Blind ten-finger dialing method. Learning to quickly type on a keyboard
All PCs, regardless of operating system and brand, have a standard keyboard with alphabetic letters, numbers and symbols. The keyboard consists of four rows: the top row contains numbers and special characters, the rest contain letters and punctuation marks. In the center of the keyboard there are keys with letters that are most often repeated in texts; they are served by more developed and mobile fingers: index and middle.
The keyboard rows are arranged from bottom to top: the 1st row is called the bottom row, the 2nd row is the main row, the 3rd row is the top row, and the 4th row is called the numeric row. Learning the keyboard start from the second row. This row is called the main row because it contains the letters of the alphabet that are most often repeated in texts. From this row, located in the center of the keyboard, it is convenient to make movements with your fingers when striking while writing within the designated area.
The figure shows a diagram of a Russian keyboard. The diagram gives an idea of the zones of movement of the corresponding fingers to the desired keys, accustoms to ten-finger blind writing method.
The fingers on the keys of the main row are distributed as follows (see figure):
- left hand: little finger - f, ring finger - s, middle finger - v, index finger - a;
- right hand: index - o, middle - l, ring - d, little finger - g.
These keys are called "home position".
Letters not included in this list are located on the so-called additional keys of the second, main row of the keyboard.
The letter keys are distributed as follows:
- to the left index finger - a, p, k, e, m, i;
- to the right index - o, p, n, g, t, b;
- to the left middle - y, v, s;
- to the right middle - w, l, b;
- to the left nameless - ts, y, h;
- to the right nameless - sch, d, yu;
- to the left little finger - th, f, i;
- to the right little finger - z, g, e, x, b.
- Use the thumbs of both hands to press the spacebar.
At the initial stage training in blind ten-finger typing carried out without regard to register. Registers, punctuation marks, numbers, auxiliary symbols - this is the next stage to which you can move on after mastering the skill ten finger touch typing in lowercase (lowercase letters). Practice shows that studying them takes no more than 5-10% of the time spent on learning the lower case of the keyboard. And their location on different keyboards and in different operating systems is different.
Before you start mastering typing in Russian, pay attention to the following keys: Backspace, Delete, Enter, Space.
- The Backspace key is pressed with the little finger of the right hand. This key is used to delete the character to the left of the cursor. It is designed to correct errors that occur when typing texts.
- The Delete key is similar to the Backspace key. It is also pressed with the little finger of the right hand. Used to delete the character to the right of the cursor.
- The Enter key is pressed with the little finger of the right hand. Used to translate strings.
- The Space key is pressed with the thumb of the left or right (currently free) hand. It is designed to put spaces between words in a sentence.
Keyboard trainer is a computer program or online service designed to teach or improve touch typing skills. Improving touch typing skills means increasing typing speed and reducing the number of typing errors.
Touch typing or the ten-finger touch typing method is quickly typing text on the keyboard with all ten fingers without looking at the keyboard. The blind ten-finger method has been invented for more than 120 years in America. Using touch printing you can achieve printing speeds of up to 1000 characters per minute! This is, of course, a super-record speed, but there is no limit to perfection!
Anyone can learn touch typing. For this purpose, keyboard simulators have been developed, which our website is dedicated to.
Keyboard trainer? Which one to choose? This question is faced by many users who want to learn high-speed, error-free touch typing. In this article we will look at 7 keyboard trainers that I consider the best. If you don’t like my selection, you can find a lot of other keyboard trainers on our website.
The criteria by which we will choose a keyboard trainer:
- Price. There are paid programs and there are free ones. Of course, all keyboard simulators on our website can be downloaded and used for free, but this is a matter of your conscience;
- Availability of guidelines- if you are learning from scratch, you need a keyboard trainer with guidelines; to develop speed, you can use gaming keyboard trainers or programs without guidelines;
- Language- This article mainly contains Russian-English keyboard simulators, but there are exceptions;
- Number of exercises and training time- some developers of keyboard simulators promise that you will learn to type quickly in a certain time;
- Contents of the exercise.
