The D>P>G switch has been discussed before - I think it's a good move. Some may say the Qwerty R position is not great - but it's better than Qwerty G position (IMO)
I'd say the EU and IY switch isn't worth it though. E moves to a worse key and the change doesn't result in fewer changes from Qwerty.
The only changes that affects same-finger bigrams are the shenanigans with R/S/F/L .
For same-finger ratios, I get Colemak-lite to be 1.63%, compared to Colemak's 1.51%. Not a huge difference to be fair.
However, if you use angle-mod style fingering but without moving keys (i.e. C with index finger, etc), as some people do... then the same-finger bigrams are only 1.53%, virtually the same as Colemak. This is because, although it introduces CT and RL, it eliminates SC, LK and LM.
If using this layout though, I would still want to solve the HE problem. I would do this by applying an H>M>F rotation. But I'd keep EU/IY as per standard Colemak.
This yields:
Q W L D P J M U Y ;
A S R T G F N E I O
Z X C V B K H , . /
I think this results in a very nice layout, especially if (i) you have an ANSI board and (ii) use the "non-standard" technique of typing C with index finger.
It's same-finger ratio is low, like Colemak's, and it avoids moving S and G. It also solves the centre column issue with fewer changes than Mod-DH! On the other hand, two additional keys swap sides (F and L). And it leaves B in an awkward position.
But, I think if I was a US user with an ANSI keyboard - and was just starting out, I'd seriously consider it.
Testing only for Alice in Wonderland fragment because I don't have time to check and compare all results:
- For your layout fingers move more.
- Right index is moving 25% more than for Lite.
- Right middle move and press twice as much as for Lite (because of I).
- Moreover, your layout has much more same-finger combos for both index and both middle fingers than Lite.
Q W R F P Y U I J ;
A S D T G H N E L O
Z X C V B K M
What it has to offer vs your layout:
1/3 less moved keys: Y, U, I, D, L back to place.
E in comfortable place
WASD keys back in place.
Goals retained in your layout:
Less keys moved.
Less index overload.
I in same finger.
ASRTNEIO managed in comfortable place.
Agreed. While it may not have been necessary before QWERTY became
ubiquitous (when was that, even?), I think that any layout which fails
to take account that we are all coming from years and years of
touch-typing QWERTY are sure to be relegated to the dustbin of time. I
think Colemak is the only layout which gives even lip service to this
idea, but I think it doesn't take it nearly as importantly as it really
is.
Let's face it, until we move away from keyboards in their current form,
there is exactly 0 chance for another layout to supplant QWERTY,
including Colemak. New layouts are competing for distant second among
enthusiasts like us.
> QWERTY-compatibility comes with a couple of advantages: The layout
> becomes easier to learn. It's easier to switch between QWERTY and the
> keyboard layout. Less of the experience you've gained typing QWERTY all
> those years will be lost. The last point isn't the same as the first:
> once you've learned a keyboard layout well enough to say you're
> comfortable with it, you still aren't as fast with it as you were with
> QWERTY. You might not make mistakes that often, but it still takes more
> time for you to process which key to press next. I feel the importance
> of QWERTY-compatibility is often overlooked
Agreed on all points. I'd say it's completely overlooked by any other
than Colemak.
[...]
> Differences (vs. Colemak)
> - R and S are switched. (honestly, I don't see why Colemak doesn't do
> this.)
This is why I don't think Colemak takes QWERTY compatibility seriously.
Your change makes utter sense even when you take same-finger repetition
into account.
> - P, G and D are 'cycled' between positions.
This one's a tossup for me. I understand trying to put G back, but the
new location for D is one of those locations that are ergonomically poor
because of the reach on the forefinger and the left shift of the top
row. The G spot is more desirable (pun intended).
> - EU and IY columns are switched.
I don't see this as worthwile and think the dominance of E should keep
it on the middle finger, unquestionably.
> - L and F are switched.
Trading hands for two keys needs a good reason, and L and F are hardly
very different in frequency. This one doesn't make sense to me either.
I'm very pro your ideas...wish I had more constructive criticism, but it
would lead you down the same path I went with my own layout design. I'd
like to see if you come up with anything more yourself. The redesign
bug gets under your skin, I've found.
There's always room for another layout! You might consider throwing up a blog entry of your own describing your layout.
Oh, and I don't buy requiem's observations one bit, but you've probably guessed that by now.
]]>That sucks hard that you can't use Colemak on your Playstation.
]]>• All our metrics show that despite moving 31 vs 17 keys Dvorak isn't much more effective than Colemak. Yes, my Tarmak layouts show a progress but your proposal still isn't generally true. (I do share your skepticism towards "lighter" layouts but there's no automatics at work here. Colemak is that ingenious "lighter touch" compared to Dvorak.)
• Switching back and forth is necessary for many and will be for a long long time. Anyone not seeing that is too much of a dreamer I fear.
