If you're having RSI problems I'd recommend looking at a good ergonomic keyboard before switching layouts.   If you have a particular finger that is causing you issues, I'd also suggest looking at how much that finger is used by any candidate layout.  Any layout design is a tradeoff between several metrics, and not all designs prioritize making weaker fingers do less.  Patorjk's keyboard layout analyzer can give you good metrics for any arbitrary layout:  http://patorjk.com/keyboard-layout-analyzer/

Best of luck.

I'm thinking that, after the last two days of trying to learn how to touch type even with QWERTY, that learning Dvorak actually hindered this change. I was typing at 10-20 wpm under the SAME LAYOUT that I could switch instantly to 130 wpm with my own typing style. It's only been a day but right now I'm at about probably 40-45 average, which is what I ended with Dvorak at. It's crazy how much different of a feeling it is to actually type with the right technique.

Perhaps QWERTY will work just fine for me with touch typing rather than whatever the hell I was doing before? The main worry I had was with compatibility between computers as well as with VIM and other programs.

Thank you all for the responses, by the way.

If it weren't for VIM, I would probably still be switching over to Colemak. But it is the main program that I use daily, and I just don't really think it's worth all of the hassle of learning a new layout. (And being able to transfer that layout between all of the different PCs that I use.)

If, God forbid, ignoring the mouse (I've been using the trackpad solely on this laptop the last few days) and using real touch-typing doesn't help this RSI then I guess I will have no other options. I would get a full-on ergonomic keyboard and a real desktop, but I'll be going off to college next year so I'm only really capable of using laptops for a while.

Vim is fine with Colemak, because the commands are mnemonic. It doesn't really matter where the letters in, say, 'diw' are as long as that command makes sense. So once you learn Colemak you'll be able to use Vim with it. Even the nav placements shouldn't bother you once you're used to it.

I would like to do that, but how would you suggest raising the display? I feel like it would be kind of awkward having the entire front section of the laptop just sticking out.

I've considered buying an HDMI monitor and hooking it up like you suggested, basically just using the laptop as the tower.

Why not?  It's nice and warm! :-p

[note: sarcasm, but I really don't believe in those warnings...]

Lead is primarily used to protect against ionizing radiation, and the only concern regarding laptops that I know of is absorbed heat. I don't worry about that myself, but a warm crotch may reduce fertility (usually temporarily) for those worried about such things. There are reports of heat-induced cancer but that's usually from quite hot surfaces so unless your laptop is really hot I wouldn't worry.

Since Qwerty is not optimized (E and T - the two most frequent keys are not on the homerow), Bitani's unique typing techniques prove much faster than standard touch typing positions.

Colemak/Dvorak are optimized for touch typing by putting the most used keys to the home row. So if Qwerty users want to try touch typing, perhaps they should do the switching to an alternative layout at the same time to get both benefits together.

@tony_vn, I really struggled homing my fingers, and aligning them when I first started to touch type.  To the point of discomfort.  I'm not even convinced the home row is the best place to home in on and place the most frequently occurring letters.  Having said that, I've gotten to the point where I'm kind of used to it now.  I was a little scared at going down a path of non-standard fingering - so I just followed the crowd.

What I'm trying to say is, that having an E in Qwerty's position might not actually be that big a deal.  I figure Qwerty users just move their right hand up to the top row to compensate.