- Program settings.
1. Keyboard Solo 9 is the most popular keyboard trainer:
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3. Keyboard solo 8 - an early version of "SOLO" but no less popular:
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4.VerseQ:
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5. Rapid Typing Tutor:
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7. Virtuoso - Hard Keyboard Trainer:
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(1st–4th grade)
The Federal State Standard for Primary General Education has approved the requirements for the basic educational program for primary school: the content, conditions and results of its development.
The results of mastering the main educational program include: personal, meta-subject And subject.
Meta-subject results, including universal learning activities mastered by students (cognitive, regulatory and communicative), ensuring mastery of key competencies that form the basis of the ability to learn, and interdisciplinary concepts, include the ability of students to “enter text using a keyboard, record (write down) measured data in digital form quantities and analyze images, sounds, prepare your speech and perform with audio, video and graphic accompaniment; comply with the norms of information selectivity, ethics and etiquette.”
The content section of the approximate basic educational program of primary general education includes a program for the formation of universal educational actions for students, including the formation of students’ competencies in the field of using information and communication technologies.
Orienting younger schoolchildren in information and communication technologies (ICT) and developing the ability to use them competently (ICT competence) are one of the important elements in the formation of universal learning activities for students at the level of primary general education.
ICT competence highlights educational ICT competence as the ability to solve educational problems using ICT tools and information sources generally available in primary schools in accordance with the age needs and capabilities of a primary school student.
Solving the problem of developing ICT competence should take place in all classes in individual academic subjects, and can also be included in the content of elective courses, clubs, and extracurricular activities of schoolchildren.
Modern realities are such that a personal computer has become an integral part of everyday life for many. A modern PC user writes emails every day, communicates on forums and blogs. Moreover, the speed and ease of communication with new and old friends is directly related to typing speed.
Touch typing(blind ten-finger typing method) is a technique for typing text with all fingers, without looking at the keyboard keys.
The ten-finger touch typing method provides:
- literacy training (students better remember the image of a printed letter, practice composing, reading and typing syllables, words and sentences);
- development of spelling vigilance;
- improving literacy;
- gaining experience working with information objects (texts, pictures, tables, animation, etc.);
- preparatory training in computer science and successful mastery of ICT from primary school, mastering the computer as a tool;
- development of memory, imagination, thinking;
- stimulation of fine motor skills and activation of the corresponding parts of the brain, as well as neighboring areas responsible for speech;
- development of tactile sensitivity and complexly coordinated movements of fingers and hands;
- quick communication with friends and classmates via the network;
- low fatigue during prolonged work (there is no need to move your eyes from the monitor to the keyboard and vice versa, as well as from the “paper” original to the monitor when retyping text and vice versa).
Common when starting to study a computer is the so-called. “sighted” or “two-finger” typing method – “find and press”. When typing, you need to find each next character, visually guided by the markings on the keys (which significantly slows down typing, but, on the other hand, does not require any prior user preparation).
Learning touch typing can allow you to enter text “blindly” quickly and accurately. In touch typing, more emphasis is placed on muscle memory and the tactile sensations of the fingers than on vision. However, this method requires special training.
The speed of mastering the method largely depends on the psychophysiological characteristics of the person, and the speed of touch typing depends on the time of training and the individual characteristics of the person (the structure of the hands, the state of the nervous system, etc.). The average trained user achieves a speed of 200 to 400 beats per minute when passing the 10-minute test.
Touch typing training
The advantages of the touch printing method are not only in saving time, but also in health-saving aspects, such as preserving vision and posture.
If you type a long text, constantly looking from the monitor to the keyboard and back, then your eyes begin to get tired very quickly. The reason is that the distance from the keyboard to the screen is usually different, and constant refocusing occurs. In addition, the position of the eyes when looking at the keys is often close to the extreme bottom, in which it is not easy to hold them (this, of course, depends on the location of the keyboard). In poor lighting, the situation is even worse - there is a large difference in the brightness and contrast of the objects between which our gaze moves. As a result, at first the eyes may simply begin to hurt, and then, probably, vision may deteriorate.
