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Offline itlnstln

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Mind Games
« on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 09:21:59 »
I have always struggled with being a touch typist.  I will be typing along, not looking at the keyboard, going 100 WPM then, I realize I'm doing it, and my typing falls apart leaving me looking for keys and typing like crap.  Does anyone else have this problem, and, if so, how do you focus on what you are typing and not the task of typing itself?
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Offline iMav

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« Reply #1 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 09:36:32 »
Using a blank keyboard helps quite a bit.  I would occasionally look at the number row for shifted characters before getting my blank HHKB Pro.  When looking at the keyboard yields no benefit, you quickly get out of that habit.
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Offline wellington1869

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« Reply #2 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 09:50:46 »
Typing fast is a very holistic experience. Its a real melding of the physical and the mental. Its also easy to disrupt as a result. Becoming self concious really ruins it (kind of like dancing ;)
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Offline itlnstln

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« Reply #3 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 10:12:51 »
Yeah, I tend to be over-aware of a lot of tasks that are usually better performed thoughtless.  Other than typing, I tend to over-think putts playing disc golf.  I start thinking about disc speed, angle, spin, etc.  Inevitably, I miss, I will then throw a random putt with another disc and make it, because, I didn't think about the second putt.  I am much better at basketball, though, were the game moves too fast to think too much.
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Offline secularzarathustra

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« Reply #4 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 14:35:40 »
About three weeks ago I switched to dvorak. I've worked up to about 65 wpm; however when I try go faster and just type without thinking about it I fall apart and have to start slowly and work my speed up again. My former qwerty speed was 85-90 wpm; close to that point my muscle memory seems to regress.
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Offline wellington1869

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« Reply #5 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 16:45:28 »
Quote from: secularzarathustra;11948
About three weeks ago I switched to dvorak. I've worked up to about 65 wpm; however when I try go faster and just type without thinking about it I fall apart and have to start slowly and work my speed up again. My former qwerty speed was 85-90 wpm; close to that point my muscle memory seems to regress.


I top out around 95wpm on qwerty too.  The prospect of building muscle memory on a whole 'nother layout tho is too daunting for me. It takes a while and unlike languages I dont know if one can have two "mother tongues" for typing.
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Offline itlnstln

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« Reply #6 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 16:52:29 »
I have enough trouble with QWERTY right now, let alone learn another layout.  That, and I work on others machines from time to time, so I would hate to have to switch back and forth.  I also don't know if I would benefit too much from a layout change, anyway.  I don't write a lot of long prose or dictation, and with coding, I constantly stop to think about what I am going to write, so my typing speed is not that big of a factor in time spent on working on things.  Although, backspacing due to poor touch-typing skills is. :)
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Offline wellington1869

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« Reply #7 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 17:08:25 »
Quote

and I work on others machines from time to time, so I would hate to have to switch back and forth

me too
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Offline secularzarathustra

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« Reply #8 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 17:26:33 »
Quote from: wellington1869;11955
I top out around 95wpm on qwerty too.  The prospect of building muscle memory on a whole 'nother layout tho is too daunting for me. It takes a while and unlike languages I dont know if one can have two "mother tongues" for typing.


It really doesn't take that long when you think about how much time you actually spend at the keyboard.

I think you're right though, two mother tongues seems impossible!

On other machines, I just swap the layout...just don't look down.

And if you 'wanna switch', you'll probable want to give it up every day of slowly pecking and backspacing and backspacing some more for the first week or two :)
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Offline bigpook

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« Reply #9 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 18:08:40 »
It ruins my  flow when I look down at the keyboard. I focus on the screen and on those days where I am not hitting on all cylinders I tend to make lots of use of the backspace key.
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Offline bhtooefr

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« Reply #10 on: Thu, 20 November 2008, 19:05:40 »
I'm fine with QWERTY, I know it quite well, and I do work on other people's machines a lot.

