m👀sp's ZMK Config

A professional ZMK firmware configuration for the 42-key Corne keyboard, featuring Colemak Mod-DH layout with native support for Portuguese (Brazil-ABNT2), Spanish, and English. This configuration implements advanced typing techniques including timeless homerow mods, smart layers, and optimized key combinations for a seamless typing experience.

Note

Active development. Configurations may change. See User Manual for detailed documentation.

Quick Start

Want to try this configuration on your Corne keyboard? Follow these steps:

1. Download the Firmware

1. Go to the GitHub Actions tab
2. Select the latest successful workflow run
3. Download the firmware artifact (.uf2 file) from the Artifacts section
4. Extract the archive to access the firmware files

2. Flash to Your Keyboard

Flash the downloaded firmware to your Corne keyboard:

• Windows/macOS/Linux: Hold the reset button on your keyboard controller, connect it via USB, then copy the .uf2 file to the mounted drive. The keyboard will reboot automatically.
• For detailed flashing instructions, refer to your keyboard's documentation or ZMK Flashing Guide.

3. Explore the Keymap

Once flashed, check out the Keymap Overview section below and the full User Manual for layer details and key behaviors.

Highlights

✅ Localization for Portuguese (Brazil-ABNT2) using zmk-locales module
✅ Spanish punctuation ¿ and ¡ (Linux and Windows) via zmk-unicode module
✅ Timeless homerow mods for modifier keys without timing constraints
✅ Smart layers that auto-deactivate (numbers, navigation, mouse) using zmk-auto-layer
✅ Intelligent shift behavior: repeat/sticky-shift/capsword/shift magic
✅ Simplified configuration syntax using zmk-helpers macros
✅ Vertical OLED display support with zmk-oled-nice
✅ Combo-based layer navigation instead of mod-tap, reducing thumb overload

Warning

Linux Users: IBus must be installed and configured on your system to use Spanish punctuation (¿ and ¡).

Keymap Overview

Here is the keymap generated by keyboard-layout-editor:

Visual Layout (KLE)

Here is the full keymap breakdown by layer, generated by keymap-drawer:

Layer Breakdown

Documentation

For detailed layer-by-layer documentation and configuration explanations, see the User Manual.

Design Philosophy

This configuration is built on the foundation of advanced typing technique research and community innovation. Key design decisions are explained below:

Timeless Homerow Mods

What are homerow mods?

Homerow mods (HRMs) allow modifier keys (Ctrl, Shift, Alt, Gui) to be placed on home-row letter keys. When tapped, they produce letters; when held, they produce modifiers. This reduces finger movement and improves typing efficiency.

The "timeless" approach

Traditional HRM implementations struggle with timing sensitivity—they require precise hold durations to distinguish between a "tap" and a "hold." The timeless approach minimizes this timing dependency through:

• Large tapping term (280ms) to remove tight timing constraints
• Balanced flavor to recognize holds when another key is pressed within the tapping term
• Require-prior-idle to instantly resolve keys tapped immediately after another key
• Positional hold-tap to prevent false mods when rolling keys on the same hand
• Hold-trigger-on-release to enable combining multiple modifiers on the same hand

The result is virtually no misfires, smooth typing, and minimal delays.

Smart Layers

Beyond standard layer switching, this config includes intelligent layer behavior:

• Numword: Auto-toggle number layer while typing numbers, auto-deactivate on non-numeric keys
• Smart-Mouse: Quick mouse layer via combo, auto-deactivate on any key press
• Magic Shift: Smart shift behavior—repeat after letters, sticky-shift for capitals, hold for regular shift, double-tap for caps-lock

Why Combos Instead of Mod-Tap?

Layer navigation uses combos (simultaneous key presses) rather than mod-tap, avoiding thumb overload on the most-used navigation keys. This keeps thumbs reserved for spacebar and essential controls.

Inspiration & Credits

This configuration stands on the shoulders of the open-source ergonomic keyboard community:

• urob's zmk-config – The foundation for timeless homerow mods, smart layers, and advanced ZMK techniques. This config heavily adapts urob's excellent ideas. Highly recommended to review their work.
• Kim's ZMK Config – Additional refinements and variations on the homerow mod approach
• Miryoku – Inspiration for efficient layer design and key placement philosophy
• Kim's Reddit Post – Excellent explanation of timeless homerow mods and practical tips (great read!)

Stack & Dependencies

• ZMK v0.3 – Core firmware
• zmk-helpers – Simplified devicetree syntax
• zmk-auto-layer – Smart layer auto-deactivation
• zmk-unicode – Unicode input for special characters
• zmk-locales – Portuguese locale support
• zmk-oled-nice – OLED display widgets

All dependencies are pinned in the west manifest file.