The correct body position when working at a computer is something like this: your back is not bent, your shoulders are straight. And if you look at the keyboard, you feel the urge to hunch over, lower your head and, as a result, develop scoliosis.
Methods of teaching touch typing
Correct posture and hand position
Each lesson should begin with checking the landing and position of the hands.
Before completing tasks, always pay attention to the students' posture and hand position.
It is advisable to sit on a chair or swivel chair with a backrest. The angle between the spine and the thigh and between the thigh and the lower leg should be 90 degrees. You need to sit straight, without bending or tilting your head. Your gaze should be directed forward, to the center of the monitor screen. The wrists should not sag. The distance from the eyes to the monitor screen is from 40 to 70 centimeters.
Train students in the correct placement of hands and fingers on the PC keyboard:
- Bend your elbows and extend your hands forward, palms down.
- Bring your hands together with your index fingers touching; thumbs down.
- Lower the first two phalanges of your fingers down, bending them slightly.
- Spread your hands apart, leaving a distance of 4 cm between your index fingers.
- Place your hands on the keyboard (the left index finger will be on the A key, and the right one will be on the O key; these keys have a protrusion, which allows you to control the correct placement of your hands).
If the recommendations are followed correctly, then all fingers will move to the main position, touching the middle of the keys assigned to them with their tips. When placing in the main position, the fingers should be slightly bent, as if the hand were holding a round object. The index fingers lightly touch the tips of the middle keys A and O, but do not rest on them. Sitting at the PC and the correct position of the hand are shown in the figure.
Advice: When practicing your first strokes on the keys, do not forget about the position of your elbows. You should not press them too tightly against your body or move them too far to the sides. From the shoulder, the arms should be freely lowered down, otherwise the hands will take the wrong position on the keyboard.
Print rhythm
When doing exercises, pay students attention to the rhythm of typing.
The rhythm of typing is the alternation of strokes on the keys at regular intervals. The shorter the intervals between strokes, the faster the printing speed.
Advice: When working on a computer, you must maintain a certain rhythm and strike the keys evenly. Only in this case can you achieve high printing speed.
To develop rhythmic typing, rhythmic training is used, which is part of the system of exercises for practicing the correct strokes on the keys and movements of the fingers. Strikes on the keys should be abrupt and not strong, but sharp, without holding the finger on the key; finger movements to the keys of the corresponding zone are precise. The blow is performed with the pads of the fingers, and the hands also take part in it. When typing, raise your hand above the keyboard about 1–2 cm, and then quickly and vigorously hit the desired key and return your finger to its original position. The force of the blow must be sufficient to achieve a jerky blow.
Advice: To type quickly, you should maintain a uniform rhythm with a gradual increase in tempo, that is, reducing the time intervals between hitting the keys.
From the first lessons, it is necessary to achieve independent finger movements: when one finger performs a strike, the others are relaxed. The finger muscles should act during the strike and relax immediately after it.
The automaticity of finger movements is developed as a result of prolonged training. Blind printing method can be considered mastered only when the operator ceases to control the movement of his fingers on the keyboard.
Advice: Do not chase speed, pay special attention to error-free typing. It’s easy to increase your typing speed during everyday work, after you have already mastered the keyboard in full.
Ten-finger typing method on a keyboard
Show students that PC keyboards are designed in such a way that they allow you to perform all the necessary operations: typing, editing and formatting texts using keyboard shortcuts without using a mouse, which significantly increases the speed of writing texts.
Explain to students why typing speed decreases when the person typing is looking at the keyboard.
Advice: You should not press the keys with the wrong fingers, as this can greatly slow down your typing speed.
When performing exercises, you should achieve complete automaticity, only pressing the keys mechanically and in the required sequence.
Advice: To effectively learn the ten-finger method, it is better to practice daily.
Each student will master the touch typing method and move on to each subsequent task at their own pace.
