QotD: Typing
Posted September 25th, 2003 @ 10:47am by Erik J. Barzeski
Question: How did you learn to type, and how do you type now?
My Answer: I type "properly" - fingers on the home keys and all. My wrists usually rest on the table, though, and I don't care - I type just fine this way. It's the lazy way, I know. I took a class as early as I could - eighth grade, I think - because I knew I'd be typing a lot (reports, essays, homework, etc.). I got up to about 120 words per minute with acceptable error tolerance (one typo every 100 words) in class, though I'd put my casual typing closer to about 90 wpm. Before class, I was a skilled hunt-and-pecker. Hmm, I seem to have just called myself a pecker… 😛
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Posted 25 Sep 2003 at 11:23am #
Mavis Beacon (Teaches Typing) taught me when I was like 13 or so. 🙂 I type 70 - 75 now, "properly".
Posted 25 Sep 2003 at 2:59pm #
My school started us on the Apple IIe in second grade .. the typing program was called "wonderful world of PAWS" or something like that
I have no idea how fast I can type. I was very fast around 7th or 8th grade, but I'm sure my speed has dropped off quite a lot since then.
Posted 25 Sep 2003 at 5:27pm #
QOTD: Typing
How did you learn to type, and how do you type now? For the longest time, I was a hunt and peck typer (I could type fast, but I had to look at the keyboard). That is I would use my index fingers on both hands and occasionally the space...
Posted 25 Sep 2003 at 6:32pm #
By latest estimates, I'd say I type at about 70-80 WPS, and I learned in my own fashion utilizing most of my fingers, but not the stupid home row method. It can go to hell, and like it.
Posted 25 Sep 2003 at 11:24pm #
I learned to type at a class in high school. I forgot which class is was, but I learned the tried and true method of using the home keys. Before that, I taught myself to type on my trusty Commodore 64 where I used only my pointers, but I was amazingly fast (relatively) using that method.
Posted 26 Sep 2003 at 5:47am #
King's Quest I - one of the first Sierra adventure games. All of the commands had to be typed, some of them we're in arcade-type situations. Like you had to throw the stick to the dog, before he ran up and mauled you. Anyway, it taught me to touch type 15 years ago.
Posted 27 Sep 2003 at 5:30pm #
Great new way to learn/improve - PopCap has a game called "Type Shark" or something like that; playable on windows or via the web (on Safari under OSX, in addition to Windows. Haven't tried Linux). It's a fun little game...