StarWatlz Steno Keyboard

DEVLOG 2: Week 1
Completed my PCB, until I found out all my switch footprints were upside down; took about 2 hours to retrace everything :,( Besides that, the PCB is done. All that is left is to CAD the case and Code firmware. I’m pretty excited to figure out the firmware, since Stenography works differently from typing styles such as QWERTY.

DEVLOG 1: KiCad and PCB Design
Lots of hours, but not too much to talk about.
I’ve gotten the gist of KiCad and have finished my PCB’s schematic. I’ve laid out all my switches for ergonomics, which were inspired by the Starboard, but I also used my screen as a reference to how the keyboard will fit my hands. Getting started with traces was tricky, but I figured it out. Turns out it’s better if keyboards don’t use vias, so I spent about 2 hours just making traces for the left side, trying to make sure they all fit without overlap. I also added the LCD screen and Volume knob, even with my ever-decreasing GPIO pins. I haven’t drawn sketches for the casing yet, so that will likely be featured in my next few devlogs :)

DEVLOG 0: Figuring it out
Started figuring out KiCAD and mapping out keybinds for each key on my qwerty/stenography keyboard. I’m also learning to navigate the stardance site itself.