👋 About Chris
Hi! I’m Chris Wallis, I live in Seattle and I'm a software developer working in game development (specifically in graphics).
I love all things 3D graphics, both CG movies (Pixar/Disney) and video games. I have 2 young kids so spare time is rare but when I do get a minute, I like to write code for my path tracer.
My work involves working on graphics for games, so I do also try to find time to play the latest games and see what cool new visuals are coming from other studios.
🥰 Chris's Keyboard
I exclusively used the Microsoft Ergonomic 4000 and I swore by that keyboard. I had multiple because any other keyboard would start to hurt my wrists. When COVID hit and I had to work from a tiny desk, I started looking for something more compact.
The Dygma Raise appealed to me in multiple ways: the tenting and the wrist pads, but also, as a programmer, the open-source nature and customizability seemed really interesting.
“There really wasn't anything else like it (the Microsoft Sculpt doesn't quite hit the same comfort that the 4000 had), so I kept searching around until I bumped into the Dygma Raise.”
Since then, the Raise 2 has become my daily driver for both coding and play.
🚀 Chris's Ergonomic Journey
I had my first baby during COVID and I started to get wrist pain — working off a keyboard and the stress of rocking a baby for long hours made things worse. The Dygma Raise didn't instantly make it better, but the ability for me to constantly change the keyboard around (flat when sitting, tented while standing) helped me keep RSI to a minimum because I was always changing things up as soon as I felt fatigue.
“These days I never have any fatigue in my wrists which is about the best thing you can ask for when my job involves me working on a keyboard all day.”
That adjustability is exactly what I needed to stay comfortable and productive.
🖥️ Chris's Setup
I mainly use Visual Studio and the Unreal Engine Editor. For hardware it's usually just my Dygma Raise 2 and the G502X, which in many ways feels like the mouse equivalent to the Raise in terms of customizability.
I sit 95% of the time but I do stand when my back starts to feel strained. I use a mouse 95% of the time but I also keep a left-handed trackball for times where I need to mix it up.
I also have some custom plugins added to the Raise firmware so that I can do quick alt-tabbing or alt+f4 that I wasn't able to do using the built-in functionality in Bazecor.
My workflow is built on comfort parity with the Ergonomic 4000 in a compact split form — plus the flexibility to tweak tenting and posture on the fly.
With the Raise, I can stay on my main layout for most tasks, then swap to a debugging layer or a gaming layer whenever I need it.
🤖 Chris's Layers
The stand out feature for me is the tenting and wrist pads. It's the thing that made the Microsoft Ergonomic 4000 great and I've been able to replicate that comfort I had with the 4000.
Let me explain the three layers that I actually use day to day:
Layer 1 — My main layer, pretty basic, and where I spend almost all my time.
Layer 2 — Arrow keys plus debugging keys on the homerow for Visual Studio (F5, F10, F11).
Layer 3 — Turns the keyboard into a “boring old keyboard” primarily for gaming.
“I had was nearly to the point of building my own mechanical keyboard version of the Microsoft Ergonomic 4000 but with the numpad sawed off, but luckily I found the Dygma Raise instead!”
Thanks, Chris!
Your path — from the Microsoft Ergonomic 4000 to a compact, customizable split — shows how smart ergonomics can fit real life: coding, graphics, and parenting.
Do you have a good story about you and your Dygma Keyboard? Fill out our survey and share it with us!
