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I received one of the first Das Keyboards back in June of this year and have been using it since. I too am a self taught typist. I have to say that my typing has got better, but it has taken a long time. I find that I have to use the force sometimes to get things going well. If I just forget about typing and just actually type, I am faster and more accurate. When I think too much about what I am doing I make mistakes. The hardest thing for me was to remember what the shift characters were above the number line. Occasionally, I have to hit a key and then the backspace a few times until I get the one I wanted. The coolest part is when people come into my office and see it. It gets a better response than my TouchStream keyboard. Now that is a cool and innovative keyboard. Too bad they went out of business!

I'm surprised I haven't seen this mentioned in the article or the forum so far, but it's a shortcoming I notice often in my day-to-day computer use.

No modern operating, in my experience, enables the user to click in more than one place at a time. I know, even those of us with multiple monitors rarely feel the need to grip and reposition two or more windows at a time, but what about gestures? Wouldn't it be nice to grip two edges or corners of a window and resize or rotate it?

To my knowledge, the only products that enable this type of interaction were made by FingerWorks [http://www.fingerworks.com/%5D, which is no longer in business.

Touched screens can be messy to look at, but multi-touch pads are a very good idea.

Fair enough. I prefer to use whatever is under my hands at the moment. I don't like moving back and forth between the mouse and keyboard (which is why I'm waiting for http://www.fingerworks.com/ to marry their technology with useful tactile feedback). As a result, if I'm browsing I use the mouse for as much as I can. It really does save time for me.
I agree that most mouse gesture packages are a little slow/sloppy- if you haven't tried Opera, I would recommend it. They are native, responsive, and fairly forgiving.

I've been using a keyboard from Fingerworks http://www.fingerworks.com/ (that now looks shut down), that has no actual keys on it. The included gestures are very easy to learn, and you can even make your own. Because of this, I don't see a d-pad less controller too far of a stretch, though extreme precision might be tough to achieve without lots of practice.

If you don't want to move the hands between mouse and the keyboard, maybe the Touchstream Keyboard would've been useful for you. Unfortunately, they've gone out of business. What a shame. I own one, and it's a freaking cool idea even if I never quite got around to making it my primary keyboard.

WTF happened to Fingerworks?

You may want to consider a Touchstream Dvorak.

You will get less stress on your wrists, because you are using the same mousing and typing, and the programing mode and gestures eliminate the weaknesses Dvorak generally has for programming.

And they fold up to bring with you, so you can plug them into the machines you're working on wherever they are.

If you can go without tactile feedback, there's a neater toy you could buy. Check out the Fingerworks Touchstream LP. The entire thing is reconfigurable. The key layout shown is just an overlay. You can replace it with one for a dvorak keyboard or create your own. It also has the added benefit of mouse emulation so you don't have to take your hands away from the "keys." The technology is similar to the trackpad used on a standard laptop, only a bit more sophisticated. It can track all your fingers at once along with the amount of pressure being applied. Downside is that it's a bit spendy. $350 last time I checked. :(

but company is effectively out of business, bought by unnamed company.

http://www.fingerworks.com/

Their Touch Stream keyboard rocks, its pressureless, works just like a mouse, costed 300$US. And was completely reconfigurable. Its not clear why such successful company stopped making its wonderful and very popular product, when it was bought out. It even has vim and emacs compatibility modes.

The keyboard described is auxiliary controller, not a keyboard, mostly made for games, graphic manipulations and such other things.

2c.

Argh - I wish you'd have looked harder sooner.

Touchstream LP
http://www.fingerworks.com/
http://www.google.com/search?q=touchstream&safe=ac tive ... they recently ceased operations. Maybe you can still get one. Reconfigurable with their Java tool, huge touchscream, low force needed, etc. I only have their iGesture - I didn't want to fork over the cash for the keyboard untested, but after realizing that I still need a general purpose mouse but at least the keyboard would have reduced that need - I went back looking, and found they'd closed shop.

I don't know the situation behind it all, but it seems like they could've lowered their pricing before going out of business and saved their butts - maybe they never really broke even so they couldn't.

The Touchstream LP keyboard used to be keyboard and mouse in one unit. It supports gestures and is very customizable. Sadly fingerworks went out of business last(?) month.

well..
It was cool... no more pain .. on my hands... but I was typing to slow after a few months of using it... so I sold it .. on their forums with out any problems...
I just ordered a kinesis a few hours ago... lets ssee how that goes...

Waaah!

