Dane looks back to the design of analog, mechanical devices that may help inform the future of digital devices and interactions, and in doing so, he makes a great case for a return to tactility:

As experience designers it is our duty to celebrate, rather than subvert, the deep, shared experience we have as physical beings. We share a highly-evolved capacity to process an infinite variety of inputs from all of our senses, and are capable of interacting with our surroundings in any number of ways. Our interactions with computers should be no less varied.

Check out Dane’s article and join in the discussion: Off the Desktop and Into the World

Qwerty

All kinds of wonkiness.

Dvorak

Vowels are on the left half of the home row, common consonants on the right — think Wheel of Fortune.

The Dvorak and Qwerty (traditional) keyboard layouts have an interesting history that’s worth learning more about. The Qwerty layout was an adaptation to the technology of the time: typewriters. The earliest typewriters tended to jam up when letters were typed quickly in a sequence. The design of the Qwerty key layout was made to intentionally slow typists down by creating awkward reaches. I’ll let you decide how far you want to dig into the history of keyboard layouts, I find it really fascinating, but it’s well documented elsewhere online.

Qwerty is a poor user experience
Dvorak is a good user experience

What Made Me Want to Switch?

I’m currently in the process of teaching myself the Dvorak simplified keyboard layout, and it’s turned out to be a much easier transition than I had originally anticipated. I had been thinking about making the switch for a long time, but my concerns about lost productivity kept making me put it off. (Incidentally, the method that I’m using for learning Dvorak means that lost productivity isn’t an issue, as you will see.)

Last year, I was starting to get signs of a repetitive stress injury from my totally extreme lifestyle of sitting still and typing all day. To combat RSI, I started doing the typical things: arm stretches, taking breaks, and making adjustments to my workstation. But the fact remained that I was often working 10-12 hours a day and there wasn’t really any getting around that. I was also writing a lot of code at the time, and so my work was very keyboard-intensive. It was time…for Dvorak!

This week, I’m not particularly reliant on typing as I’m attending a conference. I used that as the excuse I needed to try and start learning Dvorak. I’m pleased to report that with about 15 minutes of practicing each night this week, I’m already proficient at the home row in Dvorak. I should mention that I’m already a trained touch typist for Qwerty and my instructions will assume that you are too. I currently type around 60wpm, and I’ll try to report back on speed improvements when I’ve fully switched to Dvorak.

How to Set Up the Dvorak Keyboard Layout on a Mac

The switch to Dvorak can be made very easily on a Mac. These directions are written for English-speakers in the United States:

1. Open System Preferences > International
2. Go into the Input Menu section inside International
3. Scroll through the menu of choices and select Dvorak and Dvorak – Qwerty #
4. Further down the menu, you’ll see that U.S. is selected, keep it selected
5. At the very bottom, select Show input menu in menu bar

You should see a U.S. flag in the upper right of your Mac OS X menu bar. This means that your keyboard is currently mapped to the standard Qwerty layout. Clicking on it reveals a menu where you can quickly switch to Dvorak, and back to Qwerty again.

When you’re first beginning, I recommend using Dvorak – Qwerty # (that # is supposed to be a Command sign by the way). This maps the keyboard to Dvorak when you’re typing, but it keeps all of your beloved keyboard shortcuts like command-C, command-V for copy and paste in their traditional Qwerty locations. I imagine that after you’re fully converted to Dvorak, you might want to relearn the shortcuts but maybe not, I’m not that far along yet.

How to Start Practicing Dvorak

So now you know how to switch keyboard layouts. Now it’s time to do your practice exercises! This is what I’ve been using: ABCD: A Basic Course in Dvorak by Dan Wood. It’s a series of about 30 exercises that build progressively on each other. Try to take about 15 minutes each day to do the exercises.

For each exercise, I don’t proceed to the following one until I’m proficient (fast and accurate) with the current one. I’ll usually run through about 5 exercises a night, repeating each one as needed. Then the following night, I’ll back up about 2 exercises and start from where I know I’m proficient, not from the most recently learned skill level which still might be a bit shaky. So on Monday, you might do Exercises 1-5, and on Tuesday do Exercises 3-7, to get some overlap across days.

Don’t Go Cold Turkey!

I’d recommend that you keep doing your daily tasks like email using Qwerty, and only switch to Dvorak for your exercises until you get to a level of proficiency with Dvorak where it makes sense (no loss of productivity) to make the switch completely. So far, I haven’t found it at all confusing to switch back and forth between the two mappings — that had been another cause of concern for me and it just doesn’t seem to be a problem.

But My Keyboard Has Qwerty Printed on the Keys!

Yeah me too. That’s ok. If you learn to type properly, you’re not supposed to look at your hands. This will force you to learn the right way. I did put stickers onto my external keyboard, but I’m finding that I’m not looking, and that’s better anyway. When I practice on my laptop with the original Qwerty mappings printed on the keys, the experience is the same.

Please let me know if you try any of these tips out, and share your experiences here. I really wish I had made the switch sooner, and I’m tickled that it’s been a lot easier than I had originally anticipated.

Thanks to my friend Baron who taught me about Dvorak and was an inspiration for me trying it out.

Also, check out Alec Longstreth’s mini comic about Dvorak, it’s great fun, and a good thing to print up and leave in the break room at your office.

In their own words:

UX Week is the premier user experience conference, and in 2009 we look laterally at the disciplines that have influenced us. With a mix of inspiring talks from recognized thought leaders and hands-on workshops delivering takeaway skills, this event delivers for user experience professionals at all levels — directors, managers, and practitioners.

This will be my first year attending UX Week, and I’m pretty excited about going to an event that is so focused on my area of specialization. My friend Dane Peterson was a Summer Associate at Adaptive Path this Summer and he encouraged me to check out the conference — thanks Dane!

I look forward to seeing everyone at UX Week tomorrow!