Comments on: QWERTY vs. Dvorak

By: Oren Robinson

Oren Robinson — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 02:43:37 +0000

oops! I guess > and < get stripped in comment bodies. Here’s a second try:

http://www.codeaxe.co.uk/dvorak/

@Mark Shead – I’m neither refuting or supporting the claim that finger travel equates with ergonomic gains. The authors’ claim that QWERTY beats Dvorak on the third criteria, that “frequency of alternating hand sequences is maximized and the frequency of same-finger typing is minimized” doesn’t hold true for English touch-typing simulations (see above link for online interactive comparative simulation).

By: Mark Shead

Mark Shead — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 02:30:36 +0000

@Oren – I don’t think your link came through. By the way I know that the distance your fingers have to travel with Dvorak is quite a bit less. However, that may or may not translate into actual economic gains.

By: Oren Robinson

Oren Robinson — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 02:19:04 +0000

These articles are both written by the same authors, and while I think their description of the economic barriers to adoption are certainly thorough, I’m confused. Their central claim that QWERTY beats Dvorak on the third criteria for efficiency has no citation, and in fact it seems to be demonstrably false… see this ergonomic simulation:

By: Mark Shead

Mark Shead — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 18:51:38 +0000

The articles basically say that the data that you hear quoted about Dvorak being worthwhile to switch to is based on some highly suspect experiments that haven’t been replicated.

It doesn’t mean the keyboard layout is bad, it just means that your ROI isn’t likely to match the statistics you’ve probably heard.

By: Andre Chmielewski

Andre Chmielewski — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 18:14:49 +0000

I skimmed the articles… so perhaps my comments may not be completely informed. But, here goes:

The articles don’t outright say that Dvorak is faster or slower. The first article points out criteria for any fast keyboard:

A. The loads on the right and left hands are equalized.

B. The load on the home (middle) row is maximized.

C. The frequency of alternating hand sequences is maximized and the frequency of same-finger typing is minimized.

It’s says Dvorak does the first two but not the third (which QWERTY does do). I agree… I’ve been learning Dvorak and have discovered that the lack of various can be a bit mind-numbing. Esp. if you’re used to the digital (as in fingers, not as in analog) gymnastics.

By: Andrew Conkling

Andrew Conkling — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 19:16:42 +0000

Very interesting reading. (It took me this long to get through that first article. ;) I’ve switched over to the Dvorak layout and haven’t looked back. (I can still type in QWERTY though.) It certainly seems to be faster, takes less effort, and my hands feel better because of it. (I was feeling wrist and hand strain before.) But who can laugh in the face of science? ;)
I suppose I’ll be less vocal about the Dvorak layout, but I certainly won’t stop using it.