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geekhack Community => Off Topic => Topic started by: dust on Wed, 27 November 2013, 06:39:26

Title: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: dust on Wed, 27 November 2013, 06:39:26
I can touch type with 5-6 fingers and I kinda often hit a wrong key.
How would I start out if I wanted to learn ten finger touch typing?
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: iri on Wed, 27 November 2013, 06:47:42
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/flash/stage1.shtml
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: Fullcream on Wed, 27 November 2013, 06:58:58
Well dust, You can start out by downloading the program "Mavis Beacon Teaches Touch Typing" It is a brilliant program and worked very well for me.
Very good for teaching correct placement and movement and a lot of practice texts and modes. It helped me go from no typing skills to using correct
technique with decent speed in 2 to 3 months.

Or cut up a box to stand and fit over your keyboard and hands and force yourself to use all fingers and you won't be able to look.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: tp4tissue on Wed, 27 November 2013, 07:18:14
I would stick with 10fastfingers website.. it's simple, fast.. and responsive

You can use a typing tutor, but I've found them to be an over complication.

 10 fast is good because it is a very limited set of common words on the standard 10fast test...

it also has advance mode, which is an augmented set.. and also freestyle mode, which is a 600+ word set.

Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: kolonelkadat on Wed, 27 November 2013, 07:28:37
I found the typing of the dead to be a fun way to learn to type. I did find it to be a bit of a nuisance to die though, so i made a health cheat. and now the game is perfect
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: yasuo on Wed, 27 November 2013, 07:56:46
Well dust, You can start out by downloading the program "Mavis Beacon Teaches Touch Typing" It is a brilliant program and worked very well for me.
Very good for teaching correct placement and movement and a lot of practice texts and modes. It helped me go from no typing skills to using correct
technique with decent speed in 2 to 3 months.

Or cut up a box to stand and fit over your keyboard and hands and force yourself to use all fingers and you won't be able to look.
download? any link?
I found on google mostly to buy :confused:
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: demik on Wed, 27 November 2013, 08:17:54
Practice makes perfect
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: Krogenar on Wed, 27 November 2013, 08:32:25
Go and play a text-based MUD for a month or so -- your typing speed and accuracy will go way up.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: tp4tissue on Wed, 27 November 2013, 11:04:56
I found the typing of the dead to be a fun way to learn to type. I did find it to be a bit of a nuisance to die though, so i made a health cheat. and now the game is perfect

typing of the dead is pretty hard for a n00b
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: Trent on Wed, 27 November 2013, 11:34:33
Practice makes perfect

I learned to type as a kid playing Freelancer.  The learning curve sucked but after a year of online play I was a pro.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: alosec on Wed, 27 November 2013, 11:53:02
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: tp4tissue on Wed, 27 November 2013, 12:33:02
10fast is the best way imo..

it's easy to use, and you can start it up anytime with internet access.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: LONGZILLA on Wed, 27 November 2013, 12:36:37
Don't be afraid to take a class or online lessons. I took one in high school, I swear it was with software from the early 80's or something, but it definitely helps build your muscle memory as to which keys to hit with what finger.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: davkol on Wed, 27 November 2013, 13:00:40
Just do it. Place your fingers on the home row, set a picture of the layout as your wallpaper, and type without looking at your fingers... If you have trouble doing that, put a towel over your hands/keyboard.

...and practice. Amphetype is awesome.

Typing classes/lessons are boooooriiing.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: tp4tissue on Wed, 27 November 2013, 13:25:06
Just do it. Place your fingers on the home row, set a picture of the layout as your wallpaper, and type without looking at your fingers... If you have trouble doing that, put a towel over your hands/keyboard.

...and practice. Amphetype is awesome.

Typing classes/lessons are boooooriiing.

I failed typing class in middle-school because i sat in the corner playing Starcraft and Aoe-AOTK off my USB drive.. 

And come time when they checked on my typing tutor progress at the end of the semester, 0.0% completed, hahahahaha...

The teacher was astonished because I actually made lots of keyboard noise in my corner...

I showed her I could type, so she didn't make me retake the class, but still failed me obviously..   

Fffffffff-you Mrs. Macaulay...   Fight the power...

(http://www.freesmileys.org/emoticons/tuzki-bunnys/tuzki-bunny-emoticon-025.gif)
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: LONGZILLA on Wed, 27 November 2013, 13:36:18
Just do it. Place your fingers on the home row, set a picture of the layout as your wallpaper, and type without looking at your fingers... If you have trouble doing that, put a towel over your hands/keyboard.

...and practice. Amphetype is awesome.

Typing classes/lessons are boooooriiing.

Yes, it's boring, so is practicing. Formal training help stress basics faster than "just doing it"
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: LONGZILLA on Wed, 27 November 2013, 13:39:05
I failed typing class in middle-school because i sat in the corner playing Starcraft and Aoe-AOTK off my USB drive.. 

And come time when they checked on my typing tutor progress at the end of the semester, 0.0% completed, hahahahaha...

The teacher was astonished because I actually made lots of keyboard noise in my corner...

I showed her I could type, so she didn't make me retake the class, but still failed me obviously..   

Fffffffff-you Mrs. Macaulay...   Fight the power...

