I'd learned Dvorak using a Kinesis keyboard. I use both Dvorak with the Kinesis and QWERTY with a standard keyboard. The slight difference in profile is enough that I've never had interference, and use both comfortably. That said, it hasn't been an enormous speed increase; I'm roughly equally as quick with either.
Don't learn Dvorak
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Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#102If you're considering learning Dvorak, I'd strongly recommend considering Colemak instead. I tried Dvorak with the hope that it would mitigate RSI, but it spreads the work among fingers pretty unevenly -- I really ended up just moving the problem rather than fixing it (mostly to my right pinky). Colemak is (relatively) easy to learn if you know QWERTY, and it's been life-changing for me: I can work for more hours of…
Same here. Colmak allows me to to type at higher speeds for longer without pain. I carry a mechanical keyboard with dipswitches that allow me to use colmak on other people's machines without much trouble (as a bonus, mechanical keyboard generally nicer than their keyboard too).
Which keyboard out of curiosity?
Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#103Earlier quoted context omitted.
Using an ergonomic split keyboard will do far more to reduce RSI than any particular keyboard layout.
I second this. Since I use a split keyboard with a trackball placed in the middle my hand and right arm problems are all gone.
I use a 60% keyboard and that solved it for me, reaching for the mouse seems to cause all of my issues.
Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#104The author complains that his QWERTY muscle memory went away when learning Dvorak. This doesn't match my experience. I can still use QWERTY, somewhat slower than before I learned Dvorak, but not much, and since I use Dvorak 99% of the time, it's no big deal.
This is also my experience after about 10 years of Dvorak and I work on other people's computers in QWERTY daily.
I will sometimes begin to type in Dvorak unconsciously if I am on a laptop keyboard that feels similar to my personal laptop. As soon as I see the mistaken letters coming out I switch back without any effort.
Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#105I believe the whole statement saying that QWERTY layout is designed to slow typing down is probably a myth as I find the letters that stand right near each other in a word being neighbors on the keyboard just so often.
No, it was designed to prevent typewriters from jamming, with the drawback that your fingers need to move much more when typing. There are various statistical analysis on the web.
> probably a myth as I find the letters that stand right near each other
And that's exactly the problem. Dvorak is optimized to maximize alternating hands, on purpose.
Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#106I can switch back & forth between Dvorak and QWERTY. Maybe it was the years of piano practice that gave me the ability to learn the former without losing the latter.
Anyway, I’m happy with the result. I’d do it again in a heartbeat. It was a big win for my RSI.
Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#107If you're considering learning Dvorak, I'd strongly recommend considering Colemak instead. I tried Dvorak with the hope that it would mitigate RSI, but it spreads the work among fingers pretty unevenly -- I really ended up just moving the problem rather than fixing it (mostly to my right pinky). Colemak is (relatively) easy to learn if you know QWERTY, and it's been life-changing for me: I can work for more hours of…
What is your experience when you have to use the QWERTY layout? Is it a frustrating experience or can you use it just fine given that Colemak is more similar to it than Dvorak?
I use colemak as well. I find it way more rare than you might think that you have to type in QWERTY. There are probably couple of times a year I need to, and I can always get away with some quick hunt n' peck in those rare cases.
Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#108I've been using Dvorak for about 20 years and am still happy with it, so I have no plans to switch to another layout or back to qwerty. My qwerty speed and accuracy have suffered a bit but I still use it on my phone to send SMSs, so it's still fresh in my mind and has never degraded significantly.
Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#109[deleted]
Re: Don't learn Dvorak
#110Before I switched to Dvorak, I had RSI problems. I still have RSI problems, but they are much less severe and much less frequent. The difference is stark. It makes a huge difference in quality of life for me. I have also tried alternative keyboards, like the Kinesis and the Ergodox, but switching to Dvorak seems to have had the largest impact. > Learning a new layout is one of the most frustrating experiences that I’…
Doing daily exercises for the hands and wrist solved my issues.
Which ones specifically, out of curiosity?