Unicomp

[unicomp]

To the UK: how long to receive the unicomp keyboard? (Must one wait many weeks?).

A mechanical keyboard will help my touch typing? (I am working hard to improve from my previously sloppy form).

[itlnstln]

A mechanical keyboard will help my touch typing? (I am working hard to improve from my previously sloppy form).

It can.  I would say that, depending on the features of the particular switch (tactility, clicking, etc.), a mechanincal keyboard, by itself, can make an existing touch typist better.  IMO, a split-ergonomic keyboard* (like the MS Natural series) and/or a keyboard with blank keycaps will make you a better touch typist.
 
*It is very hard to hunt-and-peck on an ergo 'board.  That, and it prevents you from crossing up your hands when you do touch type.  It's a great way to start learning to touch type since it forces your hands to be in the correct position.  You will want to move to a regular 'board at some point to eliminate the "crutch" the split provides.

[IBI]

A keyboard you enjoy using will help your touch typing, lots of people do enjoy mechanical keyboards but other people prefer light scissor switch keyboards.

Personally I don't like the buckling spring system the unicomps use, but I do like other types of mechanical keyboards (particulaly those using Alps switches or copies).

If you're not sure what you like then why not start with a keyboard availible closer to home? You could get the Cherry G80-3000 in a UK layout from many shops in the UK. The  G80-3000LSCGB is the most popular version as that has the clicky blue-stemmed switches.

EDIT: There's also this one with a slightly different layout that you may prefer, but I don't know what type of mechanical switches it has (and some are unpopular) and it is more expensive. The last one someone on here got had Alps switches (which I like), but there was some uncertainty to how old the keyboard was so they may have changed it now.

Or if you're on a budget mechanical keyboards do come up on ebay for ten or twenty pounds fairly often, I generally keep an eye on there and post anything interesting here. Currently I think there's only the SGI AT101 which is supposed to be a very nice keyboard but is US layout and that particular one needs cleaning but there's bound to be something along within a month or two.

You could also ask in the marketplace and see if anyone here is willing to part with something with a UK layout.

[unicomp]

I have ordered already the Unicomp keyboard (I am merely eager for the keyboard to arrive).

It is frustrating going from a reasonably quick (in the opinion of the general populace) typist, to someone who is taking a long time to type a message (albeit in good style).

I have wanted to own a mechanical switch keyboard for about two years now, and therefore there is some element of suspense.

[IBI]

Well, I hope you enjoy it then. I think most international delivery takes no more than a week or two.

Which model did you go for? The Customiser 105?

[unicomp]

Well, I hope you enjoy it then. I think most international delivery takes no more than a week or two.

Which model did you go for? The Customiser 105?

Indeed. I use the windows keys (although I run Ubuntu Linux) for launching applications, and therefore retention of said keys would certainly not be a disadvantage for myself.

[patrickgeekhack]

A keyboard you enjoy using will help your touch typing, lots of people do enjoy mechanical keyboards but other people prefer light scissor switch keyboards.

True. If you don't like a keyboard, then you won't enjoy using resulting in bad performance. If you touch type, speed will come will time provided you consciously try to increase your speed without neglecting to keep your hands and fingers relax. It's like someone who tries too hard to swim fast. The harder you try to swim fast, the less you relax your muscles and  hinder speed.

I've been using http://speedtest.10-fast-fingers.com/ for a while now. I went from about 70 WPM to about 85 WPM in two months. I could see a clear progression since my WPM did not jump from slow to quick in a day.

You can use a typing tutor software also, but there are plenty of websites out there that will do the same thing.

[unicomp]

I am attempting to work for an hour (at least) per day on my touch typing in order to make and improvement.

[iMav]

welcome to geekhack unicomp.  

Folks from Unicomp do lurk around here from time to time.  If they express concerns over your username, I will have to change it...so, just a heads up.

[ch_123]

To the UK: how long to receive the unicomp keyboard? (Must one wait many weeks?).

Took about a week or two to get mine shipped out to Ireland. Did they not give you a tracking number?

[unicomp]

welcome to geekhack unicomp.  

Folks from Unicomp do lurk around here from time to time.  If they express concerns over your username, I will have to change it...so, just a heads up.

No problem.

I think that the keyboard should arrive in about a week, it would be nice if I knew of companies in the UK from which I could purchase decent keyboards.

[patrickgeekhack]

I am attempting to work for an hour (at least) per day on my touch typing in order to make and improvement.

