Author Topic: one hand typing on a full board  (Read 3583 times)

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Offline poog

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one hand typing on a full board
« on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 21:09:44 »
Can anyone here touch type using only one hand without using a mirror layout? I was always interested in learning how so I can eat and type at the same time lol. But whenever I move my hand to hit far keys I get all mixed up. Mirror layouts would probably be ok too but typing without software or remapping sounds more appealing to me.

Offline jacobolus

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Offline hoggy

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #2 on: Mon, 24 February 2014, 11:43:16 »

http://matias.ca/halfkeyboard/

You could get hold of a point of sale keyboard and program it with the fitaly layout.
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Offline nar

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #3 on: Mon, 24 February 2014, 13:37:08 »
Just got to get used to it and type slowly. It helps if you dont touch type conventionally. And ya I typed this with one hand.
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Offline admiralvorian

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #5 on: Mon, 24 February 2014, 23:00:23 »
I practiced this on a 60% after that one james bond movie where the villian touch-typed with one hand  haha
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Offline pillows

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #6 on: Tue, 25 February 2014, 00:53:07 »
I practiced this on a 60% after that one james bond movie where the villian touch-typed with one hand  haha

Yeah I was trying to a find relevant gif from Golden Eye where Boris is typing with one hand and clicking that bo-

oh I cant spoil this movie!

Suprisingly, there wasn't a gif anywhere.

edit: grammuhur
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Offline davkol

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #7 on: Fri, 28 February 2014, 07:40:59 »
AFAIK FITALY was designed for one-finger typing, hence it doesn't make much sense to use it like this, because there's no homerow.

Offline osi

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #8 on: Fri, 28 February 2014, 08:19:58 »
I used one hand occasionally to type although I can't do this by touch. I have to look down to get the travel distance right

Offline vivalarevolución

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #9 on: Fri, 28 February 2014, 08:37:42 »
 I used to do this when I used QWERTY, but I have had some trouble with one handed typing since I switched to Maltron layout and most of my keyboards are still arranged in QWERTY while I am typing on the Maltron layout.  I always enjoyed leaning back with my feet on the desk and typing away while I the pizza or something with the other hand.  Having the correct legends on your keyboard make it a lot easier to do the one-handed typing.
Wish I had some gif or quote for this space, but I got nothing

Offline Smasher816

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #10 on: Fri, 28 February 2014, 08:42:06 »
It helps if you dont touch type conventionally.

I have to agree with not touch typing conventionally. My index and middle fingers can find practically any key on the board.

Online Findecanor

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #11 on: Fri, 28 February 2014, 13:03:23 »
I practiced this on a 60% after that one james bond movie where the villian touch-typed with one hand  haha
He is also very good at swapping keyboards quickly, especially between closeups and other shots. :P
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Offline dorkvader

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #12 on: Fri, 28 February 2014, 21:49:23 »
I do this all the time, usually when I'm too lazy. It works better in dvorak than qwerty. I can type pretty fast.

edit: I also do have a one-hand matias-like keyboard that I made. I'm getting faster on it, but I really need to learn proper touchtyping anyway.

Offline davkol

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #13 on: Sat, 01 March 2014, 03:55:15 »

Offline poog

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #14 on: Sat, 01 March 2014, 06:26:00 »
I do this all the time, usually when I'm too lazy. It works better in dvorak than qwerty. I can type pretty fast.

edit: I also do have a one-hand matias-like keyboard that I made. I'm getting faster on it, but I really need to learn proper touchtyping anyway.

ohh this is the biggest motivation to learn dvorak that i've seen yet!

Offline berserkfan

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #15 on: Sat, 01 March 2014, 09:13:29 »
I do this all the time, usually when I'm too lazy. It works better in dvorak than qwerty. I can type pretty fast.

edit: I also do have a one-hand matias-like keyboard that I made. I'm getting faster on it, but I really need to learn proper touchtyping anyway.

ohh this is the biggest motivation to learn dvorak that i've seen yet!

I think Colemak is better than Dvorak. Do consider it.
Most of the modding can be done on your own once you break through the psychological barriers.

Offline RESPRiT

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #16 on: Sat, 01 March 2014, 09:54:47 »
I do this all the time, usually when I'm too lazy. It works better in dvorak than qwerty. I can type pretty fast.

edit: I also do have a one-hand matias-like keyboard that I made. I'm getting faster on it, but I really need to learn proper touchtyping anyway.

ohh this is the biggest motivation to learn dvorak that i've seen yet!

I think Colemak is better than Dvorak. Do consider it.

