Software

As with most open-source keyboards, the ZSA Moonlander is compatible with QMK, which is quite powerful and customizable in its own right. QMK tends to scare off some, and there is a definite need for a first-party system to make things simple. This is all the more critical with ergonomic keyboards such as the Moonlander, which ZSA has addressed. The ErgoDox EZ had an online configurator, which was the basis for what is now called Oryx. This is a web-based configurator you can access on this page. It supports all three ZSA keyboards at the time of this review and may also be used to practice and train typing on the layout of the Moonlander to get used to it.

The configurator is where anyone can create new layers, with three already on the keyboard by default, to then save them to the flash memory on the keyboard at a later time. This means you do not need to have access to the keyboard physically, which helps with the hundreds of various layouts already available for people to use and modify as needed. There is a handy search tool for this, although generic terms will not be as useful as going with extremely specific ones, such as in the examples listed on the page in the video above. There is a quick tutorial as well, and the help cues that pop-up when you click on a virtual key aid further. There are plenty of key mapping options, and I would in fact say there are too many to simply list in a single column. There's also the funny bit about macro recording being isolated to signed-in users, which I understand in this public setting, though it will discourage many who would rather not sign in at all. You can print the layouts handily as well, which is nice, or create new layouts altogether. Either way, once you are done, you will compile and then download the layout file.


Now that I am in the UK, I believe I have the right to ask where's Wally, and it turns out Wally is on the ZSA website too. I still remember digging out a small pin to press the flash button on the ErgoDox EZ to initiate the flashing, with an executable uploading and then re-writing the onboard programming with the layout downloaded from the online configurator. You can still do so with the Moonlander, albeit more to reset it to factory settings as part of the firmware flashing process. Gone is the need to press a button on the back of the keyboard for when you want to reconfigure the firmware and key mapping; instead, Wally helps out. Download and install the software, which goes through the steps as seen above.


The latest public release at the time of testing was v3.0.1, although there was a beta v3.0.2 available as well. However, there was an issue with both newer versions finding my sample, which ZSA is looking into. It might be the presence of other USB peripheral drivers on my PC, and I moved to an older version that worked just fine. I did send them more information about an error pop-up at the time of installation, which will hopefully help solve the issue soon since the newer versions scale better with high DPI displays and even support more resolutions. Once I had Wally recognize my keyboard, flashing it with the downloaded configurator file was a piece of cake, and I then had the Moonlander set up as I wanted, at least for this scenario I put it through.