This is the ultimate geek keyboard. I've been trying to find an ergonomic keyboard for the last couple weeks and fell in love with the Touchstream last week. The keyboard is thin and flat, with no actual keys, just two large multi-touch sensitive pads. This allows for gestures based on multiple keypresses at once.

The gestures can be interesting, like pinching your fingers together to 'cut', twisting counter-clockwise to open a file. Shifting can be done by putting four fingers down on home row. Mousing is done right on the keyboard, with three fingers used for dragging.

The key locations (positions, sizes and mappings) are in an xml file. Software allows you to remap gestures based on the current application.

The Touchstream has won several awards, was developed by a professor at the University of Delaware, a few years ago. They also made a low power version that replaced the removable PowerBook keyboard (called the MacNTouch).

The Touchstream forums knew since April? that Fingerworks had been bought by a large corp, and rumors abounded. By late May, all the mainstream resellers had sold their last keyboards, snatched up by fans who couldn't bear to switch back to regular keyboards.

On June 10th, their website announced that they had discontinued manufacturing, and ebay bids jumped from $400 to $800. (Retail price was around $350)

I'm so annoyed. I find the perfect keyboard, and the company dies right in front me. If I'd done this a month ago, I could've gotten one from Thinkgeek.

The forums are still active. The official forum is now read-only, but before it died, someone setup an announced a fan-driven forum which is going strong.

Their mouse replacement, which has the mousing and gestures of the keyboard, but not the keys, is still available. It's called the iGesture. I bought one last week, and am waiting for it to show up.

FYI, I switched to Dvorak last year.

I've been using the TouchStream LP from FingerWorks for over a year now and love it. I went and bought the Dvorak layout at a time where I wasn't sure whether I wanted to make the switch or not. I've been happy ever since.

I can switch from qwerty keyboards on other's machine to dvorak without much trouble. The actual keyboard is USB so I can usually plug it into the front of another's machine if I want, and since I have it sending the usual qwerty codes, there's no need to switch layouts or anything on a friend's computer.

The thing is also gesture based, so all those damn shorcuts are just gestures, and it's a LOT faster to me now than using key-combo shortcuts.

Also, the pad itself is the mouse. No more reaching for that trackball (mice are so 1980s!)

http://www.fingerworks.com/

I tried and sold the "touchstream ST" from http://fingerworks.com/ which cost me like $350 and it did help my pain... but typing was a disaster... i used it until by mistake I erased something by putting the hand (and finger) in the wrong place .... so we will see now that i ordered the kinesis a few min ago

go buy a fingerworks keyboard. you rae now 90% of the way to the (overly hyped) minority report interface.

This?

Awhile ago, I bought a Fingerworks Keyboard. These things use a heat-sensing technology to allow the same surface to detect gestures, button presses, and mousing without any "pushing" required. Contact is all it takes.

It's pretty slick, and it really helps me when I'm doing somethign that requires alot of transitioning from mouse to keyboard. It also adds gesturing to any application, which is pretty damn slick. Gestures can be even faster than keyboard input.

Screw all that and get a Touchstream
Same surface for typing and mousing, gesture input, all trainable and modal for different apps.

http://www.fingerworks.com

The Keyboard and the Mouse are both archaic, this is one of the few devices that "feels" innovative and really improves my workflow.

I know it's actually more expensive than the Kinexis keyboard (which I have never heard of), but does anyone else use a keyboard from Fingerworks? It acts a lot like a mechanical keyboard, but requires no force and allows for gesture support on the keyboard which is light-years beyond those pitiful mouse gestures supported by a few applications.

I realize I'm a bit late with my reply, but I've had similar discomfort with hitting the shift key all the time. Since buying a touchstream lp (http://www.fingerworks.com/) my pinkies have finally recovered from years of abuse. The integrated programmer's punctuation pad and customizability of the unit have drastically cut down the amount of reaching my hands have to do to reach those "rarely used" keys.

I actually bought it to aleviate wrist pain from using a standard mouse, and cuz it looked pretty damn sweet. At $300US, the price is kinda steep, but it's been totally worth it to me, especially since they keep coming out with firmware upgrades.

P.S. Xwinder is totally sweet. Oh, and the gestures are badass, it's like all-in-one gestures (http://extensionroom.mozdev.org/list.php/Firefox/ all#aio) for every app, sorta.

I am not affiliated in any way with fingerworks, just a satisfied customer. Hope this helps.

