Re: Anybody here fluent in both Dvorak & QWERTY?

I typed medical transcription for several years and never had a problem
using Dvorak.  I actually taught myself Dvorak specifically because I
was going to be typing for a living and I knew I didn't want to risk
injury to my wrists.  There's absolutely no reason *within the job* that
you'd need to use QWERTY.  Between Dvorak and my Kinesis Contoured
keyboard I typed 80 wpm plus and there's no way QWERTY would have
allowed me to do that day in and day out without injury.

I'm one of those who absolutely can't type in both formats.  When I
learned Dvorak it overwrote my brain - QWERTY is gone (except for one
hilarious instance when a new medication caused my brain to revert to
QWERTY for a few weeks - that was so strange!).

They want you to type fast and accurately without injury - it is in
their best intrests, in fact.  They shouldn't have any problem with your
keyboard layout needs and you can't be the first person who has come to
them typing in Dvorak!

If needed you can buy a hardwired keyboard - Kinesis makes these and I'm
sure other companies do too.  You don't have to change the computer
layout at all because the keyboard inputs are hardwired for Dvorak.  My
next Kinesis will have this feature cause it drives my spouse crazy to
sit down to my keyboard and type a few characters in Dvorak and then
realize that (yet again!) he's been HAD by my nefarious keyboard
layout :D

Good luck and stick to your guns!  Transcription can be a very enjoyable
line of work - but don't sacrifice your superior ergonomics.  MT schools
are very serious about good chair height, good keyboard tray height,
good posture - Dvorak goes right along with that.  Don't give it up.

em


On Wed, 2009-02-25 at 22:35 +0000, mailorderspam wrote:

> I learned QWERTY first, in 8th grade, over 40 years ago, and was
> typing about 50 wpm.
> 
> Six years later, I abandoned QWERTY and switched to Dvorak,
> self-taught, with nothing to help me make the switch other than
> modifications I made to a QWERTY typing manual. (This was long before
> there was typing software or PCs with software-switchable keyboard
> layouts that help with that. Smith Corona made me a dedicated DSK
> electric typewriter.)
> 
> I found switching to be one of the hardest things I ever did. 
> Frankly, I never would have switched if I'd known how hard it would be
> *for me*.  Every time I stopped concentrating, I'd revert back.  It
> took me months of daily practice before I recovered my QWERTY speed
> and then got faster.  Most people seem to be able to be trained to
> switch easier than me.
> 
> Next fall I'm entering a medical transcription training program where
> at times at least it will be very difficult for me to be able to
> touch-type in Dvorak.  I'm trying to learn to become fluent in both
> keyboard layouts, using Ten Thumbs software, so I can use QWERTY when
> I absolutely have to, and Dvorak when I can for better speed and less
> wear and tear.  I started about a month ago.
> 
> This is proving to be even harder.  Though I practice with both
> keyboards daily, as I'm gaining fluency in QWERTY and clearing 40 wpm,
> I start making more QWERTY key errors when I switch back to Dvorak,
> and my 70 wpm Dvorak speed suffers.
> 
> Also, while I can QWERTY 40 wpm plus and gaining, IF I'm typing
> prepared text as in typing software, my ability to think and type in
> QWERTY as in typing this post is horrific, Dvorak-key error laden and
> probably net of 15 wpm... this bodes very poorly for my ability to do
> medical transcription in QWERTY, because one has to listen and
> transcribe and can't think about the keys he's typing.
> 
> I may have to abandon Dvorak and just go QWERTY again to gain speed
> and accuracy in QWERTY, but I hate to do that.  Any suggestions from
> anybody who has fluency in both layouts?  I've heard there *are* who
> retain fluency in both.
> 
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------
> 
> To Post a message, send it to:   [email protected]
> To Unsubscribe, send a blank message to: [email protected]! Groups Links
> 
> 
> 


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]