-x C-s. This can be useful, but it has two problems.The obvious one is that this shortcut works only in Emacs. When I don’t use Emacs, which happens more often than I’d like for work, I have to use the OS shortcuts. Caps is so ingrained in my fingers’ memory that I just use it all the time, but now I need to start thinking of other options. I could probably program the keyboard’s firmware to do something similar, but that’s a topic in itself — and if I do that, I don’t need god-mode anyway. Another odd issue is that it doesn’t work on my Mac. It throws a GCC error, which from what I gather has to do with Emacs internals and how it works (or doesn’t work in this case) with its internal compiling mechanisms. Yes, I tried the fix, which doesn’t seem to work well with Homebrew, and I gave up on it.There are other packages like god-mode, but I think the next one I’m going to try is Xah Fly Keys, because what he’s after seems to make sense to me. Which brings me to the next point: a new keyboard.New KeyboardsI’ve been considering a new keyboard for a while, and the RSI has sped up the process. I’ve looked at a couple reviews and YouTube videos in the last couple of days. Kinesis, my current keyboard brand, is a known name in the ergonomic keyboard world, but after checking out their Advantage 360 I’m not sure I’m sold. It’s an excellent premium-looking keyboard, but it’s having a huge and heavy keyboard again. My hands are small, and I’m not sure I want to commit to another expensive giant, especially when I already struggle with room for the mouse, especially when the two halves are spread apart for the shoulders. I already compromise on this, and my chest is closer than it should be. I also think that for the price of these keyboards (over $400), I might want to take them with me when I go to the office, and with a Kinesis keyboard, this is not going to happen. Another thing I’m considering is going wireless, because of my USB switch setup. It can take my Linux Desktop or the Mac up to 30 seconds to detect the keyboard when I switch, which is small, but still annoying. The mouse, connected by a Bluetooth dongle, takes a second to switch over.The above reasons, and Xah’s reviews, landed me on Glove80, which is even a weirder-looking keyboard. This keyboard takes ergonomics further (or just looks crazier, if you’re not into those). It’s wireless and lighter, which means taking it with me makes more sense, and will hopefully fix the USB lag issue. It has keywells for the fingers, which is basically a “dip” or a bowl (hence the name) that curves downwards so your fingers, which are naturally curled on a keyboard, are resting downwards. It has its own super-light switches, which, while I don’t think I need them, are another example of thinking of RSI and finger pain.Going further with light keyboards, there’s the Voyager, which is tiny, lighter, and minimal. It’s not wireless, but it’s meant to be mobile, and it’s probably the best one for small hands. However, the Voyager only has 52 keys. It’s meant to be used with layers — meaning, there’s a modifier key that creates another “layer” of keys, which makes your Alt act as Ctrl, for example. I’m not sure I’m sold on this idea, especially when we’re talking Emacs. If I’m already challenged by my lack of Caps Lock, I can only imagine how much time I will have to sink into this keyboard with its layers and grid layout (which the Glove80 has too, by the way) to become efficient with it. I also think the Keywell is something I could use, so I have a rough idea of what I want to try next.The problem with the Glove80 is that you can’t really try it out. They have a 30-day return policy, shipping not included, and they’re in New Zealand. A keyboard like that takes time to get used to, and 30 days for a $ 400-plus keyboard requires a level of confidence in the product I don’t have yet.My conclusion so farAll in all, I think what I’m looking at is a combination of adjustments rather than one solution. I need to get used to the idea of different key bindings, be it something like god-mode or Xah Fly Keys, which will make it easier to use with a new keyboard and would also be beneficial now, until I get it. The idea of layering is a bit daunting, but I can see the wisdom in it, especially after I got an email back from BSAG, who was kind enough to share her experience with me (she’s the one who told me about the Voyager keyboard).It will be a while before I buy a new keyboard, then it will take some time to get here, and then it will take me even longer to get used to one. I’m not looking forward to having my typing hindered even further, especially because I’m so dependent on writing notes all the time, but it’s also because of it that I have to do it. This is one thing I know I need to do.