It's a good start. Personally, I don't think you have to stick to one hour exactly per day. Just keep it as a fun activity. If you are getting frustrated, it's time to stop.

[ch_123]

I think that the keyboard should arrive in about a week, it would be nice if I knew of companies in the UK from which I could purchase decent keyboards.

Dabs has a blue-cherry equipped Cherry G80 on their site, but they haven't had one in stock in a long time it seems.

[IBI]

welcome to geekhack unicomp.  

Folks from Unicomp do lurk around here from time to time.  If they express concerns over your username, I will have to change it...so, just a heads up.

Yeah, if you like the keyboard and want to hang around here then picking a new name would be a good idea.

No problem.

I think that the keyboard should arrive in about a week, it would be nice if I knew of companies in the UK from which I could purchase decent keyboards.

I did make a wiki entry for UK keyboards and shops so if you find any more companies that sell interesting typing or mechanical keyboards feel free to add them.

I haven't bothered to list all the normal shops that sell the clicky version of the G80-3000 as they're not too hard to find - Lambdatek and ILGS have the white version in stock and CherryKeyboards R Us (Aerco) have both the black and white version.

[unicomp]

I thank all those who have provided information about keyboards in this thread.

Are there any other recommended tools for improving touch typing speed (through practice), that are freely available online? (I am interested in tools which enable me to copy text from the screen in order to get general practice).

[o2dazone]

Typefaster is a freeware application that helps you learn to type. It segments the screen horizontally, providing you with a line to read from/type on, while the other half shows a full keyboard with what keys to hit next.

Even though there's an on screen keyboard, you don't really spend much time looking at it. Instead you'll want to train your eyes to peripherally detect what letters are on what side of the keyboard, and to hit the correct keys with the correct hand.

It also does all the lessons as "tests" that keep track of all your WPM / Accuracy through each tests and displays it as a graph.

[patrickt]

A. I just got my Unicomp keyboard delivered in Mexico. The time it's in the air is negligible. Time in customs was a major factor. Mine came by FedEx and took four days but their tracking page insisted it was sitting in Mexico City for a day after I had it.

B. When I was working we moved to personal computers and I had to help people learn to type. I found that using one of the typing programs for 15-20 minutes in the morning and again in the afternoon worked best. You aren't really learning but rather training your fingers to move with no thought.

[itlnstln]

In the end, simply typing more (practicing) is the best way to learn/improve.  If you don't have much to type during the day, that's where training software comes into play.  I never could get into the training software.  I seemed to learn faster just by typing than going through a trainer. I still look (blankly) at the keyboard when I type occasionally.  I want to get blank keycaps to help me break the habit.  I'm not sure it will, though, because I don't really look at the keys I am trying to press.

[unicomp]

I currently do not have to type a lot in my everyday work, however through the use of the online systems I have been able to increase my touch typing speed to about 38-40 WPM; I hope to increase this further to about 60 WPM.

I have now confirmed the shipping method for the keyboard, and therefore it would seem that I should receive the keyboard in a week or less from this day.

[huha]

FedEx thought of being particularly funny when shipping my Endurapro, up to the point of it being stuck in Memphis for half a week.
It took about a week for it to finally arrive, though, so no harm done there. Still, the wait was somewhat unnerving.

-huha

[patrickgeekhack]

A. I just got my Unicomp keyboard delivered in Mexico. The time it's in the air is negligible. Time in customs was a major factor. Mine came by FedEx and took four days but their tracking page insisted it was sitting in Mexico City for a day after I had it.

B. When I was working we moved to personal computers and I had to help people learn to type. I found that using one of the typing programs for 15-20 minutes in the morning and again in the afternoon worked best. You aren't really learning but rather training your fingers to move with no thought.

Another Patrick :becky:

You're right. a few minutes in the morning and a few minutes at night might be a good thing. Like you said the goal is to train the fingers to type without thought. At the beginning I became very good at touch typing when watching what I was typing on the screen, but did not do well when reading and typing at the same time. This came with practice. This is why I think keeping the activity a fun one is important.

[patrickgeekhack]

I currently do not have to type a lot in my everyday work, however through the use of the online systems I have been able to increase my touch typing speed to about 38-40 WPM; I hope to increase this further to about 60 WPM.

Keep practicing and you'll get there. Take break though. You don't want to suffer from RSI, trust me.