The TouchStream. These are amazing devices, and completely customizable. Actually the retail price was something like $350... but Fingerworks was recently bought out and the future of the product range is in doubt. So when two second-hand models were auctioned on ebay recently, they both went for nearly $500.

(One of them to me... I need a second one for work.)

Why are they so good? Well, y'know how when you're coding you avoid the mouse because it's quicker, in the end, to hammer away at the keyboard? Even for awkward things like selecting text? Well, with the TouchStream, there is zero delay between mousing and typing, because you mouse by dropping two fingers on the typing area. It's completely seamless, and it means you can integrate mousing into your typing. Things suddenly get a whole lot quicker and easier.

It doesn't stop there. They recognise gestures in a heavily customizable way. You don't need the arrow keys any more, just drop two fingers of your left hand and slide them. Much quicker, and no reaching.

In fact, it's possible (with some hefty customization) to eliminate reaches completely. That's what I've done... I no longer need to reach for any modifier keys whatsoever. I get the complete range of letters, numbers and symbols without moving my hands from the Q-P A-; Z-/ keys.

Then you have the fact that they're incredibly comfortable and will help to offset any RSI worries you may have.

Downsides? Takes some getting used to for full speed (I learned Dvorak because it means less finger movement and I'm up to 70wpm after several months; I can hit 100 on a normal keyboard). You'll probably never be as fast typing as on QWERTY. This is very definitely offset by the gestures, mousing and comfort, but it's frustrating at first.

I hope a new incarnation arises, because there's no way I'm going back to separate mouse and keyboard and no gestures without a fight. If the ones I have break I'll probably end up paying more and more buying them second hand :(

This is a rumour only:

This patent might be the outcome of the purchase of FingerWorks, Inc http://www.fingerworks.com/ that has some pretty neat heat sensors for keyboards and mice. Something that might very well be used in that tablet Mac. Read the FingerWorks story here : http://fingerfans.dreamhosters.com/forum/viewtopic .php?t=9

Maybe you were imagining something like this: TouchStream keyboard

How does QS help me pick the ssh window I want when I have 3 of them open to different destinations?

Well, QS may not be able to do that in isolation (though it might, I don't know how myself -- ask Alcor), but used in concert with other apps it is simple. For one thing, if you have a limited number of terminal windows open, then Ctrl, (pause), T, (enter) will bring all terminal windows to the front and you can use Cmd-` to cycle through them to get the one you want. Or if you use something like iTerm (or screen), you can keep your different sessions in tabs, so Ctrl, (pause), I, (enter) will bring iTerm to the front and Cmd-2, for example, will take you to your second session, and your hands never leave the keyboard. Throw in one of these, and you're doubly golden...

all this talk of these other input devices and none of it even comes close to my Fingerworks Touchstream. We don't need no steenking mouse!!! Heck, most shortcuts are gestures, so key location isn't really "key". With support for multiple OSes for programming it's shortcut keys, and my snazzy DVORAK layout, who needs anything else???? http://www.fingerworks.com/

The Rollermouse is interesting, but IMO the coolest mouse/keyboard alternative out there remains the Fingerworks Touchstream Keyboard. It's a keyboard implemented as a touch surface. It's similar to a large laptop touchpad, except that the technology used forms an image of the hand in proximity to the keyboard surface (no "double touch" issues). This enables "zero-force typing", mousing, and programmable gesturing support. Typing does require a period of adjustment and retraining. The payoff is that your typing surface is also your mousing surface -- you'll never reach for that mouse again. E.g. for basic pointing, touch and move two fingers at a time. For drag/select just use three fingers -- no extra "click" is required. Other gestures support scrolling, 3-button mousing, copy, paste, undo/redo, etc. Various modes are available for application specific support, e.g. Emacs, Programmer's mode. IIRC, there are also modes (possibly user-contributed?) for graphics apps such as Photoshop, Maya, etc. Fingerworks' open-source XWinder tool further enables window-manipulation (move, resize, etc.) gestures on various OSes.

The Touchstream requires no drivers beyond standard USB keyboard/mouse support, so it'll work out of the box with just about any modern OS out there.

While the Touchstream is somewhat spendy, there are also the more reasonably priced iGesture pads, think of a mouse-pad with a USB cable (and no mouse). These handle mousing, gesture recognition, and optionally numpad or mini-QWERTY keyboards. This is also nice option for folks who want to keep their conventional keyboard, but add the advantages of gesturing support.

