Dvorak

Hello everyone, this is my final update on the Dvorak Series. On december 26, 2010, I decided to switch to the Dvorak keyboard layout. You can go read my posts on the progression.

Well, today, I decided to take a typing test, and here are the results:

Yes, you read that right: 103 wpm. I’m officially up to my QWERTY speed.

Here is a pretty nice log of what I’ve done since the switch:

You know, it took about 8 or 9 years to reach 100+ wpm with QWERTY. It took a little over 1 year with Dvorak. Will this limit be my ceiling? I doubt it, but I’m pretty happy with this speed at the moment.

I highly encourage using the Dvorak layout, and I’m happy to say it was well worth learning!

That is all!

It’s been quite awhile since I had a chance to update this blog, been busy IRL, but I thought I’d at least give an update with what I’ve been doing.

Currently in my fourth year at college, leading the school’s programming team again, and also working on some new websites of mine.

Also, for those who are interested, here is a quick update on that Dvorak Keyboard Layout. It’s been about nine months since I made that switch, and I’m up to 89-95wpm again. Yes, it’s not the 100+ wpm I had before, but hold fast, I’m slowly getting there.

Anyways, to the website. I’ve recently created a pretty funny website, called LOLFlash.com. It’s pretty much a website with a ton of funny (and for some, seizure-inducing, so watch out) flash loops. The whole website is written in C, of course, and not php. I’ve also been slowly but surely working on the groundwork for the website, www.ironicsecurity.com, which will be another type of blog I’ll be working on, so keep and eye out for that.

I will try to update this blog when I can though, I’m currently working on an article on desertification (what, you thought I only knew about programming?), if I can ever get around to finish it….

On an unrelated note, Home Tips With Jim is started to get pretty awesome, and there are plenty of new episodes; check out my dad’s new website: www.hometipswithjim.info for the latest playlist.

NOTE: This is part of a series, check the next entry here!

It’s been about two weeks since my switch to the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard. I checked my typing speed on TypeRacer earlier today, and I’m currently running at about 40 wpm – I’m getting there.

Then, today my $129 keyboard came in the mail; with gold-plated mechanical switches and absolutely no labels.

That’s right; I bought the $129 Das Keyboard Ultimate – it’s loud, it’s heavy, and when added to this key mapping, it’s confusing for anyone that attempts to use my computer. 2022 Update: I am re-reading all of these as I migrate from aj.ianozi.com to aj.immo, and I am still using my Das Keyboard Ultimate over a decade later!

There’s been quite a few people asking me about this layout, and I have to say, the immediate results are pretty nice. I managed to learn to touch-type with this new layout in a matter of days, and within two weeks, I’m around half the speed I was with QWERTY. I’m able to type most of my words on the home row (consisting of aoeuidhtns), and my wrists don’t hurt after a long day of typing anymore (please be aware, I punched out almost 2000 lines of code this week while programming). But then again… I’m not typing as fast as I did with QWERTY yet, so we’ll see.

On a side note, I no longer have a problem with “F”, though I’m slipping up with “j” and “q” once in awhile.

PS: On a side note, I ran this entry though a neat little applet that would calculate some stats based on how much I’d type, etc…

Is this post, 64% of my typing took place on the home row, and my fingers traveled a distance of 58 feet.

If I were to use QWERTY to type this, only 32% would’ve been on the home row, and my fingers would have traveled almost 100 feet!

NOTE: This is part of a series, check the next entry here!

Well, it’s been about 5 days since I’ve switched do the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard, and I’m slowly progressing.

My current typing speed is about 15 wpm now, and I can finally “keep up” with people on IMs. I’ve already memorized the layout (using the normal QWERTY keyboard, no labels or anything), and can type words such as “the, there, is, as, etc” without thinking, as fast as I could with my QWERTY.

I am having problems with afew letters, namely “f” and “j”, for some reason. Probably because “f” is in a really awkward position for me, and I rarely use “j”.

NOTE: This is part of a series, check the next entry here!

Most people use the well-known QWERTY layout for their keyboard. Little do they know that this layout was meant to be slow and inefficent! It causes strain on the hands and can lead to Carpal tunnel syndrome.

Back when people still used type with typewriters, the typist would hit the keys too quickly and it would cause the typewriter to jam. The solution to this, was to slow down the typer, which is why the QWERTY system was invented. It spread out the most used letters, so touch-typing would be much more inefficient.

Meet Dvorak. In the 1930s, Dr. August Dvorak, a professor at University of Washington, created the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard. This keyboard is meant to work much more natural for your hands, and reduces the chance of getting any typing-related injuries.

As the wikipedia page notes:

Awkward strokes are undesirable because they slow down typing, increase typing errors, and increase finger strain. Hurdling is an awkward stroke requiring a single finger to jump directly from one row, over the home row to another row (e.g., typing “minimum” on the QWERTY keyboard). In the English language, there are about 1,200 words that require a hurdle on the QWERTY layout. In contrast, there are few words requiring a hurdle on the Dvorak layout and even fewer requiring a double hurdle.

I’m making the switch to Dvorak cold-turkey, that is, I’m no longer using QWERTY for anything. My typing speed went from about 100wpm to about 5. I’m curious to see how well this works out for me after a week of dvorak-only typing. I guess we’ll see.

For some more information on this layout, check out these links:

• Introducing the Dvorak Keyboard
• The Dvorak Simplified Keyboard: Forty Years of Frustration, by Robert Parkinson, 1972

NOTE: This is part of a series, check the next entry here!