• You are not logged in.

My results switching to Colemak

  • Started by h4
  • 27 Replies:
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
29-Jul-2016 04:10:38#1 My results switching to Colemak

I switched cold turkey. I'm not using QWERTY for anything right now. My speed on QWERTY was 85-90wpm on 10fastfingers and 75-80wpm on typeracer.

Day 1: 10-13wpm on 10fastfingers
Day 2: 15-20wpm on 10fastfingers
Day 3: 27wpm average, 33wpm peak on 10fastfingers
Day 4: 37wpm average, 41wpm peak on 10fastfingers
Day 5 (today): 45wpm average, 52wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 39wpm average, 46wpm peak on typeracer

Things that I've noticed:

- AltGr + aeiou feels a bit better than pressing ´ then aeiou to get áéíóú.
- Symbols in the English layout/Colemak are in a better place than in the Spanish QWERTY layout. ' is a lot easier to reach, it's next to O (pinky finger) on the home row instead of being next to 0.
- Typing "you" is a bit hard (ring pinky middle)

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 214
  • From: Viken, Norway
  • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
  • Posts: 5,361
29-Jul-2016 07:58:24#2 Re: My results switching to Colemak

For 'you' I don't have any special tricks; I agree that it's a bit clunky. You'll get used to it though! :-)

The symbol placements are really from the US layout. I agree that it's better than most locale layouts in most respects.

Have you seen my suggestion for a Spanish Colemak? I put the ´ accent on a separate key so it's easy to reach.

Last edited by DreymaR (29-Jul-2016 07:59:31)

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

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
30-Jul-2016 04:14:31#3 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 6: 49wpm average, 52wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 45wpm average, 52wpm peak on typeracer

DreymaR said:

Have you seen my suggestion for a Spanish Colemak? I put the ´ accent on a separate key so it's easy to reach.

I saw it, but I think that I'm better off just using the standard Colemak layout.

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 0
  • Registered: 22-May-2016
  • Posts: 37
31-Jul-2016 01:57:26#4 Re: My results switching to Colemak

I thought my transition speed was fast, but you're really knocking it out of the park!

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
31-Jul-2016 03:54:43#5 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 7: 54wpm average, 58wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 50wpm average, 54wpm peak on typeracer

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
01-Aug-2016 05:21:19#6 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 8: 57wpm average, 59wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 54wpm average, 60wpm peak on typeracer

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
08-Aug-2016 19:04:54#7 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 9: 56wpm average, 58wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 52wpm average, 55wpm peak on typeracer
Day 10: 55wpm average, 58wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 53wpm average, 56wpm peak on typeracer
Day 11: 59wpm average, 62wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 55wpm average, 58wpm peak on typeracer
Day 12: 58wpm average, 60wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 53wpm average, 60wpm peak on typeracer
Day 13: 60wpm average, 62wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 56wpm average, 59wpm peak on typeracer
Day 14: 62wpm average, 65wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 56wpm average, 60wpm peak on typeracer
Day 15: 64wpm average, 67wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 57wpm average, 62wpm peak on typeracer

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 117
  • From: UK
  • Registered: 14-Apr-2014
  • Posts: 978
09-Aug-2016 11:18:32#8 Re: My results switching to Colemak

How come all the newcomers lately all seem to be able to learn so quickly?!?  (jealous)

Using Colemak-DH with Seniply.

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 214
  • From: Viken, Norway
  • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
  • Posts: 5,361
09-Aug-2016 12:26:48#9 Re: My results switching to Colemak

One thing: You, I and several others here are developers at heart, seeking and tweaking in great detail. That takes some time and effort, slowing us down. But others benefit from it. ;-)

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

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
09-Aug-2016 18:28:23#10 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 16: 66wpm average, 70wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 59wpm average, 65wpm peak on typeracer

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
24-Aug-2016 23:42:54#11 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 32: 70wpm average, 73wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 65wpm average, 70wpm peak on typeracer

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: -1
  • Registered: 25-Aug-2016
  • Posts: 5
25-Aug-2016 00:26:00#12 Re: My results switching to Colemak

I'm brand new and just considering getting started. Just for my own understanding, having read through your thread here, you are 32 days into the switch and are now typing at 20 words per minute slower than when using QWERTY, and it seems most people consider this above average rate of learning (from reading people's responses to your posts).

Is this a pretty good summary?

h4 said:

Day 32: 70wpm average, 73wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 65wpm average, 70wpm peak on typeracer

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 214
  • From: Viken, Norway
  • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
  • Posts: 5,361
25-Aug-2016 08:51:22#13 Re: My results switching to Colemak

It's good progress, but I have no idea what constitutes "average". It depends a lot on how much time and effort you use, and also on your aptitude.

