Touch typing
Encyclopedia
Typing
Typing is the process of inputting text into a device, such as a typewriter, cell phone, computer, or a calculator, by pressing keys on a keyboard. It can be distinguished from other means of input, such as the use of pointing devices like the computer mouse, and text input via speech...
without using the sense of sight
Visual perception
Visual perception is the ability to interpret information and surroundings from the effects of visible light reaching the eye. The resulting perception is also known as eyesight, sight, or vision...
to find the keys. Specifically, a touch typist will know their location on the keyboard through muscle memory
Muscle memory
Muscle memory has been used synonymously with motor learning, which is a form of procedural memory that involves consolidating a specific motor task into memory through repetition. When a movement is repeated over time, a long-term muscle memory is created for that task, eventually allowing it to...
. Touch typing typically involves placing the eight fingers in a horizontal row along the middle of the keyboard (the home row) and having them reach for other keys. A person who spends most of their day touch typing is usually a copy typist
Copy typist
A copy typist is someone who specialises in typing text from a source which they read.-Professional overview:Copy typists learn to touch type at a high speed, which means they can look at the copy they are typing and do not need to look at the keyboard they are typing on.The source, or original...
or an audio typist
Audio typist
An audio typist is someone who specialises in typing text from an audio source which they listen to. The source, or original document is usually recorded onto microcassettes created by someone dictating into a Dictaphone...
.
On a standard keyboard for English speakers the home row keys are: "ASDF" for the left hand and "JKL;" for the right hand. The keyboard is called a QWERTY
QWERTY
QWERTY is the most common modern-day keyboard layout. The name comes from the first six letters appearing in the topleft letter row of the keyboard, read left to right: Q-W-E-R-T-Y. The QWERTY design is based on a layout created for the Sholes and Glidden typewriter and sold to Remington in the...
keyboard because these are the first six letters on the keyboard. Most modern computer keyboard
Computer keyboard
In computing, a keyboard is a typewriter-style keyboard, which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys, to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches...
s have a raised dot or bar on the home keys for the index fingers to help touch typists maintain and rediscover the correct position on the keyboard quickly with no need to look at the keys.
History
Original layouts for the first few mechanical typewriters were in alphabetical order (ABCDE etc.) but the frequent jams suffered by experienced typists forced the manufacturers to change the layout of the letters, placing keys that are often pressed in a sequence as far as possible from each other. This allows to engage the second printing bar of the typewriter before the first falls down, increasing the speed of the mechanism. Equal distribution of the load over most of fingers also increased the speed as the keys of the mechanical typewriter are more difficult to press.The calculations for keyboard layout were based on the language being typed and this meant different keyboard layouts would be needed for each language. In English speaking countries for example the first row is QWERTY, but in French speaking countries it is AZERTY. Though mechanical typewriters are now rarely used, moves to change the layout to increase speed have been largely ignored or resisted due to familiarity with the existing layout among touch typists.
Frank Edward McGurrin
Frank Edward McGurrin
Frank Edward McGurrin invented Touch Typing in 1878. He was a court stenographer at Salt Lake City who taught typing classes...
, a court stenographer from Salt Lake City who taught typing classes, reportedly invented touch typing. On July 25, 1888, McGurrin, who was reportedly the only person using touch typing at the time, won a decisive victory over Louis Traub (operating Caligraph with eight-finger method) in a typing contest held in Cincinnati. The results were displayed on the front pages of many newspapers. McGurrin won $500 ($11,400 in 2007) and popularized the new typing method.
Whether McGurrin was actually the first person to touch type, or simply the first to be popularly noticed, is disputed. Speeds attained by other typists in other typing competitions at the time suggest that they must have been using similar systems.
