Support for Alternative Layouts
This is a summary of how alternative layouts have been supported by kits such as Colevrak and Homing. It is not a discussion of alt layout performance and development, but if that interests you I highly recommend starting with Pascal Getreuer’s A guide to alt keyboard layouts (why, how, which one?). It’s a concise and comprehensive overview with links to some great sites that go deeper. He also has a separate Links about keyboards page. The Keyboard layouts doc he recommends explains layout goals and metrics in detail, summarizing the alt layouts discussed here as well as more than one hundred others. Sculpted-profile The majority of custom keycap sets are sculpted-profile (Cherry, SA, MT3, KAT, etc. - more on profiles generally here) so let’s start there. Because each row has a unique keycap shape, alt layouts require a unique keycap for each legend that moves off its QWERTY row. At first there were two The Dvorak layout was patented in 1936 by August Dvorak & William L....
Apr 23, 2024
Hydrographics are not bonded to the physical key but a set of layers on the key and then covered with a film generally that has an activator that bonds to the keys and then a coating is applied to the final layer so you end up with 3 layers of material, bond, print, coat. In this case the key does not physically have the print like dye sublimation which means the clear coating quality and the chemical used to bond are what control quality.
You are probably also thinking of hydro dipping in regards to quality which is a similar process that is far less professional (think paint and water with dipping/pulling). This is more professional and creates high quality results. Used on helmets, auto parts, and anything 'decorative'.
Hydrographic printing is not necessarily less quality than dye sub - only when the materials used in the process are of low quality. Both produce a result that will last depending on your usage and quality of the materials. Difficult thing is that as a consumer you will have no insight until you receive the final product.