Advice for students: You should not move on to the next exercise without achieving sufficient flexibility in your fingers in the previous exercise.
Position of fingers on the keyboard
Please note to students that all computers, regardless of operating system or brand, have a standard keyboard with alphabet letters, numbers, and symbols. The keyboard consists of four rows: the top row contains numbers and special characters, the rest contain letters and punctuation marks. In the center of the keyboard there are keys with letters that are most often repeated in texts; they are served by more developed and mobile fingers: index and middle.
The keyboard rows are arranged from bottom to top: the 1st row is called the bottom row, the 2nd row is the main row, the 3rd row is the top row, and the 4th row is called the numeric row. Learning the keyboard start from the second row. This row is called the main row because it contains the letters of the alphabet that are most often repeated in texts. From this row, located in the center of the keyboard, it is convenient to make movements with your fingers when striking while writing within the designated area.
The figure shows a diagram of a Russian keyboard. The diagram gives an idea of the zones of movement of the corresponding fingers to the desired keys, accustoms to ten-finger blind writing method.
Students should pay special attention to the placement of their fingers on the keys of the main row (see figure):
These keys are called "home position".
Letters not included in this list are located on the so-called additional keys of the second, main row of the keyboard.
The letter keys are distributed as follows:
- left hand: little finger - f, ring finger - s, middle finger - v, index finger - a;
- right hand: index - o, middle - l, ring - d, little finger - w;
- to the left index finger - a, p, k, e, m, i;
- to the right index - o, p, n, g, t, b;
- to the left middle - y, v, s;
- to the right middle – w, l, b;
- to the left nameless - ts, y, h;
- to the right nameless - sch, d, yu;
- to the left little finger - th, f, i;
- to the right little finger - z, g, e, x, b;
- Press the spacebar with the thumbs of both hands.
At the initial stage of training blind ten-finger typing method carried out without regard to case. Registers, punctuation marks, numbers, auxiliary symbols - this is the next stage to which you can move on after mastering the skill ten finger touch typing in lowercase (lowercase letters). Practice shows that studying them takes no more than 5–10% of the time spent on learning the lower case of the keyboard. And their location on different keyboards and different operating systems is different.
Before you begin to master typing texts in Russian, draw students’ attention to the following keys: Backspace, Delete, Enter, Space.
- Key Backspace press with the little finger of the right hand. This key is used to delete the character to the left of the cursor. It is designed to correct errors that occur when typing texts.
- Key action Delete resembles the action of the Backspace key. It is also pressed with the little finger of the right hand. Used to delete the character to the right of the cursor.
- Key Enter press with the little finger of the right hand. Used to translate strings.
- Key Space press with the thumb of the left or right (currently free) hand. It is designed to put spaces between words in a sentence.
A set of exercises necessary to master the touch typing method
Level 1 exercises (beginner level)
Exercise 1.1. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the letters of the main position one by one. Under the left hand you will get FYVA, under the right - OLJ. While typing, try to capture in your memory the sensations that arise when you move your fingers. After each blow, replay it mentally.
Exercise 1.2. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the P key with the index finger of your right hand and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.3. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the P key with the index finger of your left hand and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.4. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the H key with the index finger of your right hand and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.5. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the G key with the index finger of your right hand and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.6. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the T key with the index finger of your right hand and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.7. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the b key with the index finger of your right hand and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.8. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the I key with your left index finger and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.9. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the M key with your left index finger and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.10. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the K key with your left index finger and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.11. Place your hands in the basic position. Hit the E key with your left index finger and return it back. The finger should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.12. Place your hands in the basic position. Imprint W and B with your right middle finger, and U and S with your left. The fingers should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.13. Place your hands in the basic position. Imprint with the right ring Y and Sh, with the left – C and Ch. The fingers should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Exercise 1.14. Place your hands in the basic position. Print E, Z, X, B and E with your right little finger, and Z and Y with your left. The fingers should make a sharp blow, rebound and return to the main position. Non-working fingers are relaxed. Make sure that the brushes do not move to the sides.
