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Dvorak Keyboard Layout

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Ethan Rosen

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QWERTY sucks.

Dunno man, it's becoming quite popular.

It still sucks... it was made for typewriters, not keyboards.

*facepalm*

I'm not an idiot, I know why the layouts are so.

The pros still outweigh the cons - I don't want to have trouble typing on any keyboard that isn't my own, and changing the layout isn't always an option. Unless you're seriously into typing quickly (who is?), it really doesn't make a difference. Due to this, I'd even go so far as to say that qwerty is better than dvorak.

Simply saying 'QWERTY sucks' makes you look foolish.

I have to disagree with you on this one, because I believe (I was only told this some time ago, i'm not sure if it's true) that QWERTY was created to actually SLOW people who were using typewriters down, because there were health and wrist issues with many people who were using the former default layout, which I believe was Dvorak.

The former layout was alphabetical and it was because the typewriters jammed up if you typed too quickly. You get the idea though.

Heres a little fun fact about QWERTY. Note that the word "typewriter" is typed only using the top row. That is not a coincidence.
 

Kirjava

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I have to disagree with you on this one, because I believe (I was only told this some time ago, i'm not sure if it's true) that QWERTY was created to actually SLOW people who were using typewriters down, because there were health and wrist issues with many people who were using the former default layout, which I believe was Dvorak.
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Please read the first sentence of my post again. The QWERTY wikipedia article wouldn't hurt you, either.

In addition, I didn't say that better meant faster.
 

blade740

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When I was reading your posts before, I assumed you were a fast typist because you switched... but 55? That really doesn't warrant a switch for me, as I already type over 100 WPM with QWERTY... I max at around 120. My cube average is 45 though, so I suck at that... :(
!

I was over 100 with qwerty before I switched too. I'm now about 75-80 WPM with dvorak, but speed isn't my major concern. Dvorak is easier on the hands than qwerty. It's made so that your fingers move less and common words are typed with easy finger rolls. It's so much more comfortable that I can't stand qwerty's seemingly arbitrary layout.

Also, this isn't to say that I can't type in qwerty. I can still get about 50WPM with qwerty. The only "confusion" is the first few words after switching, where I think "oh, shoot, wrong layout" After that, it's fairly easy.
 

Dene

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I use dvorak. I switched before I really learned qwerty. I'm still a very slow typr but I'm working on it.
Speed isn't really the concern anyway - dvorak is so much easier. I have seen colemak and it is wery similar to dvorak, I don't see the point in it as far as ease is concerned. At least you are likely to see a dvorak keyboard around - you will never see anyone with colemak really.
 

shelley

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Switching to Dvorak doesn't require relabelling/reassembling your keyboard, for those that are recommending it. Just print out a little diagram with the letter positions, keep that nearby and refer to it. It trains you to not look at the keyboard as you type.

I was at about 60-70 wpm on QWERTY when I switched, now averaging in the 90s on Dvorak (haven't tested myself in a while). Dvorak is really more ergonomic (Colemak even more so); your fingers move more naturally. The most commonly used letters are all on the home row, so you don't reach into other rows as much as you do with an arbitrary layout like QWERTY. It's a layout that works with your fingers, rather than making your fingers work for it. (Disclaimer: Dvorak was optimized for typing in English. If you regularly type in other languages it may not work as well for you) I never learned to properly touch-type in QWERTY - I knew where the letters are, but I was still more comfortable looking at the keyboard kind of as a "security blanket". With Dvorak I don't look at the keyboard at all; it would be useless anyway because all the letters are wrong (except for A and M ;) )

I have my home computer(s) and work computer on Dvorak, and those are really the only computers I do extensive typing in. I can't touch type in QWERTY anymore, but every keyboard is labeled in QWERTY, and it works well enough for the little bit of typing I have to do on foreign computers. In the event I do have to do a lot of typing, switching doesn't take long.

Sometimes I like to go into the Apple Store, get on as many computers as possible, and change the keyboard layout to Dvorak. Then I pull up the Wikipedia (fun fact: Wikipedia is one of the few words that are really annoying to type in Dvorak) page on the Dvorak layout on Safari, and sit back and watch people's confused reactions.
 

fanwuq

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When I was reading your posts before, I assumed you were a fast typist because you switched... but 55? That really doesn't warrant a switch for me, as I already type over 100 WPM with QWERTY... I max at around 120. My cube average is 45 though, so I suck at that... :(

I did not type much before I found out about Colemak last year. My finger speed is decent, I just suck at recognition and I make typos a lot. That doesn't happen on the cube simulator, so as a result, my typing speed on the cube simulator is probably faster than my typing speed in WPM. I felt that I maxed out QWERTY at around 35 wpm, my hands hurted and it just felt really awkward. It was like trying to speedcube with a springless stiff cube. Colemak just feels so much better on my hands and I ended up increasing my speed gradually. Main things that I love about Colemak is that my fingers rarely leave the home row and changing the Caps lock to backspace is really great since I make mistakes all the time. One of these days, I'll practice going slow and looking ahead to decrease my rate of mistakes. (I make mistakes because my fingers just like to go crazy, it has nothing to do with any layouts.)

Changing layouts for Colemak is just the click of one button.
See http://www.ryanheise.com/colemak/
Download the .exe, it is only 200kb. That is practical everywhere. On my home computer, it is no problem, I downloaded and installed the full version on my Windows XP, and it already comes with Ubuntu.
 
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Tetris Cube

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There is no lookahead in typing... you should already know where every key is. :x Going slow and looking ahead wouldn't do anything here, it's not a cube, lol. My F2L and PLL recognition is slow in comparison though. Recognition has to do with the eyes, not the fingers.

I use Ubuntu as my main OS, and Virtualbox emulating XP for some programs and to use iTunes for my iPod, so I could switch if I wanted to, but I don't want to. QWERTY has grown on me and I can type fast enough with it, but typing speed's not really the point anyway. If Dvorak was the universal keyboard layout, I would use that instead, regardless of typing speed.
 

fanwuq

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There is no lookahead in typing... you should already know where every key is.

Not true on typing tests. They require so much look ahead. You have to read the sentences and type at the same time. I never look at the keyboard, I know where everything is. I bet I can reach over 80WPM if I just type random sentences I think of (like on the forum) and not correct mistakes (not like on this forum). If I smash the keyboard like crazy, I can even go over 200WPM. :p
I just think QWERTY feels awkward. Also, I love messing with my friends.
 
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Tetris Cube

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Typing tests are stupid, lol. >_> Just saying it straight out.

It's true that reading the words slow you down, but it's not too significant. You should be able to read faster than you type, as it's a "1-look" type thing.

On facebook's typing test app, the highest I've hit is 116 WPM. There's just random words though, sentences are easier because you can process them faster in your head. Free typing, I can hit 120, maybe up to 130-140 pretty easily. Random typing, anyone can get 200+ of course.
 

KubeKid73

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I just wrote the Dvorak letters on my keyboard. :p Where can I find an image of a keyboard with like each key has the finger that you should use on it? Also, I have XP and when I log in I have to type my password in QWERTY, how do I make it Dvorak?
 

KubeKid73

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I did. I did before, but I logged out to check, so it may just be working because I had already logged in and made it default. Maybe I'll check again.
EDIT: It didn't work.
 
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