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Honestly, I'm close to using voice for typing more than the keyboard now. So, in a sense, voice will replace qwerty. Editing is the issue that keeps my keyboard here for now. There is no way I can describe edits out loud as fast as I do them with a keyboard.

Chorded keyboards have been around since the 1800s - including some that use tapping as opposed to pressing keys.

I used one in the mid-90s for a while that I can't find at the moment. It was an ergonomic grip designed to be a one-handed keyboard replacement operated at your side. There was more than one contact per finger to give 10 keys with 1024 possible combinations and software to allow words and phrases to be assigned combinations. The multiple contacts were hit with different parts of your fingers which at first doesn't seem possible to learn but was and allowed 10 contacts without the need to move your fingertip from one contact to another. It took about a month to reach a speed in the ballpark of my QWERTY keyboard skills. Mine broke after a few months and the device didn't catch on.

The Twiddler 3 offers similar functionality to what I remember, but is not as ergonomic and requires the fingertips to be moved around.

So, the answer is that these devices have tried to replace QWERTY and failed though they have had enough success to create a stable niche. The Twiddler devices have been around since '92.

Not to mention, this one already successfully finished its kickstarter campaign and is on to the next phase of actualization:
https://www.kickstarter.com/pr...

Both keyboards appear to have somewhat awkward choices for the CTRL position, though.

I'm still sort of fascinated by the Twiddler, though... http://twiddler.tekgear.com/
Would be nice to try one out to see if I could get used to it before shelling out some Benjamins for it, though. Also would be neat to consider dual-wielding them.

OTOH, I'm pretty happy with my $10 keyboards.

I liked that description, actually. I thought if you're going to claim it creates the "illusion" of having a huge TV, why not take it to the limit? "Its makers say this creates the illusion of watching a 46,200 inch screen from a distance of 1 mile!"

Who wouldn't want the illusion of a 46 thousand inch screen? Seriously I should go into marketing.

It is because of the optics that the image appears as if it was at 11 or 12 feet. It is about how your eyes focus. Think about it. If you wear glasses are your eyes focusing on the surface of the lens or the image? That would be pretty uncomfortable if your eyes were straining to focus on the glasses less than an inch away. No, your eyes are focusing on the image that appears as if it is some distance in front of you. Same with binoculars or any other lens. Each lens is designed with a particular focus. The one eMagin uses happens to be 12'.

I've used eMagin's z800 and if the eyebud uses the same lens, which it sounds like it does, then the screen does actually appear as if it is on a screen about 12' away.

The last item is the kicker (when combined with 16bit color). http://www.tekgear.com/index.cfm?pageID=2&section= 83&function=viewproducts&nodelist=1,83 has some cool stuff, though. My AI professor at GaTech, Thad Starner, who is one of the leading pioneers in wearable computing (or so he says), uses the MicroOptical CV-3, iirc. He even wears it while teaching.

That's such a shame. Means that the only HMDs available will be the $999 ones from tekgear, bought by enthusiasts who say "Damn the risks!" much like early proponants of the aeroplane and motorcar.

Gah. Rich people. I wish I could afford their toys.

Are you allowed to tell us more about the specs of your HMD and how you got the price so low? Maybe somebody on slashdot would jump at the chance to resurect your project...

Is there anybody who (having used both) can tell us if the alphagrip can challenge the supremecy of the handykey twiddler chording keyboard as the device for typing while running?

do you think US special forces are going to be punching in artillery corrections on a ruggedized alphagrip instead of the L3 wrist keyboard that I'm told they used in the 1990s?

Is there anybody who (having used both) can tell us if the alphagrip can challenge the supremecy of the handykey twiddler chording keyboard as the device for typing while running?

do you think US special forces are going to be punching in artillery corrections on a ruggedized alphagrip instead of the L3 wrist keyboard that I'm told they used in the 1990s?

tekgear sells 'em

try ripping out the microdisplays from a Tek gear spectre http://www.tekgear.com/product.cfm?sku=0066 and wiring its camera and illumination system to your brain. Look out La Forge, you've got company!

heck, you could even get one of those spectres for free on the evaluation program...

however, due to overwhelming demand, we are now looking to create a commercial offshoot of the project, in collaboration with a number of designers, focused specifically on wearable systems & accessories with an eye towards aesthetics, ergonomics and style. this venture is still so new it doesn't even have a name yet, but if you are interested in future updates, email me and i'll make sure you get on our future mailing list.

meanwhile, for all your wearable needs, check out tek gear. not only do they carry all major wearable systems (xybernaut, via, cappuccino) but they'll help you pair em with an appropriate display (their own designs and others), keyer, accessories, etc etc. plus they're just generally friendly and cool as hell :)

There are some reviews here. I've used the bulky but natural "virtual vision" goggles they mention, and yes, it's perfect for camcorders and mangles text. TekGear has some more modern displays, all of which look like your eyes are being attacked by a small piece of aluminum. They also carry the "best selling QUGA (?) monocule in the world" a one-eyed machine very close to what you describe except that the resolution is low and you look like a call center employee with the microphone stuck in your eye. There are also some in the Imac family, Bizrate has a list of several. Liteye puts out some sufficiently small displays of reasonable image integrity. Once again, still looks funky but in a funkytional sort of way. Plus, they are more of a parts supplier than a solutions provider. MicroOptical has several, with their tech briefly reviewed by about.com.

If you are looking to purchase one, the two buzzwords to use are head mounted display and wearable display. Hitachi even combined buzz and produced a wearable internet applicance, though only for the japanese and who knows if it was released.

I hope that gives you some ideas. I also hope some people post here who didn't just pick through google :).

There are some reviews here. I've used the bulky but natural "virtual vision" goggles they mention, and yes, it's perfect for camcorders and mangles text. TekGear has some more modern displays, all of which look like your eyes are being attacked by a small piece of aluminum. They also carry the "best selling QUGA (?) monocule in the world" a one-eyed machine very close to what you describe except that the resolution is low and you look like a call center employee with the microphone stuck in your eye. There are also some in the Imac family, Bizrate has a list of several. Liteye puts out some sufficiently small displays of reasonable image integrity. Once again, still looks funky but in a funkytional sort of way. Plus, they are more of a parts supplier than a solutions provider. MicroOptical has several, with their tech briefly reviewed by about.com.

If you are looking to purchase one, the two buzzwords to use are head mounted display and wearable display. Hitachi even combined buzz and produced a wearable internet applicance, though only for the japanese and who knows if it was released.

I hope that gives you some ideas. I also hope some people post here who didn't just pick through google :).