qmk-firmware/keyboard/ergodox_ez/keymaps/j3rn

J3RN's Mac-centric Ergodox EZ keymap

Motivation

Essentially, I wanted to switch to a layout that was less jarring than the default Ergodox EZ layout, and did not require finger gymnastics to perform common OS X shortcuts (most of which involve the CMD (LGui) key).

How is it different from the default Ergodox EZ layout?

This layout more closely resembles that of the Mac keyboard, and has some other goodness baked in. Here is a rundown of what that means:

Mac-like changes

• The key to the left of "1" is "~" instead of "=".
• The key to the right of "0" is Backspace instead of "-" (misleadingly labeled "delete" on the Mac's keyboard). There was no room to fit in "-" and "=" between "0" and Backspace, unfortunately.
• The key to the left of "Q" is Tab instead of Delete.
• The rightmost big key on the left thumb is CMD (LGui) instead of Backspace.

Other changes

• The button to the left of "A" is Ctrl/Esc instead of Backspace. This is actually how I have the keyboard on my Macbook set up to be, since it's loads more convenient than a CAPS LOCK key. This is the Ctrl key I find myself using most.
• The key to the right of "5" and the key to left of "6" are "[" and "]", respectively, instead of Left and Right. There is a more convenient set of Left and Right already present. Truth be told, I don't really use these keys, as they are a stretch to reach.
• The Toggle L1 keys have been replaced by the otherwise displaced "-" and "=". They are laid out, left-to-right, in the same order as on the Mac keyboard. Honestly, they are not terribly conveniently placed, and their placement might change in a later version. I found that I did not toggle L1 frequently at all, and found using the momentary keys to access L1 to fit my workflow better.
• The "~"/L1 key in the bottom-left is now just momentary L1. The "~" key was moved to the top-left as mentioned before, and I like to keep my multi-use keys to a minimum due to the latency for them to switch from "press" to "hold."
• The Home and End buttons have been shifted up on the left thumb, and Shift inserted below them. This makes doing Shift-5 and other such combinations less painful.
• The Page Up and Page Down buttons have been shifted up on the right thumb, and Alt was moved from above them to below them. I use Alt more than Page Up or Page Down (mostly in terminal applications), and thought that it deserved a more accessible location.

I'm always open to feedback and/or suggestions!