Build log for the space-cadet

• Design principles
  • KLE
• Sourcing the material
  • Switches
  • Stabilizers
  • Case
  • Plate
  • Controller
  • Cabling
  • Keycaps
    • Order #1176
• Programming the controller
  • Tools for flashing
    • Binary blob
  • Emerging the cross-compilation
  • Customizing qmk-firmware
    • Issues
• Build
  • Modding the springs in 10 switches
  • assembling stabilizers (to lube or not to lube?)
  • fixing switches to the plate
  • Testing diodes
  • tape them together

Design principles

• non-split keyboard with a centered “thumb cluster” and side Fn keys.
• Heavy usage of dual role modifiers (I currently employ a combination of xcape and a patched evdev driver to make it work also on other keebs).
• Symmetry: e.g. capslock is enter; both capslock and enter are dual CTRL, together with the spacebar
• Compose key accessibility
• ISO-Shift accessibility (quick math | greek | LaTeX)
• Space Cadet aesthetics

KLE

[http://www.keyboard-layout-editor.com/#/gists/8cf0cf258ae6fa748e577d7ed8d71517]

Sourcing the material

Switches

I ordered 100 tactile gray from [http://www.doyustudio.com] and 100 super-heavy (150g) SPRiTs springs from [http://www.switchtop.com] I will use regular tactile gray for rows R1-R4, while the modded switches will be used for R5

Stabilizers

It was tricky to find Plate mounted stabs for the spacebar; I ordered a 60% set from [http://www.switchtop.com] and some OEMs from Vincent on AliExpress; he had 3u plate-mounted stabs! Hopefully they fit and I won't need to do any fiddling

Case

The case is a regular cheap acrylic case from KBDfans; it is 5 deg and I plan to 3dprint some feet to make it level

Plate

The plate was ordered through [http://www.lasergist.com]; ordered on [2017-11-06 Mon], shipped on [2017-11-08 Wed] and received on [2017-11-29 Wed]. The plate was received in the mail a bit warped; a bit of manipulation to straighten it up made it usable.

Controller

Teensy 2.0 ordered from [http://www.pjrc.com] on [2017-11-21 Tue], shipped on [2017-11-21 Tue], arrived on [2017-12-04 Mon]

Cabling

Re-purposing an ethernet cable (I guess it came with the Rogers router)

Keycaps

Round 5/6 leftovers from 7bit Last batch arrived on [2017-12-04 Mon]

Order #1176

Order-ID |Description |Price|Qt|Pcs| Total HONEYG/SHIFT225/BLUE|SHIFT (row 4, 2.25u) | 3.00| 1| 1| 3.00 HONEYG/SHIFT275/BLUE|SHIFT (row 4, 2.75u) | 4.00| 1| 1| 4.00 HONEYG/R1U100/SPH |blank key | 0.50|13| 13| 6.50 HONEYG/R2U100/SPH |blank key (same as row4) | 0.50|22| 22| 11.00 HONEYG/R3U100/SPH |blank key | 0.50| 9| 9| 4.50 HONEYG/R3U100D/SPH |blank key (deep dish) | 2.00| 2| 2| 4.00 HONEYG/R1U100/BLUE |blank key | 0.50| 1| 1| 0.50 HONEYG/R3U125/BLUE |blank key | 1.00|10| 10| 10.00 HONEYG/R2U150/BLUE |blank key | 2.00| 3| 3| 6.00 HONEYG/R3U175/BLUE |blank key | 2.00| 2| 2| 4.00 HONEYG/R3U225/BLUE |blank key | 2.00| 1| 1| 2.00 HONEYB/SPACE625/BLUE|Space (6.25u; blue) | 5.00| 1| 1| 5.00 HONEYB/R1U200/BLUE |blank key (blue) | 4.00| 1| 1| 4.00 HONEYG/R2U100/BLUE |blank key (same as row4) | 0.50| 1| 1| 0.50 HONEYG/R3U100/BLUE |blank key | 0.50| 6| 6| 3.00 HONEYG/R3U150/BLUE |blank key | 1.00| 2| 2| 2.00 HONEYB/SHIFT125/BLUE|SHIFT (row 4, 1.25u) | 3.00| 2| 2| 6.00 HONEYB/SPACE300/BLUE|Space (3u; blue) | 8.00| 1| 1| 8.00 HONEYB/R3U100D/BLUE |blank key (blue; deep dish)| 3.00| 2| 2| 6.00

Programming the controller

Tools for flashing

There is a CLI interface available at [https://github.com/PaulStoffregen/teensy_loader_cli] and a GUI at [https://www.pjrc.com/teensy/loader_linux.html]; unclear if the sources are available.

Binary blob

the binary blob found at [https://www.pjrc.com/teensy/loader_linux.html] seems to work. There is a disclaimer that says that the toolchain for gentoo does not work; it appears to work in fact.

Emerging the cross-compilation

Following the guide at [https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Arduino#Install_the_toolchain_using_crossdev] We need to set up a cross-compilation environment; this can be done by emerging the package sys-devel/crossdev, which seems to be just a wrapper script to emerge the right things Let us see if this actually works; after emerging one supposedly has to run

crossdev -s4 --stable --portage --verbose --target avr

and everything should be emerged… It FAILS, claiming that the avr-gcc cannot create executables; the workaround described in [https://bugs.gentoo.org/147155#c14] works

  ln -s /usr/x86_64-pc-linux-gnu/avr/lib/ldscripts /usr/avr/lib/ldscripts

Customizing qmk-firmware

Clone the repository [https://github.com/wilderjds/qmk_firmware]

Issues

It turns out that crossdev needs to have its own overlay; we follow the recipies at [https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Custom_repository#Crossdev]

   mkdir -p /usr/local/portage-crossdev/{profiles,metadata};
   echo 'crossdev' > /usr/local/portage-crossdev/profiles/repo_name
   echo 'masters = gentoo' > /usr/local/portage-crossdev/metadata/layout.conf
   chown -R portage:portage /usr/local/portage-crossdev

Build

DONE Modding the springs in 10 switches

TODO assembling stabilizers (to lube or not to lube?)

TODO fixing switches to the plate

TODO Testing diodes

TODO tape them together