why does it not use the thumbs
An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
51–60 of 147 posts
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#52But it is still a slab of plastic with buttons...
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#53Y'all need to know the background of past efforts [1], people keep making the same observations over and over again as if they're new. In the area of computer-generated layouts, there's been lots of rich discussion on the AdNW [2] and MTGAP [3] projects.
For "improving Dvorak", that was solved back in 2004 with Capewell-Dvorak [4].
To the author: what is supposed to be AI here? I don't see a mention of a ML method or neural network here, is it "just" an evolutionary algorithm like CarPalx, AdNW and MTGAP (not that it's bad)?
[1] https://deskthority.net/wiki/Alternative_keyboard_layouts
[2] https://deskthority.net/wiki/Alternative_keyboard_layouts#Ad...
[3] https://mathematicalmulticore.wordpress.com/category/keyboar...
[4] https://deskthority.net/wiki/Alternative_keyboard_layouts#Ca...
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#54I am planning to switch to Colemak soon. I would love to know experience reports of users who use this layout as their daily driver.
I switched late high school to exclusively use Colemak and have since. It's harder to reflect now about the difference of it as it have just became the new normal for me, but I remember my initial reactions after getting fluent in colemak was that:
1. for me personally it didn't improve typing speed significantly
2. It felt much more ergonomic. I don't move my hands as much.
3. this was an unexpected side effect, but I noticed how horrible the symbol layout is for programmers on the default swedish layout. colemak symbol layout is much more similiar to the english qwerty which is so much better.
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#55As a chronically fat-fingered typist working in English, all those vowels next to each other gives me the willies - far too easy to get the wrong one and for autocorrect to not spot the error. The adjacency of U, I and O on qwerty gives me enough aggro in this regard already.
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#56Y'all need to know the background of past efforts [1], people keep making the same observations over and over again as if they're new. In the area of computer-generated layouts, there's been lots of rich discussion on the AdNW [2] and MTGAP [3] projects. For "improving Dvorak", that was solved back in 2004 with Capewell-Dvorak [4]. To the author: what is supposed to be AI here? I don't see a mention of a ML method or…
I agree that I would love a discussion by OP acknowledging previous efforts and comparing approaches.
Having multiple minds working at the same problem is great, but not engaging with prior art diminishes the value of their own work IMO.
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#57The problem with any non-QWERTY keyboard layout is that all app and web shortcuts go out the window. You want to save an image for the web? Good luck growing a third hand. Want to open the quick menu on a site using ⌘+/, but your / key is only accessible using the shift key? Tough luck. Need to change the font size in your editor? Just navigate down these 3 easy sub-menus, because the keyboard shortcut for that is al…
This is something people have thought about because it's an obvious inconvenience to anyone trying out, say, Dvorak.
On a Mac, you can use ⌘ keys as QWERTY, but have Dvorak for everything else. Like the other comment, this sounds like someone who hasn't given an alternative keyboard layout a serious try.
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#58The problem with any non-QWERTY keyboard layout is that all app and web shortcuts go out the window. You want to save an image for the web? Good luck growing a third hand. Want to open the quick menu on a site using ⌘+/, but your / key is only accessible using the shift key? Tough luck. Need to change the font size in your editor? Just navigate down these 3 easy sub-menus, because the keyboard shortcut for that is al…
There really should be a keyboard-shortcut standard. Some sort of configurable mapping of common actions/intents to key combinations that is set by the OS and shared between all apps.
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#59Dvorak touchtyper since 2010 is here ^_^ I appreciate any attempts to make August Dvorak's work even better. For example, that claster of wovels is not AI's work but Dvorak's. BTW there is one strange claim from my POW: > QWERTY - 0% (baseline) > Dvorak - +77% > Colemak - +84% > Workman - +101% > Halmak - +134% If author considers Colemak and Workman more efficient than Dvorak, I should not even to give this layout a…
> Probably it is because I am a piano player since 2016 and the fingers which are weak on average people are not that weak for me This reminds of my situation. I'm not a piano player, and I used to type with basically two fingers (plus thumb for space and pinky for ctrl/alt/shift). Since I've started trying to use more fingers, I've noticed that using a traditional, non split keyboard, is more painful, because it req…
> I've noticed that using a traditional, non split keyboard, is more painful, because it requires me to twist my wrists sideways
I have never used a split (which almost always is an ortholinear and not requires any twist) but my experience tells me than I am twisting not a wrist but only one finger, while 9 others just resting on a home row. I do not understand how it is possible to touchtype while you are twisting your wrists because if your index fingers lose the home row - you have to look at kbd to find it again.
BTW I have noticed that touchtyping on laptop may be harder than on dedicated kbd because comfortable position of display may require an uncomfortable position of wrists and touchpad (if enabled) does even bigger mess.
Re: An AI designed keyboard layout (2021)
#60Alternative keyboard layouts are fascinating, but always raise a couple of questions for me and I wonder if anyone here can come up with actual experiences regarding the following topics: - I have been using standard german QWERTZ for about 42 years now, in average certainly not less than 3 hours every day. I was originally educated in proper 10 finger blind typing in a dedicated typing school as part of my typesette…
To give my personal impression, as someone who switched to neo [0] about 2 years ago. To be fair I only had about 20 years of QWERTZ & QWERTY experience before that. 1. For me it took about a year or so until I surpassed my QWERTY typing speed with certainty. I typed about 80-90 wpm on QWERTY and currently type at about 90-100 wpm on neo. 2. Yes, it's not a big issue. I rarely type QWERTY nowadays, but whenever I hav…
> I typed about 80-90 wpm on QWERTY and currently type at about 90-100 wpm on neo.
This is really fast and a true improvement. I am currently at 90 wpm and do not feel I could improve that much (German has special characters äöüß and a lot of capitals).
> I rarely type QWERTY nowadays, but whenever I have to it clicks after a few minutes and I can type at maybe 70% the speed I typed at before.
Interesting, so it might actually be possible to have multiple sets of muscle memory for the same thing!
> It can be a bit annoying to change keyboard layouts each time someone else wants to quickly use your computer.
Someone else will face much more difficulties using my computer than just the keyboard layout. 30 years of customization have made my computer very individual. ;-)
Thanks for sharing!