Typing

That's me.

When I use my ipad I only use one finger. The other one is holding the pad. ;D

I used the 'hunt and peck' typing method for over twenty years despite the fact that I was using a computer for several hours nearly every day. I used to use my index fingers, sometimes my middle fingers, plus my thumbs.

A few years ago I decided this was ridiculous, so I bought a cheap old 'Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing' program and devoted half an hour or so each day to touch typing practice. After just a few weeks I was touch typing all the letters, numbers and common symbols and I've done this ever since.

I still look down at the keyboard for some rare punctuation symbols and things like the F-keys but these vary in placement so much from one computer to another that there's not much point learning to touch-type them unless you spend most of your time on the same computer.

One change is that now I type 'properly', I never use my left thumb - I used to use that sometimes on the space bar with my old self taught method. I don't know why the official touch typing method I learned doesn't make use of the left thumb - seems like a waste of resources to me!

When I'm playing my saxophone, I have to use my left thumb but not the right one - so I guess this evens out the wear!

They tried to teach us typing (on actual mechanical typewriters) at school, but as they only spent a couple of hours at it, it wasn't going to help that much.

About 10 years ago, I changed from QWERTY to the Dvorak layout, which has helped massively with the RSI problems I was having. I find myself glancing down occasionally as it registers which layout I am currently using and keeps my hands in the correct place as they otherwise tend to drift. I can type without looking (if I have to) and I can now do it much more quickly and easily with the Dvorak keyboard than with QWERTY.

I considered the Dvorak layout. But for my job I have to use lots of computers - often ones at customers' premises and it's usually not possible or practical to install/swap to Dvorak then.

What should be considered, in my opinion, for any new layout are the keys that are used commonly on a computer but are not considered to be part of 'typing': the cursor movement keys, delete key, backspace key and so on. These functions ought to be mapped to standard letter keys so that once you've learned to touch type, then you can also move the cursor around, delete and so on without having to learn the different auxiliary key placements on laptops, desktops, etc.

All that is needed is a convention: for example if the left hand shift key and space bar were held down using the left hand pinky and thumb, then that could act as a 'function shift' allowing all the right hand keys to be used for functions. Maybe I for cursor up, comma for cursor down, J for cursor left, L for cursor right, U for backspace, O for delete and so on...

A cloud dream I know, but it would be so easy to implement and would have virtually zero impact on people who wish to continue to use their keyboards in the 'conventional' way.

I temped in an office once where the keyboard given to me looked exactly like that, because most of the letters and numbers had worn off I just about managed but it was a pain

I'm currently holding my iPad with one hand and typing with one finger.

I put Ol's tablet thingy on something flat and try to type normally but it's sloooooow

I also taught myself to touch type. I remember we had a handly little programme on our old computer which put a keyboard on the screen so you could look at the screen and figure out where the letters should be and practice typing sentences. Didn't take very long by that method. I put that I mostly look at the screen because I also look around sometimes at other stuff, but some things like numbers and symbols I usually still need to check the keyboard or check the screen to make sure I didn't make a mistake.

I used to do a lot of programming when I was working and one typo could cost me a day's work. So I always used to look at the keyboard. In addition, spelling mistakes in my emails to customers would have looked very bad because we were supposed to be masters of the English language.

I have never been a good typer. I can type fast and in 8th grade, I was the only one who could since my classmates had just never done it, but I mostly do it with two fingers, often looking at the keyboard.

This is why I'd like a 'like' button.

I don't have that problem

I guess my typing is ok. It's required by my job since I work with words basically as a translator. I also learn to type Chinese characters which is more difficult than English.