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    Teaching a first time typist...

    • Started by juice43
    • 7 Replies:
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    • From: New York, New York
    • Registered: 22-Nov-2008
    • Posts: 130

    I have a ten year old little cousin. I've been talking to my uncle about efficient typing and it'd be nice if we taught my cousin an alternate layout from the very start. Now as you all know I type in Colemak, but my uncle types in Dvorak and everyone else in the family types in QWERTY. My cousin has used computers in QWERTY, but never for long periods of time and always through hunt and peck, so he doesn't have any kind of bias as we learned by letting him type in all the layouts. He typed at each like at 10-15 wpm with Dvorak and QWERTY because my uncle has the keys labeled in both layouts. Now in Colemak he typed like at 10 with me giving him a diagram.

    So what layout do you guys think that my cousin should learn? He has a new laptop, so he can learn any of them and he's also willing to... Which would be the best? And what real advantage would any have over the other?

    Colemak typist

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    • From: Viken, Norway
    • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
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    The answer is a given, isn't it?

    My daughter says she wants to learn both Colemak and QWERTY, the sweet thing. Of course, to her Colemak represents 50% of her home's layout base...

    For teaching a kid, I would emphasize the value of a physical Colemak board. It helps them a lot to see the letters on the right keys.

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

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    • From: New York, New York
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    I think that Colemak would be the best for him. We'll just use my uncles extra Dvorak stickers...
    My uncle is quite reluctant, but the statistics don't lie.

    What other advice do you think that I could use to help avoid frustration for him?

    Colemak typist

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    • From: Viken, Norway
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    No lies about it: He needs to know that this is a fringe phenomenon so far, and while we see it as ahead of our time others may scoff and scorn. If he can accept that and still be motivated, it's a go.

    I use Portable Keyboard Layout, which has a bunch of other cool features than just the Colemak. One of them is an onscreen image that's easy to show and hide by click or hotkey, and shows the shiftstate mappings as you press a modifier. Great little tool.

    Last edited by DreymaR (22-Sep-2009 11:37:11)

    *** 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: 27-Apr-2008
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    I wouldn't use stickers. Get him to learn by using a program such as Typefaster which shows the learner which key to press on the onscreen keyboard. You'd be doing him a bigger favour by training him to never need to look at the keyboard.

    Edit: And of course Colemak should be the layout.

    Last edited by simonh (22-Sep-2009 11:44:11)

    "It is an undoubted truth, that the less one has to do, the less time one finds to do it in." - Earl of Chesterfield

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    • From: Viken, Norway
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    Beg to differ there. For kids, I would have a physically visual layout at first. Of course, if the kid's really smart and really motivated you might go for the hole-in-one.

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

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    • From: New York, New York
    • Registered: 22-Nov-2008
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    We all agree (cousin, uncle and I) with simonh that proper typing technique would be good, without looking at the keyboard. Both my uncle and I didn't use the stickers to learn our layouts, (my uncle just put them on for those keyboard shortcuts on Dvorak), so it would be best for him not to use them to learn either. He seems to have figured out how to use the index finger tab things (I don't know what they are called) to get proper position. That should make life easier, so for now he uses the PKL diagram on windows, and a paper diagram on the top of the Linux box, which is exactly what I did when I was learning since I didn't know about the PKL diagram.

    So I guess that means another Colemak user is on a journey...
    The revolution continues. Thx guys

    Colemak typist

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    • From: Viken, Norway
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    Best of luck!!!

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

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