In 1889 Bates Torrey coined the words "writing by touch" in his article. In 1890 Lovisa Ellen Bullard Bernes defined the words "write by touch" in her book as follows:
The most common other form of typing is search and peck typing (or two-fingered typing). This method is slower than touch typing because instead of relying on the memorized position of keys, the typist is required to find each key by sight and move fingers a greater distance. Many idiosyncratic
Idiosyncrasy
An idiosyncrasy is an unusual feature of a person . The term is often used to express eccentricity or peculiarity. A synonym may be .-Etymology:...
styles in between those two exist — for example, many people will type blindly, but using only two to five fingers and not always in a systematic way.
Speed
Touch typing can efficiently bring an average speed typist to 60 words per minuteWords per minute
Words per minute, commonly abbreviated wpm, is a measure of input or output speed.For the purposes of WPM measurement a word is standardized to five characters or keystrokes. For instance, "I run" counts as one word, but "rhinoceros" counts as two...
(WPM) fairly quickly and at the same time increase accuracy by great amounts. Upon learning to touch type, comfortable typing speed is expected to be achieved within a month.
Reduced switching of attention
A touch typist does not need to move the sight between the keyboard (that is obscured with fingers and may be poorly lit) and other areas that require attention. This increases productivity and reduces the number of errors.Training
A touch typist starts by placing his or her fingers on the "start position" in the middle row and knows which finger to move and how much to move it for reaching any required key. Learning typically includes first printing exercises containing only letters on or near the standard position and then gradually mastering other rows. It is important to learn placing fingers into the start position blindly as the hands are frequently raised from the keyboard to operate the line feed lever (in the past) or (more recently) the computer mouse. The keys F and J frequently contain some surface features that allow the typist to recognize them by touch alone.The typing speed can be increased gradually with regular practice and speeds around 60 WPM could be achieved within a year or so. Many websites and software products are available to learn touch typing and many of these are free. Learning touch typing can be stressful both to the fingers as well as the mind in the beginning, but once it is learned to a decent level, it exerts minimal stress on the fingers.
Typing speed generally improves with practice. While practicing, it is important to ensure that there are no weak keys. Typing speed is typically determined by how slow these weak keys are typed rather than how fast the remaining keys are typed. If a stage is reached where irrespective of the amount of practice, typing speed is not increasing, it is advisable to let some time pass and continue serious practice thereafter as typing speeds typically tend to increase with time even when no serious practice is done.
Home row
Alphabet
An alphabet is a standard set of letters—basic written symbols or graphemes—each of which represents a phoneme in a spoken language, either as it exists now or as it was in the past. There are other systems, such as logographies, in which each character represents a word, morpheme, or semantic...
on a typewriter
Typewriter
A typewriter is a mechanical or electromechanical device with keys that, when pressed, cause characters to be printed on a medium, usually paper. Typically one character is printed per keypress, and the machine prints the characters by making ink impressions of type elements similar to the pieces...
or computer keyboard
Computer keyboard
In computing, a keyboard is a typewriter-style keyboard, which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys, to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches...
. On the most common type of English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
keyboard, the QWERTY
QWERTY
QWERTY is the most common modern-day keyboard layout. The name comes from the first six letters appearing in the topleft letter row of the keyboard, read left to right: Q-W-E-R-T-Y. The QWERTY design is based on a layout created for the Sholes and Glidden typewriter and sold to Remington in the...
layout, " " represents the contents of the home row.
The middle row of the keyboard
Computer keyboard
In computing, a keyboard is a typewriter-style keyboard, which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys, to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches...
is termed "home row" because typists are trained to keep their fingers on these keys and/or return to them after pressing any other key that is not on the home row.
