Reading through the comments, I didn't want to start some kind of verbal war.
Dvorak will always have its followers and there will always be those who claim that any layout over QWERTY is a pointless exercise.
Currently I have switched to Dvorak. I am no longer thinking about it.
Now this thread isn't about which one is better. Clearly on the side of numbers, metrics, etc., Dvorak is clearly better than QWERTY; and Colemak will be better than Dvorak.
But numbers aren't the deciding factor. Like others have said, it is clearly a matter of preference.
I came across a couple of videos, that I thought I would share.
Should answer a couple of questions that were asked before about long term Dvorak users.
At the moment, I am plateau at 41WPM in Dvorak. About the same as I was on QWERTY. So I am not sure how it matters.
What got me started thinking about Dvorak:
- I wanted to increase my speed. I got tired of being held up at 40 WPM or less on QWERTY. Yes I do touch type. I thought that Dvorak will be better as it is certainly more comfortable. I figured that something that is more comfortable would probably help my fingers move more easier across the keys.
- The typing comfort would probably avoid developing RSI and stuff. I've always thought that prevention is better than cure. In the long run, I didn't want to wait to have issues before moving over to something more comfortable.
Having moved over I have noticed a few things.
- I sort of feel that my fingers are getting a bit cramped of being on the home row so often. Maybe it is something just to get used to.
- I kind of feel that my fingers move more freely to the QWERTY layout; albeit not as fluidly across the keys as with Dvorak. Again, this could just mean that I am not fully trained and ready with Dvorak just as yet.
- I sometimes kind of type one handed, for instance whilst drinking a cup of coffee or choco. On Dvorak it isn't as easy with this because the keys are more dispersed in a latitudinal manner.
The main factor for me is that I don't want to develop RSI or anything else down the line. I pretty sure that I would like to give Dvorak a pretty good chance. The one reason why I moved away from Colemak was because typing long stints made my arms ache. I didn't face that with QWERTY. But on QWERTY I plateaued at 40WPM and after a couple of years it was clear I wasn't getting faster.
QWERTY has quite a few benefits in the sense that by being proficient on it, I am able to type on any system pretty quickly.
It didn't make my arms ache and in a way felt more comfortable for my fingers. I am not sure what to make of it as yet as I am still getting to grips with Dvorak. Time is too soon to say.