Re: opinions on the Dvorak keyboard layout?

["V. Alex Brennen-2" <user=1434@nabble.blu.org>]

 On Thu, 2008-02-07 at 12:21 -0500, Brendan Kidwell wrote: 

> What do BLU members think of the Dvorak keyboard layout itself? I tried it 
> for a few weeks or months in high school (late 90s) but I concluded that it 
> would take me many more months to become proficient at it to the point where 
> I could actually use it faster than QWERTY. And of course, I had to remain 
> bilingual if I wanted to be able to work on anyone else's computer. It 
> seemed like a futile effort, and I gave up. 
> 
> So who has successfully switched to Dvorak? What was your motivation? Did 
> you experience any measurable differences? 

I'm a long time user and fan of it.  I have been using Dvorak 
since I got a TouchStream keyboard, back when they first came out. 
I loved that keyboard. 

An unknown company bought out TouchStream and halted manufacturing then 
used TouchStream's patent to make sure that no other product anything 
like the TouchStream was ever made.  They wouldn't even let the founder 
license back enough rights off the patent to continue to make 
replacement parts or do repairs. I think that company may have been 
Apple.  Killing off an amazing new technology for no good reason 
would be consistent with Apple's corporate culture of stifling 
innovation through litigation, closed source software, proprietary 
protocols and formats, and unpublished hardware specs. 

I have a couple generic Dvorak keyboards now that are modeled after 
Dell's standard keyboard.  I added Russian language stickers to one 
and German to the other.  I use xmodmap to switch layouts. 

I was typing around 120 wpm on QWERTY before I switched.  It's hard 
to say how long it took me to get fast on Dvorak since the 
TouchStream was a whole new paradigm.  But, I'm typing slightly 
faster on Dvorak than my current QWERTY speed - which has come down 
a little bit.  I'm consistently over 100 wpm on both formats.  I can 
switch layouts instantaneously and not really effect my speed.  So, 
you don't have to worry about not being able to "go back". 

I initially got the TouchStream because of RSI.  It cleared that 
up for me.  I stuck with DVORAK after the TouchStream because I 
found typing in it to be much less of a strain on my hands and 
arms.  I found myself much less fatigued form the typing at the 
end of the day. 

I can't see myself ever moving off Dvorak to go back to QWERTY. 
But, I've played with some other experimental layout which I 
might jump to one day. 


               - VAB 


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