Advice: Do the exercise again with all the letters: hit once and mentally reproduce three times, keeping your hands in the main position. Make sure that only the working finger is tense. The hands should only make vertical movements, otherwise the fingers will lose their main position. Perform all exercises rhythmically, without rushing.
By performing entry-level exercises, students should learn:
firstly, be able to place your hands in the main position automatically and not move them while working;
secondly, know the location of letters on the keyboard perfectly;
thirdly, remember the movements of your fingers to each key;
fourthly, all exercises, including mental ones, should be performed only rhythmically, that is, at the same speed.
Advice: To quickly memorize the keyboard, we use our imagination and senses. Imagine that your index fingers and the keys attached to them are green, your middle fingers and their keys are red, your ring fingers are blue, and your little fingers are yellow.
Look at the picture.
Perhaps a better color arrangement for students would be to arrange the colors in a rainbow. The order of the colors is suggested by the famous phrase: Every Hunter Wants to Know Where the Pheasant Sits. It is easy to remember the order of colors by the first letter of the words.
But in this case, the keyboard is painted in four opposite colors. The opposite of red is green, and blue is the opposite of yellow.
Advice (physical exercise “I am a finger”):
Stand up straight, bend your arms as if you are about to type. Imagine yourself as the yellow little finger of your left hand. You are hanging over the yellow square key F. Jump forward and slightly upward onto the yellow triangular key Y. Pause a little and imagine a large soft and hot key under your feet. Return to your original place. While jumping with the little finger of your left hand, perform movements similar to those you do when typing. Jump back and, as it were, a little down on the yellow round key Y. Feel the cold of the prickly ice floes beneath you. Go back. Jump up and imagine that you hit the F key. Do the exercise by simulating the movements of all your fingers. If you are not tired, repeat again. During the exercises, the fingers whose movements you imitate exactly repeat the actual movements at the keyboard.
One lesson should last at least 20–25 minutes. Spend at least an hour studying every day. And it’s better to have two or three short lessons a day, separated by time, than one long continuous one. Don't overwork yourself.
Tip: If your hands are tired, clench your fingers into a fist and straighten them sharply, lower them down and relax. Do 8-10 times. Massage your hands with movements reminiscent of putting on tight gloves..
Level 2 exercises (basic level)
Draw students' attention to the need to use punctuation marks when typing. Remember the rules for placing punctuation marks.
Familiarize students with the rules of printing punctuation marks. For example, to type a period, you need to hit the key with it and immediately hit the spacebar with the other hand (the edge of your thumb).
- The Backspace key is pressed with the little finger of the right hand. This key is used to delete the character to the left of the cursor. It is designed to correct errors that occur when typing texts.
- The Delete key is similar to the Backspace key. It is also pressed with the little finger of the right hand. Used to delete the character to the right of the cursor.
- The Enter key is pressed with the little finger of the right hand. Used to translate strings.
- The Space key is pressed with the thumb of the left or right (currently free) hand. It is designed to put spaces between words in a sentence.
Place your hands in the basic position. Type punctuation marks: period, comma, exclamation point and question mark. Mentally repeat everything three times. While performing the exercise, try to remember the spatial-muscular sensations.
Exercise 2.2. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the line:
I can I can I can I can
Advice: At the beginning of the lesson, students type in lowercase letters and without punctuation 3-4 times with the obligatory mental repetition of each new word. Sentences are separated from each other by a space. You should try not to look at the keyboard, type without typos and maintain the same spacing and margins.
Exercise 2.3. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
I can (mental repetition) I can (mental repetition)
Advice: Strike the keys rhythmically, but do not rush. Rhythm reduces fatigue and increases productivity.
