Best program to learn typing?

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nickal78

Weaksauce
Joined
Mar 28, 2004
Messages
99
I want to learn how to type for real like a prof and not just my way of using all fingers all over the keyboard. What's the best program to learn how to type the right way?


Also I'd like to ask everyone if they type the proper way or just poke around like me, do most gamers know how to professional type?????
 
I don't think my typing style is perfect, but its not like I only use 2 or 3 fingers, I just have my own personal style that works well for me. I think you'll probably see thats the way it is for most people around here, I don't know to many people that type absolutely perfectly.
 
How long have you been using a computer? I ask because i think with enough practice (These forums are a good example) you should be able to do well with no help.

I basically learned to type myself. I am not a 'pro' but i can type well over 100 wpm if im into something. The basics are simple: Put your pointer fingers on the 'home' keys, f and j and keep your hands in this position. From that you should only have to move your fingers slightly to hit any key on the kb.

Good luck!
 
i've been "typing" my way for like 10 years but while I can manage to type I'm not fast enough to hit 40 words per minute something i'd like to add to my resume for a job
 
Honestly, I've been a relatively decent/quick typer..ist for quite some time, but I did honestly notice a huge improvement after taking a typing class (yeah, it was in high school), and I've kind of adapted both styles into one to make an UBER HAXXOR 3lit3 style that works relatively well for me.

As for a program to help you type? Get a whole crapload of your friends on a chat program and you'll learn to type quickly or get tons of "hey, did you die?" messages every 10 seconds! :p
 
aol instant messenger..

i am completey serious too... i shit you not..
that damn program improved my typing skills far more than anything else i have done.. and i know of at least 5 other people that say the same thing.. i could IM them and ask them.. haha..

i had a typing class in HS that helped though.. i have no idea what it was called.. but the comptuers here 386s with those orangish brownish screens... and i graduated in 2001 too..

edit... damn i kept that window open too long and got beaten with my instant messinging reccomendation... time to hit ctrl+w and then alt+tab and go to the next one...
 
Yea, like these guys said, practice is the best thing for sure.

Learn the basics. Check the net for resources, i'm sure you'll find something that will tell you how to "type properly".

Personally i've been typing since about age 5 or 6. I started back on an Apple IIe (you know the ones with dual 5 1/2" floppy drives, green screens etc?). I had to use a blind fold and type what I was told to type. I hated it like the plague back then but man... I think it might be the best way to do it. I know tons of people who have used computers for years but still look at the keyboard while they type (need lights on to type etc.) I can type under most any condition. Especially good in the mobile environment with a laptop.

Aslo being shown how to use the "home row" is a huge thing in typing. Heck my home row keys are worn smooth because my hands rest on them so much.

Typing is a wonderful thing and it'd be a great addition to your resume.

I wish I could reccomend a good typing program to you but unfortunately the last one I used was for DOS and was called, "type!.exe" :);)
 
nickal78 said:
Have you ever tested your words per minute to see how fast you are?
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Nope. Unless you're a secretary, raw number of WPM isn't important.
 
I think everybody on here hit it right on the ball.. practice is the only way to get ur typing speed up. the more you do it. the more you actually think about where ur fingers are going, then they will memorize it (called muscle memory) then you only have to think about the words you want, and somehow they will magically appear on the screen. there is a standard way of typing that every typing program will teach..for me..i find some if it just damn awkward, so i made my own style.. there is no rush to get faster, just think about where your fingers are suposed to go for a while and then things will come naturaly

i do admit on some days my typing is screwed up and my fingers start stabbing at the wrong keys, and i have to slow down a bit. but thats just me.
 
nickal78 said:
I want to learn how to type for real like a prof and not just my way of using all fingers all over the keyboard. What's the best program to learn how to type the right way??
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The program I used at school and help a lot and I've been improving as the days go by is called Greg College Keyboarding and Document Processing

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/A...95/sr=2-2/ref=pd_ka_b_2_2/102-2765913-3976143

Let me know if the link works for you if not I'll send you more info, like I said it work really good for me and I'm happy ;)
 
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This program also will time you and let you know how many WPM you are typing, it has it all.
 
In high school, I learned because I had no classes to take and I took a typing class. We learned on these old typewriters and just did constant repetition, typing everything over and over and over again for 50 minutes a day.

I still don't type properly though. My finger placement is fine for typing letters, but when I'm using the shift key, more often then not I always use the left shift key and never the right shift key. I also don't know whether I'm hitting the numbers with the correct finger or not, but it works for me.

But I do type a lot faster now than 7 years ago because of constant use (since I have to use the computer around 8 - 12 hours a day.
 
"Typing of the Dead" was fairly entertaining. One of the only practice programs I would keep playing.
 
I learned to type properly by typing out the lyrics to music that I would listen to. That and programming. You need to make a conscious effort to not look at the keyboard while you type, even when you make mistakes. Eventually you will get better and it becomes second nature.
 
There's a great, free program on the Internet that will help you learn the hard keys: numbers, punctuation, symbols. It's called http://uglytyping.goingup.us. You can give it a list of characters you need to practice and it will drill you by giving you a random presentation of your list. It's great. Runs from Internet Explorer or Firefox.
 
I like Stamina Typing Tutor. it's free, works for regular typing, Stamina's "special" ergonomic typing, and Dvorak keyboards.

Also, when you hit the wrong key, it makes burp and fart noises, so it's the total package.

 
I learned my typing skills in a class in High School when I studied for 1 year in GA. I now type an average of 70 WPM without looking at the keyboard.

But I have a problem with the numbers :( I can never memorize which finger has to type which number :(
 
I learned back in the days when typing was a required to graduate. I think a typewriter with mixed up keys and no correction tape is the best way. I was doing 103 WPM with no errors in my prime. Now I am only doing 85-90WPM, damn arthritis and carpel...
 
I type about 100WPM or so, about 50WPM on the forums or if Im thinking of something.
 
I dont really "poke around" but I don't stay on the home keys, but I still manage to type about 70WPM (excluding any with a single error, trying the tactic of not correcting mistakes to get a faster score) But as long as you can get 50 you should be more than ok.

As they all said, forums, AIM, and trying to type really fast to trash talk the MG nub who you just killed before another one comes :-P
 
You might want to take a look at ray4389's typing topic started last July for some more information. Here is a quote of my post from that topic which I advise you to read:

1tbs4life said:
If you seriously want to learn how to type and type FAST then take my advice.

  • (1) Get Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. Not only does this program work but it works well. It teaches you all the "proper" ways of typing, i.e. proper finger placement, which finger to move for which key, and so on (this way you'll be a touch typist). In addition it has fun games to play to help improve your skill. The games help a lot. On top of all of that the program is inexpensive.
  • (2) Get some online RPG and become addicted to it! RPGs are better than FPSs because you talk to people much more and that forces you to type...a lot. For me this game was Diablo, then Diablo 2. This is a perfect way to get practice, trust me. I had a friend who typed at around 28-30 WPM, then became addicted (ADDICTED) to EverQuest, played it 24/7, and learned to type at what must have been 75-80 WPM. The only downside was that he lost all interest in real life...
Do that in the order I wrote it. You can learn some other way, but this is the way I learned and so I know from experience that it's really effective. I've tested myself numerous time on different typing tests and I type at over 100 WPM.
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ok.. i will be the first one to point out how this was started in 2004...

yeah.. so to the OP what did you do? did it work?

and that's my story
 
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