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Great questions! > What makes a person switch to a non-default keyboard layout? I switched in high school. I think one of the first times I heard about Dvorak
by morinted 10y ago
Great questions!
> What makes a person switch to a non-default keyboard layout?
I switched in high school. I think one of the first times I heard about Dvorak was this XKCD: https://xkcd.com/554/ https://xkcd.com/554/
I also found the Dvorak Zine to be of great inspiration: http://www.dvzine.org/ http://www.dvzine.org/
Personally, I was never formally taught QWERTY, and so my hand placement while typing on a QWERTY keyboard is whack. I'm all over the place → namely, because I'm left-handed, my left hand reaches all the over to the Y, H, and B on the keyboard. My right hand is shifted and the right pinky lies on the right shift key. So I couldn't even use split layouts with QWERTY!
> How much of a pain in the ass is it to deal with other people's keyboards (which presumably are still QWERTY)?
I still type QWERTY completely fine, and on other people's computers I just deal with it. On my own computer, I have a hot key to switch back and forth; sometimes games have hard-coded WASD so I need to switch, other times I want to let someone write on my keyboard. It's not inconvenient.
> Does it work for a split layout? (ex: Microsfot Natural Keyboard)
After learning Dvorak I got a TypeMatrix keyboard, which I loved to bits. It's split and ortholinear. Then I graduated to an ErgoDox. I'd say that my "properly-learned" touch typing layouts like Dvorak and Norman work much better with a split layout than when one writes non-traditionally on a QWERTY layout (noting, too, that not many people touch-type 100% correctly like they would teach you in class.) With these newer layouts, they are designed to be touch-typed and favor the home row, and so a shifted configuration like I have on QWERTY would not work well with a custom layout.
> Any noticeable speed increase or decrease of wrist pain? I've all but eliminated it via a split keyboard but always on the lookout for something better.
Speed increase: not appreciable. I went from ~95 words per minute on QWERTY to ~100 words per minute on Dvorak/Norman. However, for me, I did have greater accuracy, and I do find that comfort is greater.