HACKER Q&A
📣 stakkur

How did you learn to touch type?


I can type about 60wpm, but I'm ashamed to say it involves several bad habits--I mainly rely on index and middle fingers and thumbs. I want to buckle down and learn to do it 'right', using all fingers. How did you learn?


  👤 ddingus Accepted Answer ✓
I had a typing class way back in the day and I did terribly. Ended up just memorizing the line and blasting it out at X wpm to get through the thing and never to return.

Early on, when using computers, I would watch the keyboard and use that same skill. Compose, or memorize what I needed to input and then look down and do it.

This, frankly will get people a long way. Some never need more.

What really improved it all for me was:

Quit looking at the keyboard. Seriously. Just type and power through your mistakes. Correct those without looking at the keyboard too. In fact, the only time you need to look at the keyboard is for some odd combination that you are new to doing, or do not use very often.

An example might be the function+alt+whatever key that turns that spiffy device on or off on your laptop.

Otherwise, just quit looking at the keyboard.

From there, your skill will center on what you type a lot. For me, it's text as I do write a fair amount. When coding, I do peek at the keyboard, but I rarely need to input code fast.

Should that change, I'm using the same method: Do not look at the keyboard and power through.

It doesn't take long to improve. What happens fairly quickly is your brain makes a map, and begins to make use of it to the point where thought becomes typing action.

You just have to force that.


👤 sigjuice
I used GNU Typist to teach myself several years ago. https://www.gnu.org/savannah-checkouts/gnu/gtypist/gtypist.h...

👤 a3n
In a typing class in middle school. On a typewriter. In the seventies.

I don't know how fast I can type, and I don't care, it's never affected ... anything. (Former sw dev)


👤 necovek
I just used computers... for a long time :)

I don't use all the fingers most effectively, but I get around 90-100 wpm in most test sites, which is plenty enough for me.