Besides, finding keys with the pips on U and H is kinda hard, and it'd totally screw me up if I looked down and saw an incorrect layout.

Although, I will say, when I saw this thread, I almost thought it wasn't going to be about keyboards, seeing as it's in the offtopic forum. ;)
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Offline bhtooefr

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« Reply #11 on: Sat, 29 November 2008, 03:41:58 »
Well, I'm trying out Dvorak now...

I can definitely see what is meant by the extreme speed increase - once I'm familar with key placements, I can bang out a word damn quickly. But, geeze, I'm probably not breaking 15 WPM right now... :eek:

Edit: Screw it, switching back to QWERTY for this edit... 14 WPM on a typing test that I normally score 95-105 WPM at.

Edit: Alright, Dvorak just isn't for me. At all. I know QWERTY. Also, there is the whole... shortcut keys get moved around (and the XCV block was chosen because of the proximity of those keys, for cut, copy, and paste.) I might try Colemak, though.
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Offline wellington1869

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« Reply #12 on: Sat, 29 November 2008, 06:31:36 »
Quote from: bhtooefr;12844
Well, I'm trying out Dvorak now...

I can definitely see what is meant by the extreme speed increase - once I'm familar with key placements, I can bang out a word damn quickly. But, geeze, I'm probably not breaking 15 WPM right now... :eek:

Edit: Screw it, switching back to QWERTY for this edit... 14 WPM on a typing test that I normally score 95-105 WPM at.

Edit: Alright, Dvorak just isn't for me. At all. I know QWERTY. Also, there is the whole... shortcut keys get moved around (and the XCV block was chosen because of the proximity of those keys, for cut, copy, and paste.) I might try Colemak, though.


the switch would be way too disruptive for me too, even if it is 'objectively better' (which by the way there are plenty of studies out there that are saying its not objectively better anyway. back when I had looked into dvorak I found a bunch). I think it comes back to preference and habit like so much else in computing. More than one way to skin a cat. Qwerty skins my cat fine.
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Offline bhtooefr

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« Reply #13 on: Sat, 29 November 2008, 06:36:14 »
I'm now trying Colemak, and it's frustrating. The layout's close enough to QWERTY (most keys are just one key away from their QWERTY positions, and many keys haven't moved at all,) and the right index home key is N. Well, usually I type N with my right index finger... by moving down a row. My hands want to move all over the keyboard to type what I'm typing, and not stay in the home row... forcing myself to forget my QWERTY muscle memory is annoying. And because I have to forget my muscle memory, that means it's gonna screw me up with a real QWERTY board. So, QWERTY it is. I'd probably be OK with an alternate layout on something like a split ergo keyboard, but the classic staggered layout is associated with QWERTY too strongly in my brain...
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Offline wellington1869

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« Reply #14 on: Sat, 29 November 2008, 06:57:27 »
Quote

And because I have to forget my muscle memory, that means it's gonna screw me up with a real QWERTY board.

i'm afraid of that too. I'm quite proud of my qwerty skills and wouldnt want to lose them! :)
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"Blah blah blah grade school blah blah blah IBM PS/2s blah blah blah I like Model Ms." -- Kishy

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Offline bhtooefr

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« Reply #15 on: Sat, 29 November 2008, 07:01:02 »
Well, when I was playing with Dvorak, it was so wildly different from QWERTY that I wasn't really having to fight my natural tendencies to hit the correct keys for QWERTY. I did notice it on Colemak, badly.
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Offline wellington1869

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« Reply #16 on: Sat, 29 November 2008, 07:16:21 »
Quote from: bhtooefr;12858
Well, when I was playing with Dvorak, it was so wildly different from QWERTY that I wasn't really having to fight my natural tendencies to hit the correct keys for QWERTY. I did notice it on Colemak, badly.


I think the theory was that that was supposed to make colemak an easier switch :)
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Offline bhtooefr

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« Reply #17 on: Sat, 29 November 2008, 07:16:53 »
Not in my case. :p
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