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  • 1st Week on Colemak,S-R switch?,(updated now 6 Months on Colemak)

    1st Week on Colemak,S-R switch?,(updated now 6 Months on Colemak)

    • Started by undulatus
    • 10 Replies:
    • Reputation: 0
    • Registered: 25-Jul-2012
    • Posts: 6

    UPDATED SEE POST #9
    My history with qwerty
    - self taught touch typing with non-standard finger positioning
    - hard time hitting punctuations due to non-standard positioning I was only using 3 fingers from my right hand
    - average 57 wpm in ~400 races on typeracer

    Motivation to switch
    - My own technique on qwerty is not utilizing all my fingers well making it very hard to gain speed (if I had to rewire my brain might as well go for the optimized layout)
    - I currently have lots of free time
    - Encouraging positive feedbacks I read from switchers :D
    - Hopefully prevent injuries, from what I heard

    1st week typeracer last 10 average before I sleep
    day1 --> day 7 - 10,15,23,27,32,36,38 wpm

    I practice at least a couple of hours everyday on typeracer and amphetype, I currently have nothing important to do so I have all the time I want
    The first 3 days
    -these were the days I had to fight my urge to stop switching
    -memorized the layout by finishing 15 typing lessons
    When I reached 27+ wpm
    -I started to really realize the minimal movement this layout offers
    -I can now comfortably squeeze out the layout image from my brain
    -I also stopped using qwerty here
    I'm always challenging myself to have consistency and increase my speed everyday


    From my first week I can say that switching is really a great experience :D
    *Friends what are your thoughts about switching S and R, I miss S on my ring finger and R being beside T

    Last edited by undulatus (21-Jan-2013 01:10:30)
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    • From: Viken, Norway
    • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
    • Posts: 5,362

    Welcome! Hope your stay will be as happy as mine.

    Don't fret the S-R problem, everybody has it at first and it passes. Shai explained why it had to be like that at some point; I kinda wish he'd put it in the FAQ. :)

    Basically, it's about the digraphs. If it'd been possible to do it that way without losing anything important, I think it would've been done as one of Colemak's predecessors had the S in its QWERTY position. Yes, it's a bit of a road bump for newbies.

    Last edited by DreymaR (25-Jul-2012 21:40:26)

    *** Learn Colemak in 2–5 steps with Tarmak! ***
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    • Registered: 08-Dec-2010
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    S-R switch is hard for all of us at first, but then you will get used to it.

    Shai explained that the sw diagraph happens frequently in English, and in the old place sw uses the same left ring finger, causes high same finger ratio.

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    • From: Viken, Norway
    • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
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    Swell caws! Sweating S switch is wanton swill as we swiftly swell, swinging swashbucklingly past swarthy SW's swamping maws unswervingly! :)

    Last edited by DreymaR (27-Jul-2012 19:08:35)

    *** Learn Colemak in 2–5 steps with Tarmak! ***
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    • From: Sofia, Bulgaria
    • Registered: 05-Mar-2011
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    Jeez, DreymaR, some of these words look like you made them up to prove a point :P
    On topic: yes, undulatus, it's pretty much what the guys explained. Don't worry, you'll get used to it and see why it's better this way (if DreymaR wasn't convincing enough :P)
    Oh, and welcome!

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    • From: Viken, Norway
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    I solemnly swear, you'll find those words in any decent dictionary of the English idiom!

    I know, I got a bit carried away there... ;)

    *** Learn Colemak in 2–5 steps with Tarmak! ***
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    • Registered: 21-Apr-2010
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    Doesn't appear that 'sw' occurs that frequently.  Here's a small selection of dict's output.  And I'd only use a small subset of these on a regular basis.  I doubt someone would fight for these.

    $ dict -m -s re 'sw'
    
    answer, swythe, aswail, asweve, aswoon, sweetbread, beswike, bittersweet, swift, boatswain, broadsword, sweeper, swallow, beeswax, sweet, swarming, swan, swimming, crossword, swab, forswear, flyswatter, glassware, minesweeper, swell, sweatshop, painsworthy, switch, swaying, sweating, swagman, swamp, swang, swartback, swashbuckler, swathe, sweal, swindle, switch, unanswerable, unsweet, unsworn, swarming, sweep, swoon, sweetheart, swift, swoop, unswayed, swarthy, swinger  

    Edit: Swabbed up, switched and swapped out after the other swad swore it wasn't sweet to swig.

    Last edited by pinkyache (18-Jan-2013 19:07:31)

    --
    Physicians deafen our ears with the Honorificabilitudinitatibus of their heavenly Panacaea, their sovereign Guiacum.

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    • From: Viken, Norway
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    Swaggering swain! You swamped that post with your sweeping swathe of swineswaying swillswallowing. Swear that next time you'll sweetly use code tags or you'll swiftly swoon unanswered. :D

    Last edited by DreymaR (27-Jul-2012 19:16:36)

    *** Learn Colemak in 2–5 steps with Tarmak! ***
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    • Registered: 25-Jul-2012
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    I'm am sorry for not being able to reply and update my post, enthusiastic friends.
    I suddenly had stuff that I had to attend to before.
    I decided that I will just give an update after 6 months

    UPDATE: 6 MONTHS AFTER using colemak
    I think I am addicted to keyboards right now :))
       - I have razer bw 2013(since august), and cooler master quickfire tk(cherry mx red, since december) all because I wanted to improve my typing and colemak experience
    I love colemak and yes s-r doesn't bother me anymore (probably also because I stopped using qwerty)
    I did have some weeks of not practicing probably 6-8 weeks in total but I never used qwerty for typing.

    CURRENTLY
       -I play typeracer and get 65-75wpm almost all the time
       -my accuracy is wildly fluctuating though (from 90-97% most of the time)

    A long story of my accuracy and keyboards
        Around november 2012 I already had a good 95+% accuracy and my speed is already around what it is right now, until my razer bw starts breaking apart by mid November - colemak 'y' double taps and colemak 'm' double taps or doesn't get acknowledged at all! Sadly I couldn't replace my bw because I bought it overseas.
        Come December I thought I'd try another switch type, even though I already loved the "blues" I thought they are quite heavy and I get tired easily(and it is broken). So I bought the CM QFTK with "reds". I really had problems adjusting (no tactile and very soft) it decreased my speed to the low 60s - 70s with my accuracy dipping to around ~93%.
        Discouraged I decided to self-repair my razer BW(it was really hard to open took around 2hrs). After swapping the switches from the macro keys to the problematic letters, it was done. I loved using the BW again but oddly it fatigued me quite fast and so when I used the CM QFTK again I actually preferred it more.
        I'm now switching the keyboards from time to time. I think this hurts my accuracy plus the fact that I am also experimenting and training with not resting my wrists on the wrist rest right now (my wrists used to always have contact with a wrist rest).

    that's it for now. Kindly share your experiences with mech keyboards+colemak with me as well I'd love to hear them(I am addicted to mechs haha)

    Last edited by undulatus (21-Jan-2013 01:11:35)
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    • From: Viken, Norway
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    Nice! Sounds like you should be taking it steadily to improve your accuracy. ;)

    *** Learn Colemak in 2–5 steps with Tarmak! ***
    *** Check out my Big Bag of Keyboard Tricks for Win/Linux/TMK... ***

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    • Registered: 25-Jul-2012
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    Slowing down to focus on my accuracy makes me bottom out though X.x

    But ok I will try and post an update :)

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