Touch Typing Number Keys - Susam Pal

As developers, we spend countless hours at our keyboards, yet we rarely stop to examine the fundamentals of how we type. Susam Pal's recent post touches on something many of us take for granted: our typing technique, specifically when it comes to number keys.

Pal's journey with touch typing began about two decades ago during university days. After some childhood typewriter lessons that didn't stick, they found a Java applet-based touch typing tutor online that finally made the skill click. This foundation has served them well throughout their computing life.

"I've sometimes read arguments on the web downplaying touch typing as a skill, with claims like 'typing isn't the bottleneck, thinking is'," Pal writes. "While that may be true, I still consider touch typing a useful skill, since it makes writing documents, code and email feel much more fluid and pleasant."

This resonates with many developers who have experienced the difference between typing with and without proper technique. The analogy to playing a musical instrument with correct technique versus simply getting by is particularly apt. When our fingers move automatically, we can focus entirely on the content rather than the mechanics of input.

Pal also created QuickQWERTY, a free and open source touch typing tool that teaches typing using the QWERTY layout. The tool was born from a desire to share the joy of touch typing with friends, and while initially limited to QWERTY, its open source nature has allowed others to modify it for different keyboard layouts over the years.

The core of Pal's post, however, is their personal experimentation with number key techniques. They describe two common methods:

1. The first method assigns digits 1 and 2 to the left little finger, 3 to the left ring finger, and so on, with 1-6 typed by the left hand and 7-0 by the right.

2. The alternative method assigns only 1 to the left little finger, 2 to the left ring finger, etc., with 1-5 typed by the left hand and 6-0 by the right.

Both methods require using the left little finger for 1, which Pal found uncomfortable due to the finger's shorter length and the need to shift the whole hand diagonally upward. This discomfort led them to experiment with using the left ring finger for both 1 and 2, a method that goes against nearly all established typing guides.

"I decided to forgo established practices and explore on my own to find what feels right," Pal explains. "At first, I was sceptical about whether I would be able to learn this method, since it meant overcoming 20 years of muscle memory that I have relied on almost every day."

What's fascinating is how easily Pal developed this new muscle memory. Both the old and new techniques now coexist in their brain, allowing them to switch between them without much trouble. This demonstrates the remarkable adaptability of our nervous system.

So far, Pal is finding this new method more comfortable than either of the established approaches. They're continuing to use it for further evaluation.

This experiment raises an interesting question for developers: how much should we adhere to established best practices when it comes to tools and techniques that we use daily? While there's value in established methods that have been refined over time, personal experimentation can sometimes lead to improvements that work better for individual physiology and preferences.

For those interested in exploring their own typing techniques, tools like QuickQWERTY provide a starting point. And for those already comfortable with their current method, Pal's experience serves as a reminder that sometimes questioning long-held habits can lead to unexpected improvements.