I don't hear a lot about Colemak, what are the advantages over Dvorak?
;)

Offline davkol

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #17 on: Sat, 01 March 2014, 10:16:49 »
I do this all the time, usually when I'm too lazy. It works better in dvorak than qwerty. I can type pretty fast.

edit: I also do have a one-hand matias-like keyboard that I made. I'm getting faster on it, but I really need to learn proper touchtyping anyway.

ohh this is the biggest motivation to learn dvorak that i've seen yet!

I think Colemak is better than Dvorak. Do consider it.

I don't hear a lot about Colemak, what are the advantages over Dvorak?

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=colemak+advantages+dvorak

Offline berserkfan

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #18 on: Sat, 01 March 2014, 10:16:59 »
I do this all the time, usually when I'm too lazy. It works better in dvorak than qwerty. I can type pretty fast.

edit: I also do have a one-hand matias-like keyboard that I made. I'm getting faster on it, but I really need to learn proper touchtyping anyway.

ohh this is the biggest motivation to learn dvorak that i've seen yet!

I think Colemak is better than Dvorak. Do consider it.

I don't hear a lot about Colemak, what are the advantages over Dvorak?

Unlike Dvorak:
ZXCV are in the same places, so it’s easy to cut and paste.
F is in a reachable location, unlike Dvorak which puts it exactly where it’s hardest to reach.
It was designed with modern ergonomics such as commonly used shortcuts in mind and backed by computer research, unlike Dvorak which was designed before the computer age.
It’s closer to Qwerty, making it easier to learn. Dvorak even changes the number row which I find ridiculous. WTF is that = and - doing on the right home row.
Backspace is where the capslock is on Qwerty, which is a heck lot easier to reach. Dvorak doesn't move the capslock.
Most of the modding can be done on your own once you break through the psychological barriers.

Offline dorkvader

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #19 on: Sat, 01 March 2014, 11:08:32 »
lets not turn this into a Dvorak/colemak debate. The advantages of either are slim enough to just choose whichever you prefer on philosophical grounds (what I did) or just take whichever one's philosophies you prefer.

Dvorak prefers hand alternation, colemak prefers rolls.  It's this alternation that makes it suitable for one hand.

Dvorak also has dedicated one-hand layouts that I do plan to try with my onehand keyboard someday.

Offline davkol

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #20 on: Sat, 01 March 2014, 14:33:40 »
backed by computer research

Source please. I'm very interested in this. And I mean original research, not evaluation models designed afterwards/independently, because... let's be honest here, stuff like carpalx doesn't say much without parameters backed by actual research.

Offline Altis

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Re: one hand typing on a full board
« Reply #21 on: Sun, 22 June 2014, 10:49:02 »
I practiced this on a 60% after that one james bond movie where the villian touch-typed with one hand  haha
He is also very good at swapping keyboards quickly, especially between closeups and other shots. :P

I'm glad I'm not the only one to notice this  :p

Boris is quite the Geekhacker. Lots of Model Ms in that movie... curious about some of the other ones.

The reason he can type so quickly with one hand (while looking at the screen) is of course because it's a movie, and he seems to only needs the keys in one cluster of the keyboard.

That being that, I've recently been practicing typing with just one hand on a standard layout keyboard. I'm at about 40-60 WPM, depending on the complexity. These are my tips:

1. Yes, it's doable! It needs practice, but once you start to get the hang of it, it can become quite fun.
2. Pick your best hand (normally the hand you write with). For me, this is my right hand. You will need as much control as possible.
3. Angle the keyboard towards that hand. I have mine rotated about 30-40 degrees towards the right. This allows my forearm to move my hand parallel to the keyboard, so when you move your hand, your fingers are more or less on the same row. This will also drastically reduce wrist fatigue and risk of injury.
4. Start on an easier keyboard. Reds and Browns were both very difficult to me at first. I found my Apply aluminum keyboard to be easiest at first, then moved on to MX Blue and buckling springs.
5. Use all of your fingers; you need to take advantage of all them, allowing you to quickly use punctuation. My hand tends to move around the board, but it's always good to try to use the closest or most available finger for the task, rather than just using one or two fingers for everything. Also, having keycap markings are essentially a must.
6. Take your time to learn. Typing properly is more important than typing quickly when it comes to practicing one handed typing. Make sure to press each key as dead-on as you can.
7. I find it easier to bottom out the keys intentionally. Depending on the switch type you're using, it can be difficult to tell for certain if you've registered a key or accidentally registered an adjacent key, and with one hand you aren't as able to see what's on the screen while you type.
8. Practice on a regular basis. For me, once I crossed a threshold, it became easier, and I improved at a faster rate.

I hope this helps someone. It can be fun to do, and you might look like Boris. :cool:

And yes, I typed this post out with one hand on my Blackwidow (MX Blue).
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