What is the Dvorak Keyboard?

Most people type on the standard Qwerty keyboard. You'll know if you have one, because the top row reads "Qwerty" (plus a few more letters at the end). On the Qwerty keyboard, you can do something really cool: you can type the word "typewriter" with just the top row of letters. That is just about the only cool thing you can do with the Qwerty keyboard. Even though the Qwerty keyboard is by far the most popular, it most certainly isn't the best. I would argue that the Dvorak keyboard has a far better layout.

So what is the Dvorak keyboard and how did it come about? In 1936, Dr. August Dvorak and William Dealey patented the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard. The Dvorak keyboard layout was supposed to help reduce fatigue in typists. While rumor has it that the Qwerty layout was actually meant to slow typists down so that typewriter keys would not jam, the Dvorak keyboard was definitely designed to increase the speed of typing.

On the Qwerty keyboard your home row (the keys on which your fingers sit at resting position) is: ASDF and JKL;. It makes sense to have A and S under your fingertips because you use those letters a lot. But how often do you really use a semicolon (or even the colon, which the key doubles as)? The Dvorak keyboard's home row is: AOEU and HTNS. One only needs to watch Wheel of Fortune a few times to realize how commonly those letters are used in the English language. The Dvorak keyboard is designed to give you the easiest access to the letters that you will be using most frequently, for optimum typing speed.

Why on earth would anyone want to use the Dvorak keyboard? Even though most people who have heard about the Dvorak keyboard have also heard it enables you to type faster and for longer periods of time more easily, most of them are still not going to use it. I first heard about the Dvorak keyboard in my first typing class, at age 6. Our typing teacher told us that this keyboard would greatly improve our potential. I doubt anyone went out to find out more about it at that time. Even years later in high school typing, our instructor told us about the wonders of the Dvorak keyboard. Yet even she was afraid to actually try it out. She had typed on the Qwerty keyboard for many years and was afraid she was too old to switch over. I once again dismissed the keyboard myself, despite my desire to type even faster than I already did (over 100 words per minute). Finally in college I heard from someone who actually tried the keyboard. At this point, I went online and did some research. I was still a bit afraid because many sites told me that I would forget the Qwerty keyboard once I learned the Dvorak. However, thankfully this wasn't true. I was able to type without looking at the keyboard within 3 days of switching my keys around. By the end of 2 weeks of typing only on the Dvorak keyboard, I was up to 40 words per minute or so. A year later, I easily was typing as fast as I had before, or faster. Now a few years later, I notice that I am definitely typing a lot faster on the Dvorak layout. I can now type as fast as most people can talk. For me, that was definitely enough reason to switch!

Unfortunately, sometimes the best product simply does not win out. Finding a Dvorak keyboard can be challenging. I initially ripped out all the keys on my Qwerty keyboard and then put the back in in the Dvorak layout. This made for a lumpy keyboard because of the shapes of the keys. Some websites sell stickers to place over your Qwerty keys instead. On a laptop, I would definitely not recommend removing the keys to switch them around! Since I type without looking at the keyboard anyway, I have left my laptop keys as the are. You may be lucky enough to actually find a Dvorak keyboard somewhere though, as they have been made. I've seen them on Ebay occasionally. You will pay more for a Dvorak keyboard than a Qwerty keyboard though, because Qwerty keyboards are produced in a far greater quantity.

Now that you know more about the Dvorak keyboard, perhaps you too will go out to learn it. Perhaps, like me you will soon be typing much faster than you do now. If you haven't learned the Qwerty or the Dvorak keyboard yet, I'd still recommend learning the Qwerty layout as well. You may need to know it for a job in the future and you'll need it if you're borrowing someone else's computer most likely. However, don't be afraid that you won't be able to switch between the two keyboards. I can switch between the layouts within seconds. My brain did not forget the years of typing that I did on the Qwerty keyboard. I now use Dvorak at home and school, but at work I type in Qwerty. Don't be afraid to try something new and improve your typing skills. At the very least, after reading this article you now know what a Dvorak keyboard is.