NationStates Jolt Archive


What is Dvorak?

Sel Appa
23-07-2006, 08:33
Guess...come on you know you can do it. It's not that hard when you think about it...well actually it probably is. It's not an alien species, name, or planet. It's not what grandma makes for dinner. So what is it? Yes, I am trying to fill up that box that you can view part of the post with. I will eventually get to the pint....cut to the chase, etc...So, have you got it yet? Well, if not, I am about to tell you. We'll start with a wikipedia link...


Dvorak (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dvorak_Simplified_Keyboard)


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/KB_United_States_Dvorak.svg/400px-KB_United_States_Dvorak.svg.png
OK, Dvorak is another form of keyboard setup as an alternative to QWERTY. Apparently, it lets you type faster. I'm going to try it out...if I could just figure out how to set it up. XP machines have it as an option as do...Mac is X8.6 and higher...I think. So did you ever hear of it?
Kinda Sensible people
23-07-2006, 08:35
Dvorak is a composer. He's famous for New World Symphony. I think some of the music from the intro to Austin Powers may be Dvorak as well. :p
Sel Appa
23-07-2006, 08:36
Dvorak is a composer. He's famous for New World Symphony. I think some of the music from the intro to Austin Powers may be Dvorak as well. :p
That's what I get for it being named after a real person...
Intangelon
23-07-2006, 08:39
Antonin Dvorak (DVOR-zhok)? Probably the greatest of Czech composers and one of the greatest, regardles of nationality, of the Romantic era.
Intangelon
23-07-2006, 08:40
That keyboard makes my head hurt.:confused:
Kanabia
23-07-2006, 08:42
Meh, i'm too used to QWERTY.

Try this : http://www.typeonline.co.uk/typingspeed.php

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/7043/wpmfz0.jpg

I'm probably better on a good day. :p

EDIT - Second attempt got 66. :D
Demented Hamsters
23-07-2006, 08:56
Your speed was: 47wpm
You made 3 mistakes

Wow. Pretty damn good for self-learnt two finger typing, eh?
Posi
23-07-2006, 09:01
Meh, i'm too used to QWERTY.

Try this : http://www.typeonline.co.uk/typingspeed.php

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/7043/wpmfz0.jpg

I'm probably better on a good day. :p

EDIT - Second attempt got 66. :D
I got 35, and 12 errors.
Kinda Sensible people
23-07-2006, 09:03
62 WPM 1 error. Not bad.
Farnhamia
23-07-2006, 09:35
50 wpm with 4 ... that'll do
Dissonant Cognition
23-07-2006, 09:41
86 WPM, 3 errors
The Alma Mater
23-07-2006, 09:55
Meh, i'm too used to QWERTY.

But QWERTY is designed to slow you down, since at higher speeds the typewriters became stuck.
A bit outdated now methinks...
Rotovia-
23-07-2006, 10:00
Qwerty is full of love!
Harlesburg
23-07-2006, 10:12
But QWERTY is designed to slow you down, since at higher speeds the typewriters became stuck.
A bit outdated now methinks...
O RLY?
Whereyouthinkyougoing
23-07-2006, 10:16
Meh, i'm too used to QWERTY.

Try this : http://www.typeonline.co.uk/typingspeed.php

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/7043/wpmfz0.jpg

I'm probably better on a good day. :p

EDIT - Second attempt got 66. :D
Damn, that's pretty good. Hrmph.
I'll try that later at my desk with the extra keyboard plugged in - on my laptop's keyboard I'd likely manage something like 20 wpm with 21 mistakes. :rolleyes:
The Alma Mater
23-07-2006, 10:23
O RLY?

Yes, RLY :p The silly hammers tended to interlock if you typed too fast.
Dvorak is not really that superior by the way. Completely different designs (not 4 rows below eachother e.g.) can perform much better.

EDIT: and yes, I am on qwerty. Hence the typos ;)
Cromotar
23-07-2006, 10:36
Yes, RLY :p The silly hammers tended to interlock if you typed too fast...