(Std. Disclaimer: I have no business relationship w/ these folks, I just think they have a great product...)

The Rollermouse is interesting, but IMO the coolest mouse/keyboard alternative out there remains the Fingerworks Touchstream Keyboard. It's a keyboard implemented as a touch surface. It's similar to a large laptop touchpad, except that the technology used forms an image of the hand in proximity to the keyboard surface (no "double touch" issues). This enables "zero-force typing", mousing, and programmable gesturing support. Typing does require a period of adjustment and retraining. The payoff is that your typing surface is also your mousing surface -- you'll never reach for that mouse again. E.g. for basic pointing, touch and move two fingers at a time. For drag/select just use three fingers -- no extra "click" is required. Other gestures support scrolling, 3-button mousing, copy, paste, undo/redo, etc. Various modes are available for application specific support, e.g. Emacs, Programmer's mode. IIRC, there are also modes (possibly user-contributed?) for graphics apps such as Photoshop, Maya, etc. Fingerworks' open-source XWinder tool further enables window-manipulation (move, resize, etc.) gestures on various OSes.

The Touchstream requires no drivers beyond standard USB keyboard/mouse support, so it'll work out of the box with just about any modern OS out there.

While the Touchstream is somewhat spendy, there are also the more reasonably priced iGesture pads, think of a mouse-pad with a USB cable (and no mouse). These handle mousing, gesture recognition, and optionally numpad or mini-QWERTY keyboards. This is also nice option for folks who want to keep their conventional keyboard, but add the advantages of gesturing support.

(Std. Disclaimer: I have no business relationship w/ these folks, I just think they have a great product...)

The Rollermouse is interesting, but IMO the coolest mouse/keyboard alternative out there remains the Fingerworks Touchstream Keyboard. It's a keyboard implemented as a touch surface. It's similar to a large laptop touchpad, except that the technology used forms an image of the hand in proximity to the keyboard surface (no "double touch" issues). This enables "zero-force typing", mousing, and programmable gesturing support. Typing does require a period of adjustment and retraining. The payoff is that your typing surface is also your mousing surface -- you'll never reach for that mouse again. E.g. for basic pointing, touch and move two fingers at a time. For drag/select just use three fingers -- no extra "click" is required. Other gestures support scrolling, 3-button mousing, copy, paste, undo/redo, etc. Various modes are available for application specific support, e.g. Emacs, Programmer's mode. IIRC, there are also modes (possibly user-contributed?) for graphics apps such as Photoshop, Maya, etc. Fingerworks' open-source XWinder tool further enables window-manipulation (move, resize, etc.) gestures on various OSes.

The Touchstream requires no drivers beyond standard USB keyboard/mouse support, so it'll work out of the box with just about any modern OS out there.

While the Touchstream is somewhat spendy, there are also the more reasonably priced iGesture pads, think of a mouse-pad with a USB cable (and no mouse). These handle mousing, gesture recognition, and optionally numpad or mini-QWERTY keyboards. This is also nice option for folks who want to keep their conventional keyboard, but add the advantages of gesturing support.

(Std. Disclaimer: I have no business relationship w/ these folks, I just think they have a great product...)

Every time a discussion of a new mouse (cause mice suck) comes up, I point out how much I love my Fingerworks Keyboard. I don't ever have to use a mouse, and it has quite a few more (extensible) capabilities.

If you are really a geek, you need one.

TouchStream kb and iGesture pad look like interesting products. But for a shorter learning curve, a generic touchpad solves some of the same problems, and can be integrated into an ergo keyboard.

If you want to see the next evolution of the computer mouse, try the iGesture http://www.fingerworks.com/igesture_tech.html. It rocks - I used one for a few months and loved it. It's basically a 6.25" x 5" chording touchpad. You can do anything a mouse can do with only 2 fingers, and a whole lot more with thumb and up to 3 finger combinations and gestures. The interface is really intuitive. You want to cut&paste something? Just use your fingers like a scissors closing, drag it somewhere, then open your fingers to paste. I thought it really helped my productivity, but using a regular mouse after a few hours of the touchpad was disconcerting.

Then after a week or so you get something like Launchbar or Quicksilver so you never have to look at the Dock or think in terms of virtual desktops again. And then a month down the line you pick up something like the Touchstream so you never have to touch your mouse again...

It's the best setup you'll ever use.

I use a FingerWorks keyboard which has what you want. I'm a programmer and all the programming symbols are right under my right hand if I do a shift-like modifier gesture with my left hand. It's awesome. Plus, the symbol right under my right index finger is the dash, which is really useful when typing english.

