Dvorak

[sfbloodbrother]

Random thread here, but I was wondering if I was the only one in the community who uses a Dvorak Keyboard, instead of the QWERTY keyboard like everyone else. heres a picture of one.

 

[Revenant Ghost]

I doubt that you're the ONLY one, but one of the few. It'll probably take me forever to learn that keyboard.

 

[sfbloodbrother]

I doubt that you're the ONLY one, but one of the few. It'll probably take me forever to learn that keyboard.

It only took me about 2-3 months to get the feel. I'm about the same speed now that I used to be with QWERTY. Best of all, no strain!

 

[MoodyBlues]

Random thread here, but I was wondering if I was the only one in the community who uses a Dvorak Keyboard, instead of the QWERTY keyboard like everyone else

I'm way too old, and way too set in my ways, to even THINK about switching!

I'm curious as to what prompted you to even try Dvorak, and to stick with it?

 

[Mehta23]

I have the same questions and also if typing on a Dvorak is any better?

I'd like to make that move - I can get a Dvorak for my phone too - but whenever I use someone else's computer, I won't be able to type properly

 

[mikedt]

Sorry I thought is thread was about music, New World Symphony Op. 95 is one of my favourites.

Anyway I know about Dvorak layout keyboards though, never seen one though. How would one do a Dvorak layout keyboard on a laptop? Change the OS keyboard preferences, and put sticky labels on the keys, or pulling all the key-caps off and re-arranging them? ...but then do you want left hand optimised or right hand optimised Dvorak?

I learned to touch type without looking QWERTY while at school and college, never found strain to be a problem.

EDIT:

Here's one I just thought of, how does one input non-Latin characters with a Dvorak keyboard, like Chinese Pinyin IME? Because that assumes you're using a standard US layout keyboard.

 

[9to5cynic]

Best of all, no strain!

What do you mean by strain?

 

[mikedt]

I have the same questions and also if typing on a Dvorak is any better?

I'd like to make that move - I can get a Dvorak for my phone too - but whenever I use someone else's computer, I won't be able to type properly

I'm not sure how beneficial a Dvorak keyboard would be on a phone for supposedly reducing strain and possibly increasing speed, unless one is used to the Dvorak layout over QWERTY. I know you can download Dvorak layout keyboards for Android.

 

[sfbloodbrother]

I'm way too old, and way too set in my ways, to even THINK about switching!

I'm curious as to what prompted you to even try Dvorak, and to stick with it?

I watched this video on youtube. Half of it was about RSI, and after watching, i started to feel strain on my wrist typing. I used to only type with 2 fingers, moving a lot, and that caused my RSI. Since then, i use all 9 fingers ( i have 10, but dont use one for the space bar).

I have the same questions and also if typing on a Dvorak is any better?

I'd like to make that move - I can get a Dvorak for my phone too - but whenever I use someone else's computer, I won't be able to type properly

I use qwerty for my tablet, only because I don't/can't touch type on a 7' tablet. I wouldn't recommend it either, because there's like only 1 app that makes android a Dvorak keyboard, and they collect everything you type into the keyboard.

Sorry I thought is thread was about music, New World Symphony Op. 95 is one of my favourites.

Anyway I know about Dvorak layout keyboards though, never seen one though. How would one do a Dvorak layout keyboard on a laptop? Change the OS keyboard preferences, and put sticky labels on the keys, or pulling all the key-caps off and re-arranging them? ...but then do you want left hand optimised or right hand optimised Dvorak?

I learned to touch type without looking QWERTY while at school and college, never found strain to be a problem.

EDIT:

Here's one I just thought of, how does one input non-Latin characters with a Dvorak keyboard, like Chinese Pinyin IME? Because that assumes you're using a standard US layout keyboard.

Touch typing, you can just use a qwerty keyboard, because you will never look at the keyboard when you type, you don't need to have the letter on the keys. And most if not all operating systems have the ability to change keyboards.

What do you mean by strain?

RSI. Its a strain in the wrist, you will get it if you type a lot, for long periods of time. From repetitive movements. Its very psychologically painful.

I'm not sure how beneficial a Dvorak keyboard would be on a phone for supposedly reducing strain and possibly increasing speed, unless one is used to the Dvorak layout over QWERTY. I know you can download Dvorak layout keyboards for Android.

There's a few, but none are that good. I love the Google Nexus keyboard though. I use qwerty. Tablets though.

 

[SiempreTuna]

Like others above, I touch type and am used to QWERTY - I even struggle with AZERTY (French) layouts which only have maybe half a dozen different placings: Dvorak would totally do my head in.

