Re: Info about DVORAK Keyboard Design

Hi, all!

I'm not exactly a new member, but this is my first message to the group.

I have created a Dvorak-style keyboard layout, based on data on the
Portuguese language, spoken and written in Brazil.

I think I managed to mimic most of the good features of the original
English Dvorak, adapting things when necessary, since English and
Portuguese are quite different.

That said:

Yatin Sethi wrote:
> 1) DVORAK said - "For maximum speed and efficiency, the most common
> letters and digraphs should be on the home row, which is where the
> fingers rest, and under the strongest fingers."
> What does he mean by strongest fingers ??? Is the middle finger the
> strongest, coz he has placed the most common vowel (E) and most common
> consonant (T) under middle fingers ?? Or there is some other reason ??

As Marcus said, maybe the middle finger are not the strongest, but, as I
realized while creating my keyboard, the index finger is responsible for
 6 keys, 8 if you include the numbers, while the middle finger has to
deal with just 3. I didn't read Dvorak's original work, but my guess is
that he took that on account too.

> 2) Why were the vowels kept on LEFT side although the sum of frequencies
> of vowels in Home Row is MORE than sum of consonants in Home Row ??

Again, Marcus pointed that, at the time Dvorak developed his layout, he
thought about balancing the typing, in order to make it easier for the
strongest hand, usually the right. At that time there were no mouses,
enter key, arrow key or numeric keypad...

I followed Dvorak's ideas on that matter also, and for Portuguese the
difference in use of vowels and consonants on the home row is even
greater than it is in English. But, the same principle used to decide
which finger is the strongest, taking in account the amount of keys
assigned to that particular finger, has to be applied here. The sum of
the frequencies of vowels are indeed greater than the sum of the
frequencies of consonants on the home row, but you have to think that,
if the amount of typing is not the same, so are the movements made by
each hand during typing: in may keyboard, the left hand may type a
little bit more, but the right hand has to move along the keyboard much,
much more than the left hand. Remember that you have to type Enter and
backspace, use the arrow keys, the numeric pad, the mouse. How do you
measure that? My guess is that you probably cannot do that, unless,
maybe, in some university medical or physic research department.

> Also please send if you have any links or references that explain the
DVORAK
> process in great detail.

I have plenty of information on how I applied the ideas of dr. Dvorak on
my keyboard, but they are all in Portuguese... See my signature.

-----
Ari Caldeira
ari at tecladobrasileiro.com.br
www.TecladoBrasileiro.com.br
Know the Brazilian Native Keyboard. The best keyboard layout for the
Portuguese language, and for your hands!