Here's a link.

If their website doesn't convince you that this keyboard is sweet, maybe my testimony will. I love this keyboard; it's really god's gift to people who want a better input device. The gestures are easy to learn, well thought out in the default configuration, and it's customizable, too, so it's very extensible. Typing does take some getting used to, but not very much. I now type as fast as I used to on regular keyboards. Don't let the price turn you off, it's well worth it for anyone who spends time in front of of a computer for a living like we do.

You mentioned trackpads, but the stuff from fingerworks goes a bit beyond this and supports a gesturing interface. I've used one for about a year and bought several as backups (the thing is incredibly durable) just because I know I'll never be able to live without it again.

I also recall a demo -- sorry, no link -- that used webcam-style cameras to watch eye movements and use that as part of the active window selection process. There was another demo at Intel Developer Forum last year that did something similar, but turned off a notebook's display when you weren't looking at it to save power.

It runs on USB, and works equally well with Mac, Windows and Linux (for those rare occasions when she'll let you borrow it). It's very smooth and sensitive, and you can move as quickly or slowly as you need to. It has no moving parts, and requires you to move nothing more than your hand.

It has no buttons - everything is controlled by the tips of your fingers and thumb. It works the same for left-handed and right-handed users - you can even switch hands whenever you like, with no reconfiguration. It emulates mouse events, with up to 5 buttons available. (The default setting for Mac is 2-button, but 3-button is an easy switch, and more can be configured.)

It comes programmed by default with a set of easy-to-remember gestures, including pointing, left- and right-clicking, dragging, arrow keys, page/text navigation keys, and others. The learning curve is fairly easy - you only have to learn the gestures you need to use. Basic "mouse" gestures should be easily mastered within 10-15 minutes of practice.

It's completely customizable with a free configuration utility. You can map pretty much *any* mouse or keyboard action to any gesture. The configuration utility gives you enough rope to hang yourself, if you so desire, but it is very powerful. The iGesture will store your settings in onboard memory, so you can use it with other computers, no drivers or software required.

It even comes with XWinder, a driver for Mac and Windows that lets you move and resize any window under the pointer with a special drag gesture, without needing to move the pointer to the window's title bar. This part is really slick.

Best of all, it's substantially bigger than any of the glidepoint-style pointing devices on the market today - about 5" by 7". This gives you an incredible pointing area. It's flat and thin, and can be placed beside the keyboard, or even on top of a Powerbook's touchpad or built-in keyboard.

Downsides:

1. Cost. The iGesture is on sale at $129. The more advanced models cost even more. But, IMO, this is money well spent.
2. Sensitive to static electricity. You can "reset" it with a "slap" gesture, thus negating any static charge you have in your hands.
3. Goes a bit wonky when wet. Keep beverages away and hands dry. Can be easily dried off with a paper napkin.
4. Can be intimidating for new users, at first.

No, I don't work for Fingerworks. I'm just a very happy customer - I own an iGesture NumPad, and a TouchStream keyboard, and they're both excellent - I use them on all 3 of the OS's, including my 15" Powerbook. They really go easier on the hands, too - my tendonitis has improved quite a bit.

I have a small workspace and with the prevalence of Mouse usage, I would like to reclaim the space wasted by the keypad.
...
Any non standard keyboard seems to quadruple in price though.

These are pricey, but take up even less space than a keypad-less keyboard and mouse combination. They also have keyboard replacements for PowerBooks and iBooks. I've never tried one, so I can't say what they're like to use, but they seem like novel gadgets. No moving parts make them more durable to wear and tear, and spills I presume. And the zero key force bit must be an interesting sensation.

I have a small workspace and with the prevalence of Mouse usage, I would like to reclaim the space wasted by the keypad.
...
Any non standard keyboard seems to quadruple in price though.

These are pricey, but take up even less space than a keypad-less keyboard and mouse combination. They also have keyboard replacements for PowerBooks and iBooks. I've never tried one, so I can't say what they're like to use, but they seem like novel gadgets. No moving parts make them more durable to wear and tear, and spills I presume. And the zero key force bit must be an interesting sensation.

I know everyone else is thinking WTF would I pay over three hundred bucks for a keyboard.... then consider you paid x hundred for leather or heated seats or a cool stereo in your car. Now think hrmm, I spend about an hour a day in the car and 10 or 12 hours a day on the computer... getting a keyboard that is as close to erognomic perfection as currently possible may be a good idea.

