There is a drop-in PCB for the Vortex Core called the Atom47[0] that supports QMK[1]:
[0] https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware/tree/master/keyboards/ma...
[1] https://qmk.fm/
In The 40% Keyboardqmk
qmk_firmware
C2017–2026
qmk / qmk_firmware
qmk_firmware
Open-source keyboard firmware for Atmel AVR and Arm USB families
44Distinct people
56Mentions
3Explicit recommenders
20.8KGitHub stars
What to know before exploring
What it is
Open-source keyboard firmware for Atmel AVR and Arm USB families
GitHub
Where it is used
The source check is incomplete. Verified examples will appear here.
What people are saying
That thing looks totally awesome! I especially like the steps taken to integrate mouse control into the design. A centered, integrated pointing device makes all computer…
1MachineElf used a recommendation phrase. 3 indexed comments match. This is a phrase match, not a verdict.
No classified warning is attached to this page. Read the discussions before treating silence as approval.
Also in these discussions
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This week on Hacker News
Nov 8–Nov 15 UTC · Direct repository links and separately labeled related project stories. Indexed through 11/15/2026, 10:49:33 PM UTC.
No direct repository links were found in the indexed HN discussions over the past seven days. Older discussions are available below.
Mentions over time
HN mentions by year56 dated mentions
Observed mentions: 2017-05-03 08:19:26 UTC to 2026-08-22 21:27:55 UTC.
* An incomplete calendar period is marked with an outlined bar. Its count is not directly comparable with a full period.
Counts come from the repository’s dated source evidence. Index cutoff: 2026-11-02 08:16:59 UTC.
View mention counts and date ranges
| Period | Start (UTC) | End (exclusive, UTC) | Mentions | Submissions | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 2017-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2018-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 2018 | 2018-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2019-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| 2019 | 2019-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2020-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| 2020 | 2020-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2021-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| 2021 | 2021-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2022-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| 2022 | 2022-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2023-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 2023 | 2023-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2024-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| 2024 | 2024-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2025-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 10 | 1 | 9 |
| 2025 | 2025-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2026-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2026 (partial) | 2026-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2027-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 3 | 0 | 3 |
From the project README
An excerpt from the repository, fetched Nov 12, 2026.
Read the project’s introduction
Quantum Mechanical Keyboard Firmware
This is a keyboard firmware based on the tmk_keyboard firmware with some useful features for Atmel AVR and ARM controllers, and more specifically, the OLKB product line, the ErgoDox EZ keyboard, and the Clueboard product line.
Documentation
See the official documentation on docs.qmk.fm
The docs are powered by VitePress. They are also viewable offline; see Previewing the Documentation for more details.
You can request changes by making a fork and opening a pull request.
Supported Keyboards
Planck
Preonic
ErgoDox EZ
Clueboard
Cluepad
Atreus
The project also includes community support for lots of other keyboards.
Maintainers
QMK is developed and maintained by Jack Humbert of OLKB with contributions from the community, and of course, Hasu. The OLKB product firmwares are maintained by Jack Humbert, the Ergodox EZ by ZSA Technology Labs, the Clueboard by Zach White, and the Atreus by Phil Hagelberg.
Official Website
qmk.fm is the official website of QMK, where you can find links to this page, the documentation, and the keyboards supported by QMK.
Read the full README on GitHubWhat Hacker News says
8 sourcesThe answer is custom layouts.
Here's my layout for the Mitosis split ergo keyboard designed for dvorak if you want inspiration.
https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware/blob/master/keyboards/mi...
I have mouse keys, a number layer that's on the home row, actual arrow keys, and no contortions needed for any of the alpha keys, all on a tiny 46-key layout.
In The 40% KeyboardFor the record, if you're a DIY-er you can hack a TrackPoint on there :)
https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware/blob/master/docs/feature...
In What Does a Coder Do If They Can't Type?to further clarify the power of qmk: you literally program (parts of the) firmware in c. so you can put modifiers everywhere you want, make layers until you are going crazy, make keys behave differently on press/hold, absolutely everything. and it's firmware you flash, so no matter where you plug it in, it' all there.
qmk is just awesome, check it out https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware/
In Tokyo mechanical keyboard meetup photosIntegrate this with https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware!!!
In Typing with a Piano [video]Indeed, and this guy did it the hard way. Get a teensy, some switches, diodes, and wire, and read this: https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware/blob/master/docs/hand_wi...
There is no need to spend any time on the software side of things. It's already been done to death.
In Making My Own USB Keyboard from Scratchfunny, I was just looking at a keyboard stream on twitch for https://ishtob.net/hadron/hadronv3-groupbuy and I was just browsing the open source code used in the keyboard here https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware
In Making My Own USB Keyboard from Scratch