You're only half-right, I'm afraid. While it was designed to avoid the problem of interlocking hammers, it's purpose was not to slow down typing:

Frequently used pairs of letters were separated in an attempt to stop the typebars from intertwining and becoming stuck, thus forcing the typist to manually unstick the typebars and also frequently blotting the document[1]. The home row (ASDFGHJKL) of the QWERTY layout is thought to be a remnant of the old alphabetical layout that QWERTY replaced. QWERTY also attempted to alternate keys between hands, allowing one hand to move into position while the other hand strikes home a key. This sped up both the original double-handed hunt-and-peck technique and the later touch typing technique; however, single-handed words such as stewardesses and monopoly show flaws in the alternation.

Oh, and I got 60 WPM with no mistakes.
Vydro
23-07-2006, 10:44
75 WPM no mistakes.
The Alma Mater
23-07-2006, 10:53
You're only half-right, I'm afraid. While it was designed to avoid the problem of interlocking hammers, it's purpose was not to slow down typing:

Let me rephrase that. QWERTY was designed to achieve maximum typingspeed without having the hammers of typewriters lock. Not to achieve the maximum typing speed possible on a keyboard if the hammerproblem would not exist.

You are right, there is a difference.
Safalra
23-07-2006, 11:01
OK, Dvorak is another form of keyboard setup as an alternative to QWERTY. Apparently, it lets you type faster. I'm going to try it out...if I could just figure out how to set it up. XP machines have it as an option as do...Mac is X8.6 and higher...I think. So did you ever hear of it?
It'll take a hell of a lot of practice before you'll be as good with Dvorak as with Qwerty (unless you're really bad at Qwerty anyway). I'd also claim that it's a suboptimal keyboard layout anyway. With all the data we now have about frequency of letter-pairs in English writing, it should be possible to come up with a theoretical best keyboard layout.
Kanabia
23-07-2006, 11:25
But QWERTY is designed to slow you down, since at higher speeds the typewriters became stuck.
A bit outdated now methinks...

Maybe so, but then there's the problem of me finding a DVORAK/other keyboard, and then learning that system from scratch, and also me not working as a typist and therefore not needing a faster system.

So bugger it. I'm happy.
I V Stalin
23-07-2006, 11:48
Meh, i'm too used to QWERTY.

Try this : http://www.typeonline.co.uk/typingspeed.php

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/7043/wpmfz0.jpg

I'm probably better on a good day. :p

EDIT - Second attempt got 66. :D
63wpm with no mistakes. I can write shorthand at 95wpm, though more often than not I get a couple of mistakes.
Sel Appa
23-07-2006, 18:17
You can remake your keyboard. Just pop the letters out. Your only problem will be the modified punctuation keys.

Shorthand? I can't seeme to figure out how that works. Wikipedia is too complicated and it looks like a screwed up Arabic.
UpwardThrust
23-07-2006, 18:23
Guess...come on you know you can do it. It's not that hard when you think about it...well actually it probably is. It's not an alien species, name, or planet. It's not what grandma makes for dinner. So what is it? Yes, I am trying to fill up that box that you can view part of the post with. I will eventually get to the pint....cut to the chase, etc...So, have you got it yet? Well, if not, I am about to tell you. We'll start with a wikipedia link...


Dvorak (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dvorak_Simplified_Keyboard)


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/KB_United_States_Dvorak.svg/400px-KB_United_States_Dvorak.svg.png
OK, Dvorak is another form of keyboard setup as an alternative to QWERTY. Apparently, it lets you type faster. I'm going to try it out...if I could just figure out how to set it up. XP machines have it as an option as do...Mac is X8.6 and higher...I think. So did you ever hear of it?

I use that style when not gaming (work and programming) it is faster if you can teach yourself how
Eutrusca
23-07-2006, 18:23
What is Dvorak?
A composer (http://www.island-of-freedom.com/DVORAK.HTM) who composed, among lots of other things, The New World Symphony. :p
UpwardThrust
23-07-2006, 18:25
Speed 75 WPM in querty and 110 in dvorak