Poll: Who uses Dvorak keyboard layout? - Poll please!

What layout do you use?

  • Qwerty

    Votes: 496 97.8%

  • Dvorak

    Votes: 6 1.2%

  • Several

    Votes: 4 0.8%

  • Other

    Votes: 1 0.2%
  • Total voters
    507

miniyazz

miniyazz

miniyazz

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It's been posted before many, many moons ago, so I thought I'd start a new thread rather than play God.

I switched to Dvorak layout this time last year and was mostly wondering how many other people use it, why they use it, that sort of thing.

I stupidly didn't record my typing speed before making the switch, but following it (according to here, my typing speed on Dvorak is a bit over 90 wpm (no mistakes) and switching back to QWERTY is just over 40 wpm (2 mistakes; would be somewhat faster if I was typing from memory or being dictated at because I can no longer touch-type in QWERTY).


I'm happy I made the switch - it took a couple of months of abysmally slow typing on Dvorak while my QWERTY speed reduced, and then my Dvorak speed overtook my QWERTY speed; then my Dvorak speed increased over the next couple of months while my QWERTY speed decreased; and now my Dvorak speed's somewhat faster than it was 6 months ago and my QWERTY speed's increased (and is I think still increasing) from what it was 8-9 months ago. I'm now quite happy typing on QWERTY keyboards but if I'm doing some lengthy typing on a QWERTY keyboard I'll just pop into language settings and temporarily change it to Dvorak.
I changed just by sticking cut-out labels from a notepad onto the keys with sellotape. A few are starting to come off now, but it hasn't mattered for a while, now I can touchtype on it.

I get some odd looks whenever anyone tries to use my keyboard. What's funnier is that now a couple of the labels have come off, they can't even reliably press the key that has the letter they want on :D


And any chance this can be made into a poll please? - Dvorak vs QWERTY - thanks.
 
You didn't really say why you changed. By the sounds of it you've just got used to Dvorak which is why you can type faster :p
 
That's the first I've ever heard of it. I don't think I'll be switching but it made for an interesting read.

I think it is very much a case for me and probably others who are so used to the qwerty layout that changing wouldn't really be an option or desirable.
 
I've heard of it, but have no reason to change from the standard QWERTY format. Everything seems geared for the qwerty way, so its easier to stick with it, even if dvorak is more efficient or something.
 
I was considering changing for a while because it was reputed to be faster and to reduce wrist strain. I changed eventually because I was getting annoyed at the common typing mistakes I made in QWERTY, and because if I was typing for a long period of time I used to get a bit of cramping in some of my fingers - something I no longer have a problem with.
I have the impression that I'm a quicker typer using Dvorak than I was before changing, but obviously no evidence for it. It definitely takes a fair bit of effort to change, and if your job depends on a significant amount of typing, it's especially tough while changing, but it's worth it IMO - unless, perhaps, you do a lot of one-handed typing (;)) as QWERTY is better laid out for that. Dvorak intends you to use both hands, for best speed and ease of use, so one-handed typing is quite disjointed.
Having said that, if you never use two hands, there's actually a couple of one-handed styles of Dvorak available (depending on which hand) which apparently enable pretty fast typing speeds.
 
dark_shadow said:
I take it you carry your keyboardd everywhere you go in case you need to use a computer? :D
Click to expand...

Nah touch-typing f t w :D

MikeHunt79 said:
I'm going to stick with qwerty, as I don't know of any laptops or netbooks that don't use qwerty! :p
Click to expand...

True, but you can rearrange the keys - on my last laptop I did that, haven't got round to doing it on my current one. Don't know if I'll bother now I can touch-type.
 
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