Also, there's Tarmak or no Tarmak. Some Tarmak users will be people who would hardly do the switch if they had to go cold Turkey; some will want to switch at a leisurely pace. Others have switched and picked up speed fast with Tarmak.

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

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
25-Aug-2016 18:57:58#14 Re: My results switching to Colemak

My "average" is the average speed after 10 tries, other people may do it in a different way.

For example, (67+70+71+69+73+66+72+72+70+69)/10 = 69.9, with the highest speed being 73 (peak) and the lowest being 66.

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 214
  • From: Viken, Norway
  • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
  • Posts: 5,361
26-Aug-2016 08:31:25#15 Re: My results switching to Colemak

That's a decent way of measuring your speed, H4. I might recommend trimming off the max and min measurements (10%, so for 10 measurements that's one in each end), for a slightly more robust/representative figure.

However, the question at hand was what constitutes an average rate of learning over Colemak users. ;-)

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

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
26-Aug-2016 23:14:05#16 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 34: 83wpm average, 87wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 69wpm average, 73wpm peak on typeracer

Hmmm…

I guess that playing things like this before a typing test helps.

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
14-Sep-2016 00:36:31#17 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 46: 85wpm average, 89wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 72wpm average, 82wpm peak on typeracer.

I swapped caps lock and backspace around day 30. It would be nice to have a keyboard with a split spacebar.

Last edited by h4 (14-Sep-2016 00:38:36)
Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
21-Sep-2016 22:17:21#18 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 54: 84wpm average, 88wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 73wpm average, 80wpm peak on typeracer

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 24-Sep-2014
  • Posts: 12
23-Sep-2016 19:09:50#19 Re: My results switching to Colemak
DreymaR said:

It's good progress, but I have no idea what constitutes "average". It depends a lot on how much time and effort you use, and also on your aptitude.

Make no mistake, if you already know how to touch type well in a different layout (e.g: qwerty), your "aptitude" for this is already very good. I think a fast touch typist with a lot of time can transition fairly quickly with low-risk and easily able to retain qwerty if desired.

My Colemak/Qwerty Experience
Science behind mastering multiple keyboard layouts

Offline
  • 1
  • Reputation: 214
  • From: Viken, Norway
  • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
  • Posts: 5,361
26-Sep-2016 09:27:36#20 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Indeed. Ryan Heise is but one example.

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

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 2
  • Registered: 13-Nov-2013
  • Posts: 48
27-Sep-2016 17:56:07#21 Re: My results switching to Colemak
DreymaR said:

It's good progress, but I have no idea what constitutes "average". It depends a lot on how much time and effort you use, and also on your aptitude.

Also, there's Tarmak or no Tarmak. Some Tarmak users will be people who would hardly do the switch if they had to go cold Turkey; some will want to switch at a leisurely pace. Others have switched and picked up speed fast with Tarmak.

I also don't know what constitutes average but in my own experience it took me 3 months to get back 90% of my qwerty speeds and probably about 1 1/2 years to get back to 100% of my qwerty speed. So your learning is definitely quicker than mine. It probably would be nice to get a chart comparing all of the people that have posted on this forum so that newcomers could have an idea about what they were getting themselves into.

Offline
  • 1
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
28-Sep-2016 21:02:36#22 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Day 61: 89wpm average, 90wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 76wpm average, 78wpm peak on typeracer.

I got 88wpm 3 times in a row in 10fastfingers. Only got 88, 89 and 90wpm results.

Offline
  • 0
  • h4
  • Member
  • Reputation: 1
  • Registered: 29-Jul-2016
  • Posts: 14
22-Nov-2017 16:45:31#23 Re: My results switching to Colemak

More than a year later:

Colemak: 95wpm average, 98wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 87wpm average, 92wpm peak on typeracer

QWERTY: 70wpm average, 74wpm peak on 10fastfingers / 68wpm average, 75wpm peak on typeracer. A trillion spelling mistakes.

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 214
  • From: Viken, Norway
  • Registered: 13-Dec-2006
  • Posts: 5,361
23-Nov-2017 09:54:26#24 Re: My results switching to Colemak

Wow, nice speed there! Hope you're happy with the experience too. Well, of course you are. ;-)

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

Offline
  • 0
  • Reputation: 21
  • Registered: 08-Oct-2017
  • Posts: 223
23-Nov-2017 10:25:21#25 Re: My results switching to Colemak

That's great to see, I've never really pushed through an average of 75 WPM, but now that I've finally landed on something that will stay my preferred layout for a while I guess I'll get up there with some more practise.

Offline
  • 0