Show Image
(http://www.freesmileys.org/emoticons/tuzki-bunnys/tuzki-bunny-emoticon-025.gif)


Haha, just the opposite here... destroyed typing class because I already knew the general placement of all the keys from playing and  talking so much **** in Counter-Strike. Classes did help with bad-habits tho
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: davkol on Wed, 27 November 2013, 14:00:14
Just do it. Place your fingers on the home row, set a picture of the layout as your wallpaper, and type without looking at your fingers... If you have trouble doing that, put a towel over your hands/keyboard.

...and practice. Amphetype is awesome.

Typing classes/lessons are boooooriiing.

Yes, it's boring, so is practicing. Formal training help stress basics faster than "just doing it"

It's possible to type so many words on Dvorak/Colemak/... home row. I wouldn't hate typing classes so much, if they actually consisted of typing something meaningful instead of that useless fjfjfjfj rubbish.

On the other hand, I actually enjoy typing quotes @ typing tests or stories in Amphetype, because I'm reading it at the same time.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: eth0s on Wed, 27 November 2013, 14:17:53
There is no way to become a better typist without practice.  Either take a class or just start typing every day.  You will however, need some kind of basic instruction in the fundamentals of home-row touch-typing, but after that, it's really just practice (the only basics you need really is to learn where to place your fingers, and how to strike each key with which finger).  Also, my advice would be to practice on a blank keyboard.  It's more painful in the beginning, but you will get much better, much faster.  Pro Tip:  NEVER use the numpad!  Learn to type numbers with the number row above the alpha keys.  Once you master touch typing the numbers without looking down or making mistakes, you will be a 80+ WPM champ.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: Fullcream on Wed, 27 November 2013, 16:59:01
Well dust, You can start out by downloading the program "Mavis Beacon Teaches Touch Typing" It is a brilliant program and worked very well for me.
Very good for teaching correct placement and movement and a lot of practice texts and modes. It helped me go from no typing skills to using correct
technique with decent speed in 2 to 3 months.

Or cut up a box to stand and fit over your keyboard and hands and force yourself to use all fingers and you won't be able to look.
download? any link?
I found on google mostly to buy :confused:

Oh I just torrented it off the pirate bay.  :-[ 

You can find it there.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: tp4tissue on Wed, 27 November 2013, 20:17:12
Well dust, You can start out by downloading the program "Mavis Beacon Teaches Touch Typing" It is a brilliant program and worked very well for me.
Very good for teaching correct placement and movement and a lot of practice texts and modes. It helped me go from no typing skills to using correct
technique with decent speed in 2 to 3 months.

Or cut up a box to stand and fit over your keyboard and hands and force yourself to use all fingers and you won't be able to look.
download? any link?
I found on google mostly to buy :confused:

Oh I just torrented it off the pirate bay.  :-[ 

You can find it there.

Tell ya'll it ain't even worth the bandwidth..

10fastfingers.. ftw...
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: Fullcream on Wed, 27 November 2013, 21:26:58
Yes although OP wants to learn correct technique and use all fingers. Some program would be good or put up a poster of finger placement guide above
your monitor to familiarize yourself.

Once you learn correct technique and never have to look. 10fastfingers and Typeracer are great for working on speed.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: atlas3686 on Thu, 28 November 2013, 00:52:16
I used http://www.typingweb.com/ to re-learn to type, I had gotten into horrible habits. It helped a huge amount.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: iri on Thu, 28 November 2013, 02:23:49
Just do it. Place your fingers on the home row, set a picture of the layout as your wallpaper, and type without looking at your fingers... If you have trouble doing that, put a towel over your hands/keyboard.

...and practice. Amphetype is awesome.

Typing classes/lessons are boooooriiing.
an always-on-top picture of your layout will work better.
online typing classes are ok, you don't have to do them for a lot of time. it took me three weeks to accomplish the classes for two very different layouts.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: dust on Thu, 28 November 2013, 04:15:09
Thanks for the awesome suggestions guys. The BBc children's game is hilarious.
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: Oobly on Thu, 28 November 2013, 07:51:39
First, buy a keyboard. No, not one of those finger-crunching, badly laid out, horizontally staggered "qwerty" things which force you to overuse your pinkies, a REAL keyboard. ErgoDox, Nexus, Maltron, Kinesis contoured or Truly Ergonomic come to mind (although, ironically, the Truly Ergonomic is the least ergonomic of those mentioned).

Then choose a character layout. No, not "qwerty"! Pay attention! Something that won't ruin your fingers and wrists. Maltron, Simplified Dvorak, Programmer Dvorak, Neo, AdNW, QGMLW, Colemak, Capewell, Klausler, Workman and Norman come to mind (they're all better than qwerty). This is rather a personal thing, read the "reasons" for each, what they have been optimised for and decide which suits you best.

THEN start learning to touch type. I recommend blank keycaps and a printout of your character layout. That way you don't train yourself to look at the keyboard at all. Try to look at the printout as little as possible while learning.

If you don't want to go to all that trouble, then I recommend typing the way you are already, as it's most probably comfortable and less likely to cause injury than learning to touch type "properly".
Title: Re: How to become a decent typist?
Post by: iri on Thu, 28 November 2013, 14:39:58
i really wish there was an ergonomic cyrillic layout...