How did you learn to touch type?
Discussion
When I was in sixth form in the late 90s they tried to fill free-periods with things like study skills, IT skills (WP and spreadsheets) and typing classes on battered old typewriters.
My older sister (who went to the same school) self taught via Pitman course after she left 6th form.
My older sister (who went to the same school) self taught via Pitman course after she left 6th form.
MattyD803 said:
Pretty much self taught via MSN messenger conversations every night as a teenager....you soon learn how to type quick when you've got 5 or 6 conversations on the go! 
Sad to admit it, but if it wasn’t for MSN messenger i wild have never seen any teenager action.Edited by MattyD803 on Monday 17th April 15:12
I was a teenager at the time before anyone panics
I started off with typing of the dead and the more serious apps too.
But ultimately I learnt by simply sticking to these two rules.
1. Never look at the keyboard, ever. Cover your hands with a towel. Or use will power. If you have to look even once, it's not touch typing. If you get stuck, use trial and error. Don't look.
2. Learn by rote which key is associated with each finger. Only takes a few minutes. Each key should have one unique finger pairing, which should never be broken. Consistency is the most important as it is all muscle memory.
If you follow these rules religiously it won't take too long. A week maybe. And you never forget it.
But ultimately I learnt by simply sticking to these two rules.
1. Never look at the keyboard, ever. Cover your hands with a towel. Or use will power. If you have to look even once, it's not touch typing. If you get stuck, use trial and error. Don't look.
2. Learn by rote which key is associated with each finger. Only takes a few minutes. Each key should have one unique finger pairing, which should never be broken. Consistency is the most important as it is all muscle memory.
If you follow these rules religiously it won't take too long. A week maybe. And you never forget it.
Edited by lizardbrain on Monday 17th April 15:27
As above, the reality is likely on MSN messenger.
I remember doing typing stuff in 'IT' lessons at school and I wasn't very good at it, and now I still don't touch type in the 'proper' way, i.e. with fore fingers always on f and j and a specific finger for each key...
But I can type pretty much as quickly as people talk (at a normal pace anyway) and can feel if I've typed an incorrect letter or mispelt etc. which in and of itself doesn't happen overly often. 18 years of software development has meant that I'm very used to the various keyboard shortcuts and so on as well, so am very comfortable using a keyboard.
I use the home / end keys a fair bit and the arrows etc. for selecting words and such, so I find if a keyboard doesn't have what to me is the 'normal' layout it can be pretty irritating trying to work on, using an unfamiliar laptop for example is a nuisance, and there is a special place in hell for whoever put the 'Fn' key on laptops down where the Windows or Ctrl key should be...
What is interesting is I find writing incredibly laborious now, it's so slow, I can barely read it anyway, and the copy / paste / search functionality is terrible
I remember doing typing stuff in 'IT' lessons at school and I wasn't very good at it, and now I still don't touch type in the 'proper' way, i.e. with fore fingers always on f and j and a specific finger for each key...
But I can type pretty much as quickly as people talk (at a normal pace anyway) and can feel if I've typed an incorrect letter or mispelt etc. which in and of itself doesn't happen overly often. 18 years of software development has meant that I'm very used to the various keyboard shortcuts and so on as well, so am very comfortable using a keyboard.
I use the home / end keys a fair bit and the arrows etc. for selecting words and such, so I find if a keyboard doesn't have what to me is the 'normal' layout it can be pretty irritating trying to work on, using an unfamiliar laptop for example is a nuisance, and there is a special place in hell for whoever put the 'Fn' key on laptops down where the Windows or Ctrl key should be...
What is interesting is I find writing incredibly laborious now, it's so slow, I can barely read it anyway, and the copy / paste / search functionality is terrible
Just type more. Go on social media and forums a lot, using the same keyboard.
I went for a temp job in the late 90s and the recruitment agent made me do a test. My typing speed was over 80wpm with an exceptionally high accuracy. That's just down to using the keyboard a lot.
Throw in some laziness and I can now touch type from different angles, because I often CBA to sit properly at a desk. As long as I can put my index fingers on those dimples for the F and J keys.
I went for a temp job in the late 90s and the recruitment agent made me do a test. My typing speed was over 80wpm with an exceptionally high accuracy. That's just down to using the keyboard a lot.
Throw in some laziness and I can now touch type from different angles, because I often CBA to sit properly at a desk. As long as I can put my index fingers on those dimples for the F and J keys.
Taught myself two years ago. As said above, never look at your fingers/keyboard.
I printed off an image of the keys of a QWERTY keyboard; drew a black line down through it to show which hand should be getting which keys; taped that image below the bottom of my screen; and off you go!
Takes a while to get started but a bit of persistence soon pays off.
I printed off an image of the keys of a QWERTY keyboard; drew a black line down through it to show which hand should be getting which keys; taped that image below the bottom of my screen; and off you go!
Takes a while to get started but a bit of persistence soon pays off.
lizardbrain said:
I started off with typing of the dead and the more serious apps too.
But ultimately I learnt by simply sticking to these two rules.
1. Never look at the keyboard, ever. Cover your hands with a towel. Or use will power. If you have to look even once, it's not touch typing. If you get stuck, use trial and error. Don't look.
2. Learn by rote which key is associated with each finger. Only takes a few minutes. Each key should have one unique finger pairing, which should never be broken. Consistency is the most important as it is all muscle memory.
If you follow these rules religiously it won't take too long. A week maybe. And you never forget it.
Yeah. It's muscle memory. When I started we'd just to drills of letters. After a while your muscles will "remember" words. Eventually your thoughts literally pour out of the ends of your fingers.But ultimately I learnt by simply sticking to these two rules.
1. Never look at the keyboard, ever. Cover your hands with a towel. Or use will power. If you have to look even once, it's not touch typing. If you get stuck, use trial and error. Don't look.
2. Learn by rote which key is associated with each finger. Only takes a few minutes. Each key should have one unique finger pairing, which should never be broken. Consistency is the most important as it is all muscle memory.
If you follow these rules religiously it won't take too long. A week maybe. And you never forget it.
Edited by lizardbrain on Monday 17th April 15:27
MattyD803 said:
Pretty much self taught via MSN messenger conversations every night as a teenager....you soon learn how to type quick when you've got 5 or 6 conversations on the go!
100% this.Typing very rapidly on AOL's Instant Messenger as a teenager in the mid 90's...
You learn very quickly when you spend all night on it, and have multiple conversations at once.
A/S/L?
MattyD803 said:
Pretty much self taught via MSN messenger conversations every night as a teenager....you soon learn how to type quick when you've got 5 or 6 conversations on the go!
Pretty much this. Having grown up with computers being in vogue (I'm 35 this week), it's something that I've just taken for granted.Edited by MattyD803 on Monday 17th April 15:12
rodericb said:
Yeah. It's muscle memory. When I started we'd just to drills of letters. After a while your muscles will "remember" words. Eventually your thoughts literally pour out of the ends of your fingers.
Yes eventually it turns into sequences. I'd struggle to type a random sequence of letters.If you tied my hands behind my back, I'm not sure I would do very well at naming keys without having my hands free to mime it.
Lots of chats as a teenager helped a fair bit. As well as some games in around year 8 (this will have been around year 2001).
I find that as well as touch typing I don't often look at the screen either. My mates at uni used to find it rather un nervy when I was looking out of the window and typing.
I find that as well as touch typing I don't often look at the screen either. My mates at uni used to find it rather un nervy when I was looking out of the window and typing.
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