>From Hal Vaughan on Monday, 2005-06-06 at 21:57:30 -0400: > On Monday 06 June 2005 09:48 pm, p wrote: > > On Mon, Jun 06, 2005 at 03:46:01PM -0600, Cam wrote: > > > Hi, > > > > > > So after a few years of hearing of the DVORAK layout (and noticing > > > that it seems like my left hand is doing all the work w/ QWERTY), i'd > > > like to try to make the switch... here's my major concern though (and > > > perhaps this isn't really an issue, i'd like to hear the advice from > > > others that have given DVORAK a spin). How does DVORAK work w/ apps > > > like vim, nethack, etc.? the key-layouts seem to be fairly logical and > > > i would hate to lose them, is there some sort of patch--or is that too > > > ugly? Is it worth the switch?
I use dvorak and vim. From my point of view, the layout is both natural and comfortable. I was an accomplished qwerty typist, and now I am an accomplished dvorak typist. I doubt that my typing speed is that different than it was before, but I am more comfortable. > > Dvorak is quite nice. I could never go > > back to Qwerty (where I was pretty much > > "clawing" at the keys. *ouch*). My perception is that with qwerty, I was always bouncing around the keyboard. My hands are much quieter with dvorak. > Questions for you and others now using Dvorak: I could change my own keyboard > to whatever I want, but I know I'll still have to use other keyboards, and > I've been using QWERTY for close to 30 years. So: > > 1) How hard is it to change over?, Took me about one month to feel comfortable. I went cold turkey on qwerty, and I have now given up on it entirely. Others in the family curse when they start typing at my keyboard without checking the keyboard, but I have eased their pain with aliases such as "se=setxkbmap se" and "no=setxkbmap no", and (to get you out of dvorak) "o.=setxkbmap se" and "br=setxkbmap no". With KDE you can also have an icon on the panel to indicate your current keyboard, and toggle to different ones. > 2) Once you've changed over, how hard is it if you have to use Qwerty on > someone else's computer?, Difficult. I do not get much practice. If you maintain your qwerty skill, I imagine you could be "bilingual". > 3) Does anyone know if it reduces problems like RSI or CT for one's wrists? Not a scientific answer, but I can tell you that I feel more comfortable. This has been the main reason for me to stick with dvorak, since the change in typing speed has not been dramatic -- I should add that I am not primarily a writer. I use a mix of mouse and keyboard, and I have never had any problems with RSI or CT. Occasionally, when I have a lot of high-speed writing to do, I do feel the strain on my wrists. > 4) I use a natural keyboard, which helps a lot. Does that make a difference > with Dvorak? No idea. Conrad -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]
