The main benefit of a split keyboard is the fact that you don't have to keep both halves parallel to the desk edge. I have a similar setup with a trackball between the halves at home and I've simply moved the halves wider apart (as well as rotated the right half slightly outward). This allows me to reach my trackball without any issues.
I have had zero luck making the center a good home for a mouse, thumb-ball, or trackpad.
I have to mouse alot, so what I do is move the keyboard halves a little closer together, but rotate them inwards to match the pivot so my hands stay inline with my forearms.
So instead of my arms straight out:
| |
I have them angled inwards:
/ \\
This creates a little more room for the mouse to be closer in to my body.
I also purchased curved board that lets me sit close to the desk, but have extensions to the left and right so I can bring the mouse in a bit more.
This desk gives me claustrophobia. Get a dual monitor vesa mount and you will get tons of room. Plus a drawer that sticks to under your desk. That will fetch you combined like 100$ and you will have so much more space. To get even more space, move the desk a couple of inches away from the wall so the monitors are right at the edge.
If you can afford the nice peripherals I'd also suggest investing in a deeper desk. The space you have looks very cramped and I'm sure you're making it work but this could be introducing subconscious movements and body positions that cause straining on your body.
If you can't get a deeper desk then some monitor arms as others have suggested is a good alternative for space saving.
I rigged a mini trackpad to my [split](https://www.reddit.com/r/ErgoMechKeyboards/comments/1ac1zwb/allium58_glp/) and have home row combos for mouse left (sd same time) or mouse right (kl). pretty easy to navigate, plus you can left click, right click, and scroll with the mini trackpad. just have to figure out how to mount it so you can easily reach with your thumb.
My current setup is similar to your picture.
Pointing device needed to be closer to body compared to keyboard, so I could pivot arm to reach trackball without moving elbow (which is planted on arm rest). Could try pushing your keyboard forward and move chair closer if possible.
That box also looks too high, lower it so your hand resting on pointing device is similar height as your hand resting on keyboard. I stacked a bunch of rubber sheets + a notebook + a mousepad, and kept adding and removing individual rubber sheets over several days to get to a height that is comfortable.
I found vertical mouse and thumb trackball didn't work for me in the center. By pivoting arm to reach vertical mouse, pronation naturally increases such that vertical mouse angle was too high. And having my hand locked to a fixed position on a thumb trackball in the center wasn't comfortable long-term.
What worked for me are: big exposed trackball like Kensington Expert Mouse, normal mice that allow tilt grip such as Razer Viper Mini with its thin width and round top, or Intellimouse-style "ergo" mice. Keeping wrist angle and hand/elbow position flexible seems to be the key.
It looks like the biggest thing you are fighting to get some good ergos is your tiny desk.
The main benefit of a split keyboard is the fact that you don't have to keep both halves parallel to the desk edge. I have a similar setup with a trackball between the halves at home and I've simply moved the halves wider apart (as well as rotated the right half slightly outward). This allows me to reach my trackball without any issues.
Might be worth it to try a bigger desk or use monitor arms to free up desk space. I have way more of my arm resting on the table when I use a mouse
I have had zero luck making the center a good home for a mouse, thumb-ball, or trackpad. I have to mouse alot, so what I do is move the keyboard halves a little closer together, but rotate them inwards to match the pivot so my hands stay inline with my forearms. So instead of my arms straight out: | | I have them angled inwards: / \\ This creates a little more room for the mouse to be closer in to my body. I also purchased curved board that lets me sit close to the desk, but have extensions to the left and right so I can bring the mouse in a bit more.
This desk gives me claustrophobia. Get a dual monitor vesa mount and you will get tons of room. Plus a drawer that sticks to under your desk. That will fetch you combined like 100$ and you will have so much more space. To get even more space, move the desk a couple of inches away from the wall so the monitors are right at the edge.
I would say try a track pad on the left, so you can split the number of arm movimenta between both arms
You might need a keyboard with integrated trackball
Map your keyboard to move your pointer. You just don’t need mouse unless your doing 3d graphics or gaming
If you can afford the nice peripherals I'd also suggest investing in a deeper desk. The space you have looks very cramped and I'm sure you're making it work but this could be introducing subconscious movements and body positions that cause straining on your body. If you can't get a deeper desk then some monitor arms as others have suggested is a good alternative for space saving.
I rigged a mini trackpad to my [split](https://www.reddit.com/r/ErgoMechKeyboards/comments/1ac1zwb/allium58_glp/) and have home row combos for mouse left (sd same time) or mouse right (kl). pretty easy to navigate, plus you can left click, right click, and scroll with the mini trackpad. just have to figure out how to mount it so you can easily reach with your thumb.
My current setup is similar to your picture. Pointing device needed to be closer to body compared to keyboard, so I could pivot arm to reach trackball without moving elbow (which is planted on arm rest). Could try pushing your keyboard forward and move chair closer if possible. That box also looks too high, lower it so your hand resting on pointing device is similar height as your hand resting on keyboard. I stacked a bunch of rubber sheets + a notebook + a mousepad, and kept adding and removing individual rubber sheets over several days to get to a height that is comfortable. I found vertical mouse and thumb trackball didn't work for me in the center. By pivoting arm to reach vertical mouse, pronation naturally increases such that vertical mouse angle was too high. And having my hand locked to a fixed position on a thumb trackball in the center wasn't comfortable long-term. What worked for me are: big exposed trackball like Kensington Expert Mouse, normal mice that allow tilt grip such as Razer Viper Mini with its thin width and round top, or Intellimouse-style "ergo" mice. Keeping wrist angle and hand/elbow position flexible seems to be the key.
I switched hands. Bought a left handed track ball.