[wellington1869]

back when i was learning, there was a fun typing program that was basically the game 'missile command' except your city was being attacked by 'words' and you had to type the words in order to 'shoot them down'. It was a lot of fun and definitely improved my typing cuz it was so addicting to play. I dont know if that or a version of it is still available out there, but 'typing games' can be a fun way to 'practice' your typing.

other than that, ya, immersion solves everything when it comes to learning - just find a reason to do it every day and before you know it (and despite yourself) you'll wind up learning it.

[ch_123]

Gtypist on Linux is pretty good. I used it for the brief period of time where I experimented with Colemak.

[unicomp]

I now seem to be reaching speeds of about 45 WPM consistently, and have managed an average today (on a website for typing) of 49 WPM. I am hoping that with the arrival (hopefully imminent) of my new keyboard I will be able to break the 60 WPM target which I have set.

[IBI]

I now seem to be reaching speeds of about 45 WPM consistently, and have managed an average today (on a website for typing) of 49 WPM. I am hoping that with the arrival (hopefully imminent) of my new keyboard I will be able to break the 60 WPM target which I have set.

A 5 wpm increase in a day, you'd better slow down or you'll have smashed that barrier long before your new keyboard arrives!

Speaking of games one of the things that really improved my typing speed was playing trivia games. I still visit #knowitall on irc.jedicoder.net from time to time but there's only really competition these days at peak times - although the bot runs all the time if you want to practice against the clock, so unless all the geekhackers suddenly start playing (:smile:) it might be worth finding one that has active players at all times. Can anyone else recommend one?

(if you've never used IRC before then it's just a case of downloading an IRC client, picking a nickname you want to use and network and channel you want to connect to, no registration or any of that nonsense required)

EDIT: Sorry if anyone downloaded the neebly client I suggested before, it appears it doesn't actually work in this case. Try Xchat instead. You can pick username and realname to be anything you like, they're not used for much.

[iMav]

My irc clients of choice are Colloquy for OS X and Konversation for linux.  Both are excellent...and free.

Make sure you check out the #geekhack channel on freenode.  

[huha]

Any recommendations for windows clients? The simpler the better, really. Xchat is too feature-rich and overblown, I just need an extremely basic IRC client. It doesn't even need to support colours; I'd use telnet to connect directly, but the constant manual ping responses are driving me insane. Any ideas?

-huha

[IBI]

Any recommendations for windows clients? The simpler the better, really. Xchat is too feature-rich and overblown, I just need an extremely basic IRC client. It doesn't even need to support colours; I'd use telnet to connect directly, but the constant manual ping responses are driving me insane. Any ideas?

-huha

I'm looking for the same thing, I do have my own partly-written IRC client but I doubt I'll finish it any time soon.

[ironcoder]

Any recommendations for windows clients? The simpler the better, really. Xchat is too feature-rich and overblown, I just need an extremely basic IRC client. It doesn't even need to support colours; I'd use telnet to connect directly, but the constant manual ping responses are driving me insane. Any ideas?

-huha

I'm Windowless myself except for a couple of VMs but two that come to mind are Mozilla Seamonkey Suite (piece of cake) and I think Pidgin IM also has IRC support. Both those should be dead easy. If I remember back in the old days there were a couple of nice ones. It those two don't ring your bell lemme know and I'll see what I can find. Also, try checking freshmeat.net and you may find some you like.

On *NIX, Irssi rules.

[unicomp]

I have now received the Unicomp keyboard and I am finding it a very good keyboard (it is immediately more satisfying to type on than my old membrane keyboard).

[wheel83]

thanks unicomp for your unicomp review! lol it is a great keyboard inded.

[unicomp]

thanks unicomp for your unicomp review! lol it is a great keyboard inded.

Indeed. I am finding that the more I type on this new keyboard, the more I enjoy doing so. (I envisage that anyone who has to listen to me typing in the future will be somewhat annoyed insomuch as the keyboard is loud, however this was part of the attraction for myself).

[wellington1869]

Indeed. I am finding that the more I type on this new keyboard, the more I enjoy doing so. (I envisage that anyone who has to listen to me typing in the future will be somewhat annoyed insomuch as the keyboard is loud, however this was part of the attraction for myself).

they may be annoyed but on the other hand they'll think you're very productive

[unicomp]

they may be annoyed but on the other hand they'll think you're very productive

Perhaps. I have already seen an increase in my typing speed and accuracy (I am still learning the typing really, and also I am still getting used to the keyboard).

I am very pleased with the keyboard, it was worth the wait.

[wellington1869]

Welly has a petition he wants to give you.

(inside joke)

oh yea

http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?t=6211&highlight=petition

[wheel83]

unicomp, can you answer all of these questions por favor?