Learning to type. Options

[Maccabee]

How did you learn to type? I just bought Mavis beacon teaches typing.

[karmakiller]

Um, by practicing.

[heyo-captain-jac...]

By using computers since I was five.

[Maccabee]

Um, by practicing.

How did you learn where to place your fingers.

[karmakiller]

^ I don't really place them anywhere. I just learned where the keys were and now my fingers are all over the keyboard I never learned that home row stuff.

[none345678]

I think in 6th or 7th we got our first class that taught us the home row stuff and what not.

[Tramatize]

^ I don't really place them anywhere. I just learned where the keys were and now my fingers are all over the keyboard I never learned that home row stuff.

[superstitious]

How did you learn where to place your fingers.

There are charts for proper placement.

http://www.customtyping4.com/tutorials/kb/...t_fingering.htm

I really do suggest good finger placement though. I wouldn't type nearly as fast as I do without looking at the keys if I didn't. Then again, people have different methods, that one just worked for me. I think playing piano also helped, because I was already accustomed to not looking at a "keyboard" while pressing a type of key.

Also, moving this to Technology, since learning how to type really doesn't have anything to do with typing (unless you want help with a poem and are stuck because you do not know how to properly type. ;))

[iDecay]

We had a computer lab in elementary school, so they started us on Mavis Beacon in 1st grade, LOL. I was always one of the first to finish my homework in tutoring class too so I got computer time and they made me play all those educational games.

Okay, random. Does anyone remember Zoombinis? :O

[iDecay]

LOL I KNOW!!! I ended up just putting whatever until I got it right. Everyone would get stuck there and whenever someone finally got it, we would get jealous.

[datass]

^ I don't really place them anywhere. I just learned where the keys were and now my fingers are all over the keyboard I never learned that home row stuff.

yeah me too. i think somebody told me to put the index fingers on the 'F' and 'J' and it was just simple from there.

[karmakiller]

^ Yeah, we had to do that in elementary school. The computers were so old, though, they had black screens with green letters.

I have a laptop so it's a lot more awkward to use home row on it than on a keyboard, cause I have about 4 or 5 inches where my wrists would end up sitting. I know it sounds weird, but it's easier to use home row on a keyboard than a laptop.

[sixfive]

Diablo II

[superstitious]

I have a laptop so it's a lot more awkward to use home row on it than on a keyboard, cause I have about 4 or 5 inches where my wrists would end up sitting. I know it sounds weird, but it's easier to use home row on a keyboard than a laptop.

Doesn't sound weird at all. It sort of felt like I had to re-train myself in speed typing once I started using laptops or notebooks on a regular basis. I use both constantly (traditional keyboard and laptop keyboard), so I forced myself to learn how to quickly type on both.

The only thing that really irritates me about laptop keyboards is the lack of a number key pad. It's fine unless I'm looking at or keying data that has a lot of numbers in it.

[Joanne]

My sister and I bought a program that taught typing through games and *fun* activities. And then I learned a little bit through computer class in elementary school.

[jiyong]

Okay, random. Does anyone remember Zoombinis? :O

OMG YES lol.

Learned to type from my parents, when I was five or so. Typewriters were fun stuff, lol.

[sixfive]

WHY DOES LOVE ALWAYS FEEL LIKE A BATTLEFIELD?

[creole]

At my school , we use a program called MicroType 5.
like usual, you learn the home row keys and proper way of typing and gestures and fun stuff like that. there are usually mini games in each level so it's not completely boring as it sounds.

[Maccabee]

omg! Im much faster using my two fingers and its such a hard habit to break. I keep using only my index fingers and middle fingers. and i csnt keep other other little fingers on the freaking home row! Is that important to use that technique?

[synapse]

^ yeah, I bet you'll never pass 75 wpm.

In 6th we got our first class that taught us the home row stuff and what not.

[Maccabee]

But i get a highschool credit for this. So im glad I didnt do it in jr high.

[none345678]

There are still typing classes in high school. At least for the most part. I mean in high school you should already have typing pretty much down.

[Maccabee]

Dang it! Im getting better at typing without looking at the keyboard after just a few hours of practicing but I am still typing like I always have. darn, should I break my habits and use the home row thing? And my main problem is typing html and php without looking. There are some html practice things in this!

[none345678]

there are a billion and one free typing sites that will help you.

[creole]

Typing with two fingers? naughty yet tedious.

The only problem I have is lifting my fingers correctly to the right key they are suppose to touch. I always press keys such as "B" T" "Y" and other weird letters with wrong fingers. I also shift with the wrong finger at times. My teacher grades us by literally looking at our fingers when we type a paragraph. -_-

[heyo-captain-jac...]

The only problem I have is with small keyboards. Laptops and shit.

[Maccabee]

I am still slower using the home row stuff. i think ill memorize which fingers are for which key.

[creole]

don't worry babe, once your fingers get used to the keys, everything will feel natural and smooth. ;)

[heyo-captain-jac...]

In other news, I'm thinking about buying a Dvorak keyboard (or maybe just moving the keys on one of my current keyboards and redoing the keymap). Anyone use Dvorak?

[superstitious]

I am still slower using the home row stuff. i think ill memorize which fingers are for which key.

You'll get the hang of it. It just takes practice.

[Gigi]

I tried buying the Mavis Beacon type things. For some reason it never worked out.

One day in 5th grade I just got tired of typing with my index fingers, so I pulled out the children's novel closest to me, then started to copy it word for word, including formatting and whatnot. It was actually REALLY fun to me, and by the end of it I was typing at a lightning fast speed.

[Just_Dream]

It was actually REALLY fun to me, and by the end of it I was typing at a lightning fast speed.

Okay then, explain how you got so good at the game Crazy Closet, huh?!


Hmm.. I did try learning with Mavis Beacon, but I felt like it didn't really do much. Of course I had a really old version that is probably outdated (got it back in the late 90's). I think I learned sometime back in 7th grade, when my teacher watched each person type. I wasn't really a fast typer back then, until my freshman year of high school. We had to type from a book using a program. It was much easier than Mavis Beacon because you get to type paragraphs, rather than sentences. And the words were more fun to type for some odd reason.

For me though, I think it's easier to just look at a book or piece of paper and type, rather than copying what is written on the screen. Of course there are plenty of times where I have to hold up the keyboard and type with one hand, and I'm getting quite good at that. ;D

[Maccabee]

I'm so much slower when copying. I'm pretty fAst when I am typing what I am thinkig though.

[Gigi]

ZOMG Crazy Closet!!!!!!!

http://www.guzer.com/games/crazy_closet.php

<3<3<3<3

[datass]

156 is that bad?

[Gigi]

I just got 154. So I guess it's alright! I haven't played in a while so I forgot my high score haha!

[Uronacid]

By forcing myself not to look at the keys. It really sucked. I made so many errors, but after even a day or two I got the hang of it.

[creole]

Damn, my best is only 115. :(

[heyo-captain-jac...]

First time playing, 169.

[stonecrusher]

i don't know