Not to mention the thing is sweet; the gestures are very convenient, typing gets easy after a while... I own a Dvorak one and use it at the office - was considering the mac 'n touch one to drop into my powerbook but they discontinued it for reasons unknown. New software is always coming out (firmware for gesture customization, built in English dictionary (yes, in the keyboard itself)). My favorite part is being able to type and mouse on the same surface without having to move my hands. Check it out http://www.fingerworks.com/lp_product.html

Reliance on the mouse is a big issue to me. I really loathe having to pause reach for the mouse every two seconds to move the cursor to the button, click then go back to my keyboard.

So get yourself one of these. I did, and it's one of the best purchases I ever made. Shiny.

Fingerworks have solved this problem, apparently. They sell a zero-force keyboard/mouse thingo. It will detect keystrokes and mouse movements (dragging the fingers), but will ignore stuff like wrists and palms sitting or sliding on the surface.
-ReK

I am sure it's already been posted, but what happens if you are reading something? Or have watery eyes? Hay fever? What happens if you are wearing glasses? I think there should be some sort of air type device, where you can just move your hand in front of something and it will move the mouse.. kinda like http://www.fingerworks.com/ Fingerworks. I have an iGesture pad, kinda nice...

ThinkGeek has the Roll-Up Keyboard and the TouchStream LP ZeroForce Keyboard. You can check out FingerWorks' product page as well; they make the TouchStream. I read someone's comment on the Roll-Up Keyboard before, saying that the characters on his faded over time after extended use, but he could still type on it without a problem because he got used to it, although other people couldn't.

We already have commercial holographic storage now. The disparity in the technological predictions of STtng is miles wide, they were so conservative when it comes to computer technology.

I'm still waiting for the ST:TNG touch-screen computer consoles. Seriously. I wonder why touch screens have never taken off, even as an additional feature to existing hardware that use other input devices. The whole point of using a mouse or a trackpad is so you could manipulate GUI elements in a manner as close as possible to directly manipulating them with your finger. Ergonomics is a factor, though. Lifting your hands off a surface to manipulate a GUI isn't as efficient as moving them around on a flat surface with input devices close to each other. But as for keyboards, zero-force keyboards are already around, so a touch screen version should be viable.

Anyone else have any opinions/info on touch screens? I'd be interested in links. And does anyone know about touch screens that can handle more that one point being touched at the same time? I presume one of the limitations of touch screens to work as efficient input devices is that most (that I know of) can only handle one point being touched at a time. Making a keyboard would require at least two touch points, for key combinations like the shift key. And as for simulating something like a piano keyboard or a multiple-control console on a touch screen, that would require handling many more points simultaneously.

I have a Touchstream LP keyboard http://fingerworks.com/lp_product.html . Its essentially a big touchpad with labels for all the keys and gestures that work like hotkeys. The interesting thing about it from a techy point of view is that all the magic is done in firmware right on the keyboard. No drivers needed, so its very OS independant; even the firmware update utility is written in Java to maximize portability. It might jack the cost up a bit, but I'd like to see more peripherals with firmware-based functionality.

zero force keyboards with gesturing These don't have an "under" as a place for stuff to live.

1) Trackball you have to keep petting the damn thing, unless you have it super sensitive in which case you lose accuracy. For a solution designed to minimize hand movement making the user pet constantly vs. using an analog stick would be against the entire design philosophy.

2,3) I'm sorry, but 100$ is a mind numbingly cheap price for a low volume device for this. Let's look at some similar products. A close competitor is the DataHand which sells for 10 times that. A gesture keyboard goes for 340$. A chording keyboard/mouse replacement that's been out for many years and used by wearable people, the twiddler, is 220$. Just a half-keyboard with extra letter mappings to make up for it is 295$. All these companies aren't so expensive because they want to be, manufacturing low volume stuff like this is hideously expensive. You say you want a second version for large hands, that would raise the price even more.

Have you seen the touchstream by fingerworks? I got one of these right after I first saw it for that same reason. Expensive, but cool.

SuSE has a web update option to keep everything up to date after you have installed it (and everything is compiled already). They sell the CD box set at CompUSA and it seems less quirky to me than RedHand (which I am sure I'll be flamed for).

As far as loud, late night work - If I were your boyfriend, I would limit my project hours and second I would use my zero force, no noise keyboard.

What is the difference between a Duke and an Earl? None?