I guess if you used a Dvorak layout on your main computer, it would make sense to also have it on your phone as you'll be able to locate keys faster, but I don't see any benefit to it if you're used to a QWERY/AZERTY or whatever 'standard' layout.

 

[mikedt]

I watched this video on youtube. Half of it was about RSI, and after watching, i started to feel strain on my wrist typing. I used to only type with 2 fingers, moving a lot, and that caused my RSI. Since then, i use all 9 fingers ( i have 10, but dont use one for the space bar).

Now I've never had strain problems when typing. But then I've always used 10 fingers for typing, that's how I learned in the late 70s with a manual typewriter.

These days, I'm getting a bit older but can till type using all fingers with no pain or strain. But then I do Tai Chi every morning, which I believe does help.


If anyone wants to have a go at learning Dvorak, this seems like a good course...
Dvorak keyboard training

 

[MoodyBlues]

Now I've never had strain problems when typing. But then I've always used 10 fingers for typing, that's how I learned in the late 70s with a manual typewriter.

I've always used 10 fingers, too.

These days, I'm getting a bit older but can till type using all fingers with no pain or strain.

Same here. All around. *sigh*

For a while, back in the early '90s, I did have a bit of a problem with carpal tunnel syndrome in my right arm, but I was keyboarding like crazy at the time. Once I forced myself to take breaks, it improved. I no longer even think about it, because it's just not an issue any more.

 

[Stuntman]

The Dvorak keyboard was designed to be used in place of the QWERTY keyboard for full sized-keyboards and type writers. The QWERTY keyboard is actually designed to make people to type more slowly. The reason is that the old typewriters experienced jams when people type too quickly. The QWERTY layout is designed to force people who type with 8 fingers and thumb to use the same key on consecutive letters more often and slows you down.

With the advancement of typewriter technology and computers, the keyboards no longer have an issue with people typing very fast. The Dvorak layout is designed to ensure that words are often typed using different fingers for consecutive letters. In addition to allowing you to type faster, you should be able to type with fewer errors as well.

I did try to use a Dvorak keyboard at one point. I had a program that remaps the keys on my 8-bit Atari computer. The thing is that the Dvorak keyboard is not very popular. Also, the learning curve is rather large for someone who is used to the QWERTY keyboard. I took a typing course in high school that ran a full year. By the end of the year, my typing speed was about 45 wpm. I think that it would probably take me months to really become proficent with the Dvorak keyboard. It was time I was unwilling to spend.

I don't think that the Dvorak layout is going to offer as much as an advantage over a QWERTY layout for a phone. The reason is that when typing on a phone, most people would peck using two thumbs instead of 8 fingers plus a thumb. I would think that a Dvorak layout would only give a marginal benefit and would not result in any significant speed increase. I would say that the accuracy would be negligible because of the lack of tactile feedback and small size.

For a touch screen phone, I found that the MessagEase keyboard to be a radical design that is supposed to reduce the amount of typing errors. It uses fewer big keys, but typing requires both tapping for commonly used keys and tap+drag gestures for less commonly used keys. I tried it and I do find that I rarely ever typed the wrong character by accident. I did not bother using it because I felt the learning curve was too great and the benefits would not be as much considering I can type very well with the assistance of SwiftKey and Swype text prediction/auto-correct. Perhaps if I have discovered MessagEase a year ago, I would have given it more time.

 

[sfbloodbrother]

Nicely explained. They learning curve was about 3 months for me. Now I have stickers on my keyboard to where the Dvorak keys are, covering up the qwerty keys. When I have to enter my password to log into ,y computer which is rare, I have to look at another keyboard to know where the qwerty keys are. I just becomed so used to Dvorak now, its natural.

 

[Mehta23]

Oh right. I confused a bit by the remapping thing but I guess you could move the actual keys on the keyboard around...

Bloodbrother, how hard is it for you to go back to a qwerty, for example at someone else's house? This is the only thing that's really stopping me

 

[Mehta23]

Has anyone tried a Colemak keyboard? Supposedly a modern Dvorak for people who learned QWERTY.

Still waiting for an answer to my last question ^_^

Edit: is the mapping a windows feature? Cos then that would make it much easier to use someone else's computer...

edit2: I was literally this ( |----|) close to making a move to Colemak, when I realised that I won't be able to change the keyboard settings on the computers at school. So it'll be at least another year before I can change

 

[wuxiekeji]

Here's one I just thought of, how does one input non-Latin characters with a Dvorak keyboard, like Chinese Pinyin IME? Because that assumes you're using a standard US layout keyboard.

Yeah, it's an issue. I type Chinese with Dvorak layout. On desktop PC's the IME is independent of keyboard layout which makes things easy; on Android it's not.

