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    Finally, Back to Normal!

    • Started by trifthen
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    • From: Chicago Area
    • Registered: 04-Nov-2009
    • Posts: 21
    04-Nov-2009 17:50:33#1 Finally, Back to Normal!

    It's been almost a year now since I decided to switch to Colemak after trying and getting frustrated with Dvorak. For the record, I didn't like Dvorak for the exact reasons stated here, primarily that freaking S and L were placed on the pinkie. Whose idea was that, anyway?

    I've typed QWERTY since 1994, and in an effort to do this as quickly as possible, I basically switched cold-turkey. Oh, I fiddled with it for a while so that work was QWERTY and home was Colemak, but that seemed to just be confusing my muscle memory because the two are so similar (especially regarding the position of S, G, D, and F.) So that was it, it was time to just bite the bullet and go nuts.

    I printed out the layout and taped it below my monitor until I had it basically memorized, and then I just kept getting faster until tests (gtypist) suggests my speeds have returned to my QWERTY levels (90ish). My burst speed is still a little lagging (105-ish) but my sustained speeds are generally faster without the wrist pain when I really went nuts with QWERTY, so overall, I'm pleased.

    Plus, it makes a great security device since I kept my old key-caps! Muahahaah!

    I've posted another thread in the "Technical" section because I have some major gripes along the way, but at least I can type again. Heh.

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    • From: Viken, Norway
    • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
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    05-Nov-2009 08:35:48#2 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!

    Grats!  :)

    Now get an unlabeled keyboard. Not only equally effective as a security device, but even scares the enemy before they get their germ-infested fleshy fingerlings on your beloved board!

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

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    05-Nov-2009 16:25:48#3 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!
    DreymaR said:

    Grats!  :)
    Now get an unlabeled keyboard

    I'm a programmer, and I need the reference for various symbols. I know where they are, but sometimes I typo enough that I have to look. :p I've also basically lost any ability I had to type QWERTY, so I have to look at keyboards when I use somebody else's computer. I didn't dual-train, so I could speed up the transition, and now I'm kinda stuck with Colemak. :p

    It's a small price to pay. :)

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    • From: Viken, Norway
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    06-Nov-2009 13:05:43#4 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!

    Then mod a board with symbol keys intact and letter keys blank? My Unicomp board was delivered with a bag of blank black caps for my modding delight.  :)

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

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    07-Nov-2009 18:13:32#5 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!

    Ok, so I lied. After spending about half an hour on Key Hero, I see that my typing speed is about 70 on average, with bursts into the mid 90's. Apparently I have some work to do in order to get back to my QWERTY speed. But, after over fifteen years in QWERTY, I can't expect to magically undo all that muscle memory.

    Though I have noticed a few things with what I mistyped in Key Hero.

    * I can't type "don't" for the life of me, with any kind of speed. Why? Well, it certainly doesn't help that O, N, and the apostrophe are all on the right hand.

    * I still have huge problems with G, and D for some reason. I notice this at work too. I'll type "done" instead of "gone," or "going" instead of "doing". Very subtle so that spellcheck doesn't get it, and I don't notice until much later.

    * My average is dragged down by typos. My accuracy is anywhere between 95 and 98%, but not with any reliability. All that backspacing is destroying my speed. I'm not sure if it's my netbook keyboard or simply the fact I'm a typo maniac. I'm right that I burst into the 100+ range, but the sustained measurements make me feel slow.

    * My average speed is dragged down by long words. Some of the quotes chosen for Key Hero are just ridiculous in being loaded with 8-10 character words. My brain apparently has trouble with these if I don't type them often. I can whip out "uncomplicated", but "surreptitious" will trip me up anytime.

    * Key hero doesn't measure burst speed. Back when I learned QWERTY, I obtained Mavis Beacon, and it had a little counter on the bottom that kept a count of your typing speed right this very second, averaging over only a few keystrokes. Even back in high-school, I could peg that at 120 pretty easily, even if not for long. Key Hero seems to keep a running average, so you can increase, but if you just let it sit until it hits zero, and then just start bursting with 3-letter combos, it won't just jump to your actual finger speed.

    I'm not sure what to do about the "on't" key-combo, which is hilariously enough, much worse on QWERTY, but I don't remember having this much trouble with it. I'll load up typespeed with a bunch of words with G and D in them to try and iron out that wrinkle. I will get back up into the 90's damn it!

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    07-Nov-2009 20:25:27#6 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!

