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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: GordonZed on Fri, 08 March 2013, 13:18:13
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So, tell me if this is in he wrong section, I wasn't really sure.
Anyway, what are you're typing styles? I know we have a lot of touch typists here, but I know for damn sure that doesn't account for everyone. I myself never had typing taught to me in school, maybe because it became less necessary in the 90's, but I can still reach 80-90 wpm with my idiosyncratic typing style, without looking at the keyboard. My index fingers are definitely dominant but I get all of them in there.
I guess anyone who spends a majority of their life behind a computer will find a way to type quickly that's natural for them. So what are your typing styles, touch, peck, or anywhere in between, and what kind of speed do you reach with it?
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Touch typing since, I don't know, a bit more than 15 years or so (really not to sure). I was already typing quite ok before learning to touch-type but then decided to take the plunge.
But I learned to touch-type mostly by myself (after a secretary showed me the basics) so not everything is 100% correct: space bar with my right thumb only (instead of alternating depending on which was the last key I typed) because... I'm a programmer and I use ctrl and alt and shift a lot with my left hand (including alt with my left thumb). I'm also trying to reduce the load on my right pinky as much as possible, so I typically don't use enter/return (that's quite a big stretch for the right pinky) but CTRL-m to go to the line (e.g. from my shells or from my development environments).
Yes, that's two keys instead of one to go to the line but I prefer it this way (I find it wwaayy easier and more natural than having to stretch my right pinky) but... This is a forum so haters are gonna hate of course ; )
I used to touch-type everything including the function keys but now I've got an HHKB Pro 2 so the function keys are physically gone (you can still use them of course, using a modifier key specific to the HHKB).
Back when I was using regular keyboard I figured out it didn't make much sense to have to reach for the mouse far away, at the right of the numpad... So even though I'm right-handed I decided to use my mouse as a leftie. No I went one step further: I'm using a "tiling" window manager (under Linux) and reach for the mouse as few as possible.
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I have recently switched to Colemak (about two weeks ago now). I touch type at about 70 wpm with it (much less if I'm not just copying text on some test).
Before switching I could touch type Qwerty at about 110 wpm (with over 10 years of experience). We had typing classes in elementary school so that's where I initially learned to type properly.
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I type extremely fast and accurate,
Jk
I don't have any real positions when I type, I like to bottom out my keys and I like to press hard, the harder the faster. This does not apply if the switches are too heavy, then I'm super slow and super angry cuz they are too heavy.
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Touch typist here.
Going around 70-80 wpm on BÉPO layout.
Although this number alone does not mean a lot. It depends on the piece of software you are using to
record it.
I have a personnal preference for Klavaro (http://klavaro.sourceforge.net/en/) but it is known to be less strict than say dactylotest (http://tazzon.free.fr/mpm_v3.1/)
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My typing style...? It's what I call "Modified Hunt and Peck". Instead of using both my index fingers, I use my index and middle fingers on both hands (index finger mostly on my left hand, middle finger mostly on my right).
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touch type thanks to my psychopath typing teacher. old school typewriter guy who was very vigilant about proper typing technique.
that and AOL Instant messenger - 90's child
~75-90 wpm depending on the text.
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My typing style...? It's what I call "Modified Hunt and Peck". Instead of using both my index fingers, I use my index and middle fingers on both hands (index finger mostly on my left hand, middle finger mostly on my right).
This is me most of the time...I can touch type....at 50wpm or something. Still can't remember the number row on the HHKB though and always end up hunt-and-pecking the right key.
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I touch type more or less properly, only my technique on the number row is a bit messy, because my pinkies are rather short, and I occasionally switch between matrix and staggered layout, which means e.g. parenthesis are in slightly different positions. I haven't built any muscle memory (more efficient than the "standard" fingering) for specific words/di-/trigraphs yet. I guess I did something like that before switching from QWERTY to Colemak. However, I can type 20 wpm faster even without these "hacks" than I did in QWERTY (calm 60 wpm, or burst ~70 wpm on tests versus peak 55 wpm on Czech QWERTY).
When occasionally typing in QWERTY, I look at the keyboard, but still use more or less all nine/ten fingers. Maybe I use the left index finger a bit more then (I'm a lefty).
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Its funny you mention typing styles because I was wondering the same thing.
