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    Finger Rolls

    • Started by Bardic
    • 2 Replies:
    • Reputation: 0
    • Registered: 14-Dec-2011
    • Posts: 2

    I have always been a semi fast hunt and peck typist using three fingers on each hand and doing a lot of rolls with my fingers on common combinations.  I basically have the qwerty layout memorized but have to look because my fingers don't return to home row (although I can go for stretches without looking).

    Anyways, after getting married recently my wife looked over at me while I was typing and realized I don't touch type which really surprised her.  Combine that with the mocking I get from my brother and I figured I'd better learn.  I had started learning to touch type Dvorak (which I researched some a few years ago) and read a bunch of pages to find out good typing tutors websites and came across a few mentions of Colemak.  I still probably would have stayed with Dvorak but the shortcut keys z,x,c, and v for Colemak were a big plus, the right hand vowels (I am certainly right hand dominant) and something that I read about how Dvorak was designed to roll pinky to index finger because that is what the majority of people do.


    So the main point of this post, I roll index to pinky finger on both hands, doing it pinky to index just feels terribly awkward and uncoordinated.  Maybe that means I have weak pinky fingers or something.  It would explain why I didn't like the S key in dvorak and the rolls seemed awkward.  So my question for the community are:

    How do you roll your fingers if tapping on a desk, index first, pinky first, or doesn't matter?

    If you clasp your hands which thumb is on top, just to see if there is a trend?

    And how well do you type or do you struggle with certain things?


    On facebook I found 16 friends that roll pinky first, 3 roll either way comfortably, and 3 that do index first (4 including me). 
    When I clasp my hands together I have right thumb on top, which also seems to be the minority.
    I'm just curious if this contributes to my difficulties picking up touch typing, I can memorize the keys fine, but getting my fingers to move correctly doesn't always work.

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    • From: Viken, Norway
    • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
    • Posts: 5,376

    Funny you should ask, because I was thinking about that not long ago! When I roll on a table, I usually go pinky -> index. Then again, when playing the arabic-style tambourine it's the same so maybe I learnt it? Don't know. It just feels more comfortable that way, although both ways work. On rare occasions, I've rolled back-and-forth but then it feels like an etude for the piano.

    I think rolls in general are efficient. Returning to the tambourine, when I do a rapid drum roll (confusing terminology but you know what I mean I hope!) I do it not by alternating hands (that's tortuous) but by rolling fingers on the same hand. With bigger drums and drumsticks, alternating hands is better of course, but then you use much bigger movements.

    But the ring and pinky fingers in particular are a bit weak and not independent enough in many cases. Training them helps; I know of a champion-class typist who advocates piano exercises because they train finger strength and independency well. I think your problems should go away with training.

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    • Registered: 14-Dec-2011
    • Posts: 2

    Yeah, getting some exercise for those fingers is going to be a trick.  Then figuring out how to train my fingers to roll from the pinky.  ar and rs will be a pain but the right hand shouldn't be too bad.

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