Co-incidentally, I started exactly the same way the ASETGHNIOP layout/thread started. Only I used that as step 1 and kept going.
My main goal was to make something as good as Dvorak but easier to transition from/back with QWERTY. I ended up with 3 steps (and another follow-up tweak).
The results were surprisingly good. Close enough to Colemak for me to learn and use it instead.
The description and macOS/Windows files are in the
Qwickly github repo along with comparative stats.
I've described the process in a
blog post.
Here's what the final (untweaked) layout looks like.
And this one below has tweaked the FBV keys so cut/paste/undo shortcuts end up moved around but it's better than Colemak.
[It could be a bit better still shuffling HMK but I wasn't interested in the fastest, just easy to learn and comfortable.]
Appreciate any/all feedback. Also, I'm new here: hi everyone!