I am able to hit 100 WPM with my original typing style which consisted of using just my index and middle finger. However, I love challenging myself on typing tests so I decided to try and teach myself how to type the correct way which is how I am typing right now. I started a few weeks ago at 30 WPM but now I am up to a consistent 75 WPM. However, I find it easier to touch type this way but my trouble at the moment is recovering from when I move my index fingers for the 'tgb' and 'yhn' section and when using the 'Shift key. I don't know why but it knocks my other fingers out of alignment and while I do well in typing tests, when it comes to writing posts or something; I seem to be a bit slower.
But practice makes perfect. I love the feeling of gliding my pinkie and ring fingers successfully. Something about it just feels really fluid.
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Its funny you mention typing styles because I was wondering the same thing.
I am able to hit 100 WPM with my original typing style which consisted of using just my index and middle finger. However, I love challenging myself on typing tests so I decided to try and teach myself how to type the correct way which is how I am typing right now. I started a few weeks ago at 30 WPM but now I am up to a consistent 75 WPM. However, I find it easier to touch type this way but my trouble at the moment is recovering from when I move my index fingers for the 'tgb' and 'yhn' section and when using the 'Shift key. I don't know why but it knocks my other fingers out of alignment and while I do well in typing tests, when it comes to writing posts or something; I seem to be a bit slower.
But practice makes perfect. I love the feeling of gliding my pinkie and ring fingers successfully. Something about it just feels really fluid.
I find most people learn how to touch type properly but after years of playing games on a computer or other bad habits, most people begin to stop using their pinkie finger for qaz and use just one shift.
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Touch typist here. I adjust my typing style dependent on the switch I'm using.
Browns are better with a light touch, while I can be more rough with the greens :P
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I touch type and average about 100wpm. I type almost correctly, except I use my ring finger for the question mark (trying to get out of this habit), I never use right shift, and I use my ring finger for Q, A, and Z.
I almost always bottom out on blues and reds, thinking about getting a QFR with greens to try out something a little stiffer.
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Touch typist here. Best speed so far was 135wpm or so (tested user typrX). Might try DVORAK. Using QWERTY as of now.
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For me, I very occasionally look down at the keyboard, but the strange thing is, it's not to fibd a key, it's usually to correct alignment. I don't know if I have the patience to make the swith to touch typing at this point, but I'm going to try and remember to feel around for J and F rather than glance down if I get out of alignment.
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Touch typist here. Best speed so far was 135wpm or so (tested user typrX). Might try DVORAK. Using QWERTY as of now.
I recommend Colemak over Dvorak. It has essentially the same benefits while maintaining hotkeys for undo, cut, copy, and paste.
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I can type without looking at the keyboard, but I doubt what I'm doing is strictly touchtyping. Instead of resting my fingers on the home row all the time, my fingers are all over the place when my hands are hovering. I picked it up naturally over years of typing, and never actually learnt the proper method.
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Touch typist here (not entirely 100% though, I still hit CTRL+ combos one handed). Took a typing class in 9th grade for easy credit. Struggled for most of it, then one day it just clicked. Been rocking around 80-90wpm ever since.
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Touch type is my way.
I have a self taught method that gets totally screwed up with split keyboards.
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I touch type usually (I'll check the keys if my hands drift and I type every character shifted or something), but using ergonomic techniques has never been my style. My hands float around above the keys, so that I never have to stretch, unless to press certain uncommon keys. Instead of assigning certain keys to hands, I choose with which hand it would be more convenient to type it. For example, I'll press "m" with my left hand if my right hand is typing an "O". This is mainly because I like to alternate using fingers when I can, and I always stumble during one-hand words. I will use all of my fingers, but because I have my wrists raised, I tend to use the index finger of my right hand and the middle of the left, and using my right thumb to absolutely SLAM on the spacebar between words when I'm typing quickly, just because it lets me know I've finished the word and I can move on. When I get my mechanical keyboard, which will hopefully help me learn some technique with its thick keys and lurvely brown switch, I should get better at mechanics.
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I've been a conventional touch typist since 7th grade. I type around 85-90 wpm on my QuietKey.
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I used to use a hunt and peck form of typing but I was horribly slow at it. Because of this I decided last summer that I was going to force myself to learn to touch type and that is actually what got me into mechanical keyboards. I would still consider myself a fairly slow typist as my average wpm is only in the low 50 range according to typing tests. I'm still happy though because it's more than twice as fast as I used to type back when I two finger typed. :)