Hi all! I never touch-typed qwerty properly even though I had been using it for about 5 years (I never typed when I was younger). I always used my index finger for typing "C", right middle finger to type "M", ring finger to type "P", and so on. I also used only the left shift key. Yet I could reach 70+ wpm on qwerty even after making corrections with my fingers flying everywhere. I then took a touch-typing course in qwerty and found it extremely uncomfortable. Having to re-learn typing, I chose to learn Colemak as it seemed to be the best for me. I am a student, not a Malay but can read, speak and type Malay. Interestingly, I used http://patorjk.com/keyboard-layout-analyzer/ and it stated that Colemak is the best layout for many of the documents that I have typed in Malay!
I started learning Colemak last week and typed a few hours a day on it. I am using a MacBook Pro, with OS X 10.8.3. I absolutely love the onscreen keyboard (Keyboard Viewer in the language and text menu bar item) that helped me through my first days with Colemak. For people also using Macs, it is a great feature. And if you are quitting qwerty cold turkey, you can use the Mac's in-built Dictation feature when you are tired of typing.
Right now I am capped at about 45 wpm because I am still not used to Colemak.
I have a few questions, though. Are there any modifications to the standard way of typing that can make it even better (other than ergonomic keyboards or physical changes to the keys)? Is there any benefit to retaining my ability in qwerty? And if you are typing a long series of characters in uppercase, do you repeatedly switch from left to right shift and back as the actively typing hand changes from right to left and back? It feels a bit awkward to me. Also, how do you type the right shift without moving your wrist or feeling awkward? And should I change to Colemak on my phone as well? Thanks!
[Edit - I am still quite unfamiliar with the layout and make mistakes often but I have surpassed my Qwerty speed! It took me 2 weeks. Colemak is really much more comfortable and faster!]
P.S. For people with jailbroken iOS devices, do you want to use Colemak on your device? If so, please contact iamharic, a Cydia developer who develops ABCD Keyboard, which has the potential to apply the Colemak layout. I have contacted him, and he said that he would add the layout in his free time. But that was a while ago, and he might have forgotten... You can find his email by searching for ABCD Keyboard in Cydia and tapping on Contact Developer. This will be especially useful for people wishing for Colemak on the iPad.