• The QWERTY experience is forced upon me every day. I can't use Colemak on my Playstation for instance, nor on most of the job computers.
The layout becomes easier to learn.
It's easier to switch between QWERTY and the keyboard layout.
Less of the experience you've gained typing QWERTY all those years will be lost.
None of which holds any water given the following points:
The easier it is to learn, the less effective it's going to be (drastically true in the case of well-established layouts such as Colemak and Dvorak), and a marginal increase in typing speed and comfort is not worth the time and effort it takes to learn a new layout.
Switching back to QWERTY is not necessary for everyone, and can easily be made unnecessary to anyone.
The QWERTY experience is of no value once you have learned a superior layout.
If you're too lazy to learn a well-established layout like Colemak, you're better off sticking to QWERTY. This isn't a dig on anyone, just a friendly recommendation.
]]>In order to impress anyone here, I think it's safe to say you'll need a convincing digraph analysis. Digraphs are the reasons for the way R-S are placed in Colemak and some other placements you seem to wonder about. [Oh hang on - that's what you mean by 'CFU' is it? Still, a few more details there wouldn't go amiss.]
Colemak gets frequent flak for being too similar to QWERTY, as well as not being similar enough. Maybe it's got it just about right? ;) But of course it's about individual preferences. If you check out my Tarmak layouts (see my sig topic) you'll find a very crude and mostly analysis on keys moved versus effort in steps towards the Colemak layout. It might interest you.
The part about not being as fast as with QWERTY is hogwash. I'm considerably faster with Colemak than I ever was with QWERTY. I'm not making claims about why that is, but pointing out that your statement isn't true.
]]>We are reinventing the wheel for pure joy of invention of something new.
For a layout to be useful, it need a community for support. But which of them have such a dedicated website for support like Colemak here?
]]>The layout becomes easier to learn.
It's easier to switch between QWERTY and the keyboard layout.
Less of the experience you've gained typing QWERTY all those years will be lost.
The last point isn't the same as the first: once you've learned a keyboard layout well enough to say you're comfortable with it, you still aren't as fast with it as you were with QWERTY. You might not make mistakes that often, but it still takes more time for you to process which key to press next.
I feel the importance of QWERTY-compatibility is often overlooked, and while Colemak does a very good job being similar, I decided to look for a way to improve Colemak on this front with as few sacrifices as possible. There's also the ASSET keyboard layout, but it had exceptionally high consecutive finger use (using one finger twice in a row), so it was better to use Colemak as a basis.
So, for people who want Colemak's efficiency on a more QWERTY-like layout, here's the Colemak Lite layout!
R and S are switched. (honestly, I don't see why Colemak doesn't do this.)
P, G and D are 'cycled' between positions.
EU and IY columns are switched.
L and F are switched.
Improved QWERTY-compatibility: the S and the G are at the QWERTY positions, and the I (i) is under the same finger (this is more important than you may think).
A more balanced heat map: of course, Colemak has the most common letters on the home keys, but the next three most common characters (HLD) are all under the index fingers. Colemak Lite places one of them, namely the L, under the left middle finger. I personally find this a lot more comfortable.
More hand alternation: by switching the L and F between hands, the left hand is used slightly more, but still less than the right hand.
On-par consecutive finger use and finger travel. It depends on the text you test it with, but I actually had a lower CFU with some books. The difference in finger travel is insignificant.
If you look closely, you'll see that the EU and IY columns on the right side are switched. Again, this is for QWERTY-compatibility regarding the I (i). It does mean you're relearning 4 characters for an advantage regarding only 1 character, which will be pesky at the beginning, but when you consider the years you've typed the I (i) with the middle finger, I feel it pays off. I've used Colemak a couple of months and relearned those two rows in a week.
Next to that, the placement of D on the top row and the shifted P might feel awkward. This was done in the favour of keeping the G in place, regardless of the fact it isn't used too often. To me, moving the index finger upwards isn't really less comfortable than moving it sideways, the only problem was getting used to it, which I did quickly.
For Windows (PKL package)
For GNU/Linux
For GNU/Linux (for use in ttys, when you don't use X)
Instructions for GNU/Linux
cd to the directory you downloaded it to.
Type:
xmodmap colemak-lite.xmodmap
You might want to put this line in your .xinitrc (or whatever launches on startup)
I could, of course, show some results from the Keyboard Layout Analyzer, but I could just pick texts biased in my advantage. Let's try something interesting: use this code to load the layout yourself, and then share results from any text you want. This creates more variety in the texts picked, which gives a better insight.
This layout is open for improvements, just remember that the main goal is to be more QWERTY-like. If you spot any keys that can be under the same finger (or even the same spot) as with QWERTY without too much sacrifice in CFU or finger travel, even if by rearranging some other keys, feel free to share. Constructive criticism is very welcome.
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