For instance, to type the word poll on a QWERTY keyboard, one would place all of one's fingers on the home row. (The right hand should be covering " " with the thumb
Thumb
The thumb is the first digit of the hand. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position , the thumb is the lateral-most digit...
on the while the left hand
Left hand
Left hand may refer to any of:*Left-handedness, a term referring to a person who primarily uses their left hand to accomplish things*Left Hand , a comic book character owned by Marvel Comics...
covers " ".) The typist will then use their little finger
Little finger
The little finger, often called the pinky in American English, pinkie in Scottish English , or small finger in medicine, is the most ulnar and usually smallest finger of the human hand, opposite the thumb, next to the ring finger.-Muscles:There are four muscles that...
to reach for the "" key located just above the semicolon
Semicolon
The semicolon is a punctuation mark with several uses. The Italian printer Aldus Manutius the Elder established the practice of using the semicolon to separate words of opposed meaning and to indicate interdependent statements. "The first printed semicolon was the work of ... Aldus Manutius"...
and then return the pinky
Little finger
The little finger, often called the pinky in American English, pinkie in Scottish English , or small finger in medicine, is the most ulnar and usually smallest finger of the human hand, opposite the thumb, next to the ring finger.-Muscles:There are four muscles that...
back to the semicolon
Semicolon
The semicolon is a punctuation mark with several uses. The Italian printer Aldus Manutius the Elder established the practice of using the semicolon to separate words of opposed meaning and to indicate interdependent statements. "The first printed semicolon was the work of ... Aldus Manutius"...
key from which it originated. The ring finger
Ring finger
The ring finger is the fourth digit of the human hand, and the second most ulnar finger, located between the middle finger and the little finger. It is also called digitus medicinalis, the fourth finger, digitus annularis, digitus quartus, or digitus IV in anatomy.- Etymology :According to László A...
, located on the "" key will be moved directly upwards to press the "" key and then back. Finally, the same ring finger
Ring finger
The ring finger is the fourth digit of the human hand, and the second most ulnar finger, located between the middle finger and the little finger. It is also called digitus medicinalis, the fourth finger, digitus annularis, digitus quartus, or digitus IV in anatomy.- Etymology :According to László A...
will remain on the "" key and press it twice. Experienced typists can do this at speeds of over 100 words per minute, but the method is that they always return their fingers to the home row when they are not in use. This provides for quick, easy access to all of the keys on the keyboard
Computer keyboard
In computing, a keyboard is a typewriter-style keyboard, which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys, to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches...
.
Age children can learn to touch type
"Given the ubiquity of keyboards and the growing expectation that secondary school pupils and university students will type their essays and coursework, I think it (touch typing) is one the most useful skills a child can learn - at any age from seven upwards." John Clare, The Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
.
Other methods
Keyboard layout
A keyboard layout is any specific mechanical, visual, or functional arrangement of the keys, legends, or key–meaning associations of a computer, typewriter, or other typographic keyboard....
of the typewriters from early days when some of them have no and/or keys.
There exist special ergonomic keyboards designed for both typing methods. The keyboard is split between the keys and or and .
Some specialized high-end computer keyboards are designed for touch typists. For example, many manufacturers provide blank mechanical keyboard
Keyboard technology
There are many types of keyboards, usually differentiated by the switch technology employed in their operation. Keyboards are defined by the number of highly durable switches that are incorporated into the system...
s. A trained touch typist should not mind using a blank keyboard. This kind of keyboard may force hunt and peck users to type without looking.
See also
- Dvorak Simplified KeyboardDvorak Simplified KeyboardThe Dvorak Simplified Keyboard is a keyboard layout patented in 1936 by Dr. August Dvorak and his brother-in-law, Dr. William Dealey. Over the years several slight variations were designed by the team led by Dvorak or by ANSI...
, an alternative English keyboard layout, optimised for comfort and speed - Das KeyboardDas KeyboardDas Keyboard is a series of premium computer keyboards sold by Metadot Corporation, an open source software company located in Austin, Texas. Their most distinctive feature has been the absence of key labels, i.e...
, a mechanical blank keyboard designed to encourage touch-typing - Model M keyboardModel M KeyboardThe Model M keyboard is a class of computer keyboards manufactured by IBM, Lexmark and Unicomp, starting in 1984. The many different variations of the keyboard have their own distinct characteristics, with the vast majority having a buckling spring key design and many having fully swappable keycaps...
, the most widely known "clicky" keyboard, favoured by some touch-typists