What are the best FOSS keyboards/Openboard alternatives on F-Droid?

Thumb Key is VERY different, completely throws qwerty out the window (designed for two hands and 10 fingers) and replaces it with a layout designed to be used with a single thumb.

https://lemmy.ml/c/thumbkey

I'm a pretty big fan of Futo Keyboard. offline voice to text, and pretty decent typing, all in all.

The only thing that I occasionally miss is not being able to insert gifs from Giphy

The swiping is miles behind gboard right now. Takes me forever to type using it because I have to go back and correct or swipe far more precisely than I had to with gboard.
Just started using Futo myself and so far it's been pretty good.

Florisboard is great. I think it was the ability to switch $ for € that got me on it initally, but the symbol input is pretty nice too.

+1 to FlorisBoard!!
(I am biased, I create themes for it)

Heliboard

Unexpected Keyboard is good for quick typing:

https://f-droid.org/packages/juloo.keyboard2

It's great. It doesn't have spell check, but it's great for writing more characters easily (no long press, just swipe slighty to the side). You can completely customise your layout (and I mean completely, I have my name mapped for easy signing, but also copy, paste, back, compose button...), has Ctrl, Fn, arrows, anything.
Each key can have up to 9 (but realistically 5) characters - one upon clicking, the rest upon a short swipe to one of the eight directions. I haven't seen another keyboard like this, and it's so much faster than long press!

I'm also super curious because I've tried several and hated then so much ... What I went back to Gboard, deeply defeated.

Nothing else worked well for swipe typing. I need that. Lol.

I found Heliboard with the added files for swiping action just as good or bad as Gboard.
- I like heliboard a lot but the swiping is still not as good as gboard
- Gonna try this immediately.
@cardfire @TehBamski Isn't there an open source version of gboard? Anyway, Louis Rossman has a no cloud keyboard so that's probably the closest thing. I think it's called futo?
- It's good. I use it. It's not FOSS.
- I second Futo, nothing compares to the abilities of the iPhone keyboard, at least that is what I remember last time I used an iphone, because nothing on android suits my fat fingers. The biggest draw for me with the FUTO keyboard is the built in voice to text function, that is a game changer and it's all done on device.
  Edit: I don't think it is available though on F-droid, but I seem to remember Louise Rossman's reasoning for that was clear and reasonable.
- Just installed it, really good. Thanks for the suggestion cardfire.

heliboard with the holo theme 🥹

AnySoft Keyboard

In multiple layouts/languages too.

Yeah Hacker for AnySoftKeyboard looks nice! https://f-droid.org/packages/com.anysoftkeyboard.languagepack.hackerkeyboardlayout
Need to type more than a sentence:
Whisper+, offline voice-to-text.

8vim

https://f-droid.org/packages/inc.flide.vi8

A very chaotic option but it is actually quite nice if you are patient.

You can be very precise with inputting letters, it is far more confidence inducing then normal touch keyboards are.

I have a phone with a large screen and I have the keyboard free floating which lets me easily move it around to utilize all the screen real estate without loss of accuracy from being too cramped.

Bonus points, this keyboard works great with a stylus too!

I am perfectly fine downloading emacs and spacemacs (evil/vim bindings with space leader key) in termux and just using 8vim for making and editing simple org mode files. 8vim is deceptively extremely capable if you can get over the hump of getting used to it. Vim modal editing with leader keys fits oddly naturally into 8vims basic control scheme given vim was designed for physical computer keyboards.

Also Flickboard looks really interesting.

https://f-droid.org/packages/se.nullable.flickboard

I guess the name is adequate, you really have to read the friendly manual to use this one.
It's interesting, but I miss the spelling aid other keyboards provide.
- You can still use word suggestions/autocorrect, my point is they become optional with 8vim, not a necessity like with normal touchscreen keyboards.
  Edit I am mistaken I just tried and I can't find the option, my bad for giving misinformation.
  There are four lines that intersect a circle. Starting with your finger in the circle you can input a letter by drawing a line out of the circle and then passing through one of the four lines in a loop around the circle, the letter inputted is determined by how many additional lines (if any) you pass through before returning to inside the circle. In the following example to make an "r" is just the same as to make a "c" but in reverse.
  *example of inputting a "c", if you wanted to keep typing "cat" as opposed to "c " instead of lifting your finger after finishing the "c" keep drawing an "a" and then "t" in one continuous motion.