Yes. Only the letters B, T, N, and Y are assigned to different fingers than they are on the traditional flat keyboard (on the DataHand keyboard, B, T, N, and Y have to be moved to a different place to fit into the DataHand five-keys-per-finger design). The thumb key assignments are arranged in an intuitive, easy to learn layout.

The DataHand mouse is built-in right at the tip of the operator's index fingers on the DataHand keyboard. One finger can be set to move the mouse slowly, and the other finger can be set to move it more quickly. Or, both can be set to the same speed. The speed of each mouse control module is independently adjustable. The DataHand mouse is shipped as a two-button mouse setting, but it can be set up as a three-button mouse.

Yes. The DataHand ergonomic keyboard is organized like a traditional keyboard. At first it may look daunting but within minutes you will understand the key layout, modes, and design. The finger assignments are the same as they are on a traditional keyboard—except for four letters, which must be relearned. These four keys correspond with the diagonal movement of the index fingers on the flat keyboard (the B, T, N, and Y keys).

Yes. No other keyboard is as adjustable to fit the size and shape of each person's hands—even if a person's hands are different from each other! While other keyboards require finger and hand movement to find lineally located, ergonomically inadequate key positions, the DataHand keyboard places all the keys within a short reach of the tips of the fingers. This design makes keyboard work more comfortable, less stressful and more productive.

Yes. Improved comfort, reduced chronic workload, reduced upper body musculoskeletal involvement, and an intrinsic mouse (accessible without hand movement) result in a more healthful experience offering lower risk of injury. Because the hand is ergonomically supported, stress to the arms, wrist, and upper body is avoided. On the DataHand keyboard, work is done by the fingers alone, without any hand, arm, and wrist movement.

DataHand keys are distributed in finger modules surrounding the fingertips of the operator. The position of these modules can be adjusted to fit varying hand shapes and finger lengths. The keys are activated through low-force magnetic switches requiring minimal finger movement and forces for their activation. Each finger module has 5 keys: Down, North, South, East, and West. Four such finger modules and one thumb module make up the key switch arrangement for each hand.

Yes. A statistical analysis of seven separate productivity studies has demonstrated a 16 +/- 9% average typing speed improvement over traditional keyboards by day 30 of DataHand use. The confidence interval of this analysis is 95%. In these studies, 75% of users enjoyed an increase in typing speed. Many of the remaining 25% in any average group of workers will typically reach their prior flat keyboard speed and improve on it during a second 30 day period.

Yes. An increase in typing accuracy is both an expected result of the design and also a real benefit of using the DataHand ergonomic keyboard. Float error (errors caused when unguided fingers float erroneously to the wrong key), which is a major cause of error on the flat keyboard, is reduced on the DataHand keyboard. While DataHand does not automatically enable people to become more dexterous, it does reduce factors that make errors easily possible.

The mouse control is based on the same principles as the DataHand ergonomic keyboard; minimal finger movements and minimal forces are required, and the operator's fingers do not need to leave the home row of keys. The upper body musculoskeletal involvement commonly necessary to operate traditional, accessory mice is eliminated.

PS/2 (6 Pin) and Serial (9 Pin) mouse connections are available. Adapters are available for Macintosh PS/2 to ADB or USB, PC USB and SUN. When ordering a DataHand keyboard, simply specify a mouse connection (PS/2 or Serial) and adapter if required.

The left thumb keys are: Return/Enter, Shift and Shift Lock, Tab, Control, and the Normal (alphabetic) Mode Key. The right thumb keys are: Backspace, Alt, Numbers/Symbols Shift, and Numbers/Symbols Lock, Space, and the Mouse/Function Mode Key.

No. DataHand keyboards are not chorded. Chorded keyboards rely on multiple simultaneous keystrokes to type a single letter. The DataHand ergonomic keyboard emulates a traditional keyboard and mouse—one keystroke per character.

Heads up templates are available for learning the keyboard layout and on average, DataHand keyboard users report they have needed a short amount of time to become familiar with the keyboard layout. Statistical studies have shown that within 30 days the DataHand users attained at least 7% improvement to their previous baseline typing speed and accuracy. Touch typists may transition to the DataHand ergonomic keyboard faster than do "hunt and peck" typists.

DataHand keyboards are more adjustable than any other keyboard on the market. The DataHand design offers an appropriate range of adjustability in every plane. Only the distances between fingers are not adjustable. Two sizes of palm pads are available (small and large). The palm pads, keywell sizes, and the DataHand range of adjustment were all designed to comfortably fit roughly 90% of adult hand sizes. The individual hand modules can be positioned to fit the preference and comfort of each user.

About 75% of DataHand customers are "Ergonomic Clients;" the other 25% are "Productivity Clients." Individual ergonomic clients come to DataHand Systems seeking relief from the pain experienced from working on other keyboard products. Some clients are pro-active wanting to prevent pain and discomfort in the future. However, most are desperate for a keyboard concept offering pain relief and comfort.

Be assured, DataHand ergonomic keyboards are very robust. KeyTronic Corporation, a major keyboard manufacturing company, tested DataHand keyboards for reliability and durability. Since late 1995, the U.S. Post Office in Phoenix, AZ has been using 27 DataHand customized DataProof 10-Key units in their flat mail sorting department, three shifts per day, five days per week in an environment with high quantities of paper dust.

Some keyboard layouts are configured according to the Windows keyboard settings. For these layouts no special change is needed. For all other layouts there is the possibility to configure the layout via commandline options. The mainoption for changing the layout is -xkblayout countrycode where countrycode is in most cases the 2 character code which also represents the country in internet adresses (e.g.

You can try using an xmodmap file for your keyboard layout from a GNU/Linux distribution (e.g. RedHat). Or, you can use xkeycaps to automatically generate a modmap for one of over 208 different layouts. See the xkeycaps home page to download and for more information.

ANS: When invented in 1878, it was a good design for the mechanical typewriter because it achieved its purpose of slowing the typist to prevent typebars from jamming. In these days of the electronic keyboard, its design is obsolete.

The investment in a DataHand ergonomic keyboard includes the product cost and the time required to reach previous baseline typing speed and accuracy. The return on this investment is very powerful. Users report almost immediate improvements in finger and hand comfort, reduced typing fatigue, and reduced pain due to keyboard related injuries. Often, this comfort and pain relief comes after trying other alternative keyboards and many other types of remedies.