    Possibly the best advice to improve your speed is to stop worrying about it. Nothing will slow you down like *trying* to type fast. Here are some tips from Ryan Heise who now types Colemak at about 140wpm so he probably knows what he is on about (taken from his site ryanheise.com):

    Tips for learning

        * After the plateau at 50 WPM, I decided to pay attention to my weaknesses, and I noticed that my most commonly mistyped character was "G". After simply focusing on "G" as I typed, my speed instantly jumped up into the 60s.
        * When I got into the 90s, progress was quite slow getting up above 100 WPM. What helped was to practice by typing with a steady rhythm, using the same amount of time to think about each character. This forced me to take the time I needed to catch common mis-presses before they happened, something that I think would have taken much longer to correct otherwise.
        * Now that my speed is above 100 WPM, my typing technique works something like this: by default, force myself to type at a steady pace -- but, when I see words or strings of words that I know I can type very quickly (e.g. using known finger rolls) then I remember to speed up on those, -- and, when I see words that I know I have problems with, I remember to slow down and type carefully. This, I have found, is the fastest way for me to type, as it tends to eliminate a lot of wasted time introducing and correcting mistakes. However, it requires being aware of your strong and weak words.

    Last edited by simonh (07-Nov-2009 20:25:45)

    "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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    07-Nov-2009 20:45:09#7 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!

    ryan's advice above is great.  basically, if you practice more you will eventually figure out that you have to type certain words more carefully and just live with that.  i think when you are doing typing tests you will have to not only learn to type more strategically, but also _read_ more strategically; most words you don't need to think about letter by letter, but some words, and some parts, you have to do, and you can anticipate these before you even get to them by kind of being aware of the words up ahead as you type the easy ones.

    i'm curious about your problems with don't.  in qwerty i find this word to be extremely easy.  "don" is about as fast as anything can possibly be, and then 't is not fast but certainly not awkward or same-finger, just a simple 1-2 punch, one from each hand. 't 't 't 't don don don don 't 't 't 't don don don don 't 't 't 't don don don don 't 't 't 't don don don don.  maybe one of the keys in one of those combinations is simply error-prone or you're trying to do it too fast.  't 't 't 't 't 't 't 't 't 't 't 't.  it's easy to transpose these.  don don don don don don don don don don don don don don.  i think these are prone to hitting the trailing space too soon.  don't. don't. don't. don't. don't. don't. don't. don't. don't. don't. don't.  if it's being ended by a period, then this is more difficult, but i don't think it's a big deal, only slow.  going from a pinky reach to a ring finger bottom row is awkward.  of course i'm talking about qwerty, not colemak.  but if you say qwerty is even worse, then i don't know what the problem is.

    http://hi-games.net/typing-test/watch?u=2374

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    07-Nov-2009 21:05:41#8 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!
    klalkity said:

    of course i'm talking about qwerty, not colemak.  but if you say qwerty is even worse, then i don't know what the problem is.

    I can't type QWERTY anymore. :p That said, I was basing that evaluation based purely on the position of the keys. Of course, all this comes from the keyboard on my netbook right now since I'm not at work. I'm sure my Unicomp will give likely different results. I'm sure it's the movement to the apostrophe that's killing me, 'cause I can type DON as an essentially instant trigraph. But while my index finger is on the N, it's hard to also swing my pinkie over and hit the apostrophe for some reason.

    Again, I'm not slow. An average above 70 with bursts into the low 100's is nothing to cry about. I'm just saying it's not what I got used to with QWERTY. Oh, and:

    "A dozen daring dogs dug doug's darn garden." will be my new phrase to train myself to use D and G properly. (The funny part is that while I was typing the above, I typed ANG instead of AND. :p)

    And as a note, the main problem I have with typing tests is that they won't let you get away with one single typo. I actually type fast enough that I can make a typo and have half a dozen characters as part of the same stream finished before I start backspacing, and of course it doesn't count those, so I have to backspace and fix the typo before continuing, but it's hard to tell where the typo was sometimes because I'm concentrating on the sample text.  So I use gtypist on Ubuntu, because it rates based on the second you start typing to the second you type the last character, and multiplies your accuracy against your speed at the end to get projected speed. Based on that, I have an average of about 85 with bursts to 110, which is what I had with QWERTY.

    I guess I'll just stay away from online speed tests. :p

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    07-Nov-2009 21:57:56#9 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!
    trifthen said:

    And as a note, the main problem I have with typing tests is that they won't let you get away with one single typo. I actually type fast enough that I can make a typo and have half a dozen characters as part of the same stream finished before I start backspacing, and of course it doesn't count those, so I have to backspace and fix the typo before continuing, but it's hard to tell where the typo was sometimes because I'm concentrating on the sample text.  So I use gtypist on Ubuntu, because it rates based on the second you start typing to the second you type the last character, and multiplies your accuracy against your speed at the end to get projected speed.

    I just found
    http://www.typeonline.co.uk/copypractice.php
    http://www.typeonline.co.uk/typingspeed.php

    It ignores errors until the end then gives you the results.
    The speed test is odd - you have to click boxes to start/stop the clock. But the good thing is it's useful for 'blind' typing, you can just look at what you are supposed to copy and type away. I think there was another thread here suggesting blind typing as a way to improve accuracy and speed.
    I think I'll bookmark the copy practice link.

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    07-Nov-2009 22:34:57#10 Re: Finally, Back to Normal!

    My hand has to move between "don" and "'t".  It's like two instant trigraphs back to back (but one isn't really a trigraph).

    http://hi-games.net/typing-test/watch?u=2374

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