I made a Dvorak version of Google's Chinese Pinyin for myself. Source is here:
github.com/dheera/android-googlepinyin-dvorak
Unfortunately I can't put it in the Play store because it rejects anyone from uploading com.google.* APK's.

(... and yes, I actually have to re-fork Google's code every time they release a new version, it's quite annoying ...)

 

[Bubbajon79]

Hey, I just joined the forum and was looking for another topic when I found this. I have been using the Dvorak layout for the last 14 years now. I first taught myself over a summer between school years because I was just tired of being so slow on QWERTY. At first I popped out all the keys and rearranged my keyboard to look like the Dvorak board. But by the end of the summer (about 3 months, like you) I was touch typing at least as fast as I ever did with QWERTY, so I put the key caps back in the standard layout but kept using Dvorak. Now it's the standard board on my machine every time I log in. Anyone else that wants to use my computer has to first change the keyboard to QWERTY before they can type. It makes for some interesting comments when I forget to tell them about it first. Anyway, with QWERTY I used to hit about 30wpm on a good day. It's been a while since I last tested, but a few years ago I was around 60wpm with Dvorak and I never feel any strain or fatigue when typing. I think everyone should switch, but unfortunately QWERTY is so firmly lodged in the culture that I doubt it will ever be replaced.

 

[sfbloodbrother]

Hey, I just joined the forum and was looking for another topic when I found this. I have been using the Dvorak layout for the last 14 years now. I first taught myself over a summer between school years because I was just tired of being so slow on QWERTY. At first I popped out all the keys and rearranged my keyboard to look like the Dvorak board. But by the end of the summer (about 3 months, like you) I was touch typing at least as fast as I ever did with QWERTY, so I put the key caps back in the standard layout but kept using Dvorak. Now it's the standard board on my machine every time I log in. Anyone else that wants to use my computer has to first change the keyboard to QWERTY before they can type. It makes for some interesting comments when I forget to tell them about it first. Anyway, with QWERTY I used to hit about 30wpm on a good day. It's been a while since I last tested, but a few years ago I was around 60wpm with Dvorak and I never feel any strain or fatigue when typing. I think everyone should switch, but unfortunately QWERTY is so firmly lodged in the culture that I doubt it will ever be replaced.

I switched because I was having strain, and now, my hands do not move, its all fingers...

 

[redpill2016]

I'm not sure this even applies to touchscreen when you're only using two fingers/thumbs anyway, but on a traditional keyboard I usually type between 80-120 wpm depending on technicality of the subject, which I've found is more than fast enough to keep up with my brain usually . So for me it wasn't worth trying to switch, but it is an interesting concept!

 

[sfbloodbrother]

I'm not sure this even applies to touchscreen when you're only using two fingers/thumbs anyway, but on a traditional keyboard I usually type between 80-120 wpm depending on technicality of the subject, which I've found is more than fast enough to keep up with my brain usually . So for me it wasn't worth trying to switch, but it is an interesting concept!

I see what you mean. But I was never that fast of a typist anyway.

 

[wuxiekeji]

I'm not sure this even applies to touchscreen when you're only using two fingers/thumbs anyway, but on a traditional keyboard I usually type between 80-120 wpm depending on technicality of the subject, which I've found is more than fast enough to keep up with my brain usually . So for me it wasn't worth trying to switch, but it is an interesting concept!

Sure, you might be right that all things equal there isn't any particular advantage to Dvorak over QWERTY on a mobile phone. But for people like me who exclusively Dvorak on standard computers, grew up on Dvorak, and can't touch-type with QWERTY, it helps a LOT to have the on-screen phone layout match the layout I'm used to elsewhere.

 

[sfbloodbrother]

Sure, you might be right that all things equal there isn't any particular advantage to Dvorak over QWERTY on a mobile phone. But for people like me who exclusively Dvorak on standard computers, grew up on Dvorak, and can't touch-type with QWERTY, it helps a LOT to have the on-screen phone layout match the layout I'm used to elsewhere.

I'm the opposite, I cannot type for crap with Dvorak on a phone, but on a computer, I can't type well with a QWERTY
I use both of them.

 

[out of ideas]

keys1

interesting university paper on claims of dvorak being faster.

im still waiting for telelpathic keyboards to eliminate all strain

 

[sfbloodbrother]

keys1

interesting university paper on claims of dvorak being faster.

im still waiting for telelpathic keyboards to eliminate all strain

Good find. However, I don't think that Dvorak is that much superior than QWERTY. Sure, I learned to touch type in a matter of less than a month, and became a faster typist using Dvorak, but that's only because we never really were taught to touch type with the QWERTY in school.