[Axl]

So I was cleaning my keyboard last night and decided to tryout Dvorak.

Seems a lot more efficient and intuitive compared to Qwerty, my only gripe are keyboard shortcuts.


I'd type some more but, I'm at ~10 wpm right now

[rollercoaster375]

There's a keyboard setting in OS X for standard keys when command is hit, so that you don't have to re-learn keyboard shortcuts.

That being said, I've never been able to get myself to learn Dvorak, though, perhaps if I actually moved my keys around it'd work better.

[Dave]

Originally Posted by rollercoaster375 There's a keyboard setting in OS X for standard keys when command is hit, so that you don't have to re-learn keyboard shortcuts.

I thought about using that when I was learning, but decided that I'd memorized shortcuts by letter, not position, so I didn't really think it'd help me that much. The one thing you do have to watch out for though is that on a Dvorak layout, 'Z' and 'W' are next to each other, so it's not much of a mistype to hit the combo for "close window" instead of "undo".

[Brad]

Ugh. I tried to pick up Dvorak when I was in college. I spent months on it, but I could never manage to come even close to my normal typing speed.

I've decided I have plenty better ways to kill my time and productivity than by punishing myself with Dvorak again.

[rollercoaster375]

Heh... So you inspired me.

But rather than actually move the keys around, I decided to put tape on all of my keys...



I've also got it hooked up to switch between qwerty and Dvorak whenever I hit caps lock + [the Q/' key].

[noleli2]

I've been using Dvorak for almost eight years now, and while I can't say it's really faster than QWERTY, I do like it. When I first started, I used the QWERTY shortcut keys, but that didn't last too long. Some app (Photoshop or Pro Tools, don't remember which) didn't support it correctly and it got confusing.

My muscle memory is now fine with Dvorak and QWERTY typing, and Dvorak and QWERTY shortcut keys with Mac (command) or Windows (control) modifiers.

It's also just fun to watch people's reactions when they try to use my computer.

[Brad]

Originally Posted by rollercoaster375 I decided to put tape on all of my keys...

Brilliant!! I wish I'd had that thought when I tried to learn Dvorak.

A question for all of you trying or regularly using Dvorak:

For what purpose do you predominantly type? Word processing? Occasional use in graphic design? Software programming?

I recall that Dvorak created his layout specifically to optimize typing in the English language. So, I wonder how beneficial or detrimental it would be to use it for other purposes such as writing code. I suspect it would be at least a little better than QWERTY since the punctuation is spread out a bit more and the letter arrangement would still be improved for entering variable names and reserved words that are usually in English.

[rollercoaster375]

Hmmm... Apparently not so brilliant. The Sharpie is bleeding onto the other keys >_<. Oh well, I'll clean it off when I get used to this.

I'm 40% IM (but I type with full punctuation and such over IM), 30% programming, 20% paper-type-writing, 10% random forum posts like this one.

[Axl]

rollercoaster37, you're crazy!

I tried it out for 2 days and it drove beyond the stratosphere brother, it drove me to the IONOSPHERE of insanity maaaan.

I searched a few blogs and it seems to take up to a few months or even a year to return to regular speed before even seeing an increase in speed.


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