Am I weird, or just the product of a different generation? (Off-Topic)

by stabbim , Des Moines, IA, USA, Tuesday, February 02, 2016, 04:09 (3304 days ago) @ cheapLEY

I would say product of your time, if you didn't start using keyboards until after the flat/mushy style had become popular. You probably just haven't used a proper keyboard yet, or at least not enough to acclimate. I can use a chiclet style or flat/mushy keyboard if I have to (and I actually own an Apple Bluetooth chiclet keyboard, probably one of the best examples of that style), but in a direct comparison they make it too easy to hit the wrong keys, or not hit a key at all. They're just barely above a touchscreen in terms of useful tactile sensation.

Something like a Model M that has clearly defined sharp edges on each key, and makes a physically detectable click when a key registers, is just more accurate. None of this means that modern keyboards can't be used reasonably well, but when you're used to something that gives feedback and then are forced to use something else, it just isn't as good.

Think of what happens when the vibration feedback on a controller stops working. This'll depend on the game somewhat, but in a lot of cases you might find yourself not performing as well. I would find it virtually impossible to play Forza without vibration feedback.

Or, since I know you're a car person, imagine driving on a track in a car that REALLY lacks steering feedback. Perhaps a pickup truck, or a Mark VI Golf. Yes, you COULD drive them. But you wouldn't want to, once you had felt something better. :)

TL;DR

I don't think it's really about comfort, exactly. More about how well it works. Also as Funk complained, keyboards used to have both visual and tactile ways of distinguishing special keys, and getting rid of that is in NO way a good thing, except possibly aesthetics, which is a stupid reason to do anything to a keyboard. It's a tool, not a fashion accessory.