Exercise 2.4. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the line:
I can print I can print I can print I can print
Exercise 2.5. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the line:
type fast I can type fast I can
Exercise 2.6. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
I'm typing faster and faster I'm typing faster and faster
Exercise 2.7. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
print easier and faster print easier and faster
Exercise 2.8. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
can I type well can I type well
Exercise 2.9. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
I type everything in an instant I type everything in a moment
Exercise 2.10. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
I can do it well I can do it well
Exercise 2.11. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
and easier with every moment and easier with every moment
Exercise 2.12. Place your hands in the basic position. Type the couplet four times:
I can type quickly
and every moment it gets faster
Exercise 2.13. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
I will remember everything quickly. I will remember everything quickly.
Exercises to master punctuation marks.
Exercise 2.14. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the lines:
I will remember a simple rhyme:
Quotes, semicolon,
Stars sign, bracket and other,
Plus, equality and carry,
Percent, number, comma,
And an exclamation and a question.
Exercise 2.14. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the same lines, replacing the name of the punctuation mark with its symbol:
I will remember a simple rhyme:
Exercise 2.15. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the same lines, gradually replacing all the characters with words according to the concatenation rule. First four times:
I will remember a simple rhyme:
(and another
And transfer,
% No. comma,
AND! and a question.
Then four times:
I will remember a simple rhyme:
Quotes, semicolon,
(and another
Plus = and carry,
% number, comma,
And an exclamation and a question.
And so on until the signs are completely replaced. Also type each new word mentally.
Number exercises.
Exercise 2.16. Place your hands in the basic position. Print the rhyme as follows:
I won’t tire of repeating:
One two three four five.
Six, seven, eight, nine, zero.
Then four times like this:
Repeat again four times, adding signs to the number rows:
I won’t tire of repeating:
№6, №7, №8, №9, №0.
Level 3 exercises (basic level)
Exercise 3.1. Place your hands in the basic position. Type the text:
In the apiary.
Alyosha Solovyov lives in the village of Sosnovka. It stands on the banks of the Bystritsa River.
Alyosha has an older brother, Kostya. He works as a beekeeper. Alyosha loves to help him.
Early in the morning the brothers come to the apiary. There are beehives among the trees. The bees are buzzing. The brothers are preparing the frames and cleaning the entrances.
The day passes quickly.
If you look at the keyboard while you type, you reduce the quality of the text, waste time and health.
You have to run your eyes from the screen to the keys and back. Your thoughts are confused, moving your gaze wastes time and strains your vision. You get more tired.
It is more comfortable for a person who types touch-type. He doesn't get distracted by searching for letters and focuses on how to write better.
Without straining himself, he types 250 characters per minute, which is the speed at which most people “think” in writing. It turns out that a person thinks - and thoughts instantly appear on the screen.
Advice from Pavel Durov, creator of VKontakte and Telegram:
Learn to touch-type on the keyboard. Time is one of the few treasures you have, and you should be able to type almost as quickly as you can think. And you should think not about where the desired letter is, but about what you are writing.
What is the “blind method” based on?
You don't have to be a genius to be able to write without looking at a keyboard. Anyone can master the blind method.
You have ridges on your A and O keys:
The protrusions are made to allow you to place your hands in the starting position without looking at the layout.
The starting position is as follows.
The index fingers are on the keys with ridges:
The fingers of the left hand are on the FYVA keys, the fingers of the right hand are on OLJ
Thumbs up on the space bar.
Each finger presses the key it is on. This allows you to blindly find and type letters.
In order to type the rest without looking, the keys are distributed among the fingers:
How to learn to touch type. Two stages
Each finger presses its own keys. To remember all this, keyboard trainers will help.
For the first stage of training, the website vse10.ru is suitable.
The first lessons are typing a few letters. Each time their number increases.
First exercise of the first lesson
It will be uncomfortable at first
Usually people don't use all their fingers, so it will be unusual to press some keys while learning. For example, my ring finger did not bend towards the letter “h”.
To write a capital letter, I used only left Shift. It was a discovery for me that the keyboard has a “Shift” on the right. It needs to be clamped right little finger when you type in capitals left hand. This increases printing speed.
Similar feature with space. Here I am writing the word “Odie”, the last letter in the word is “and”. I dialed it left hand, so I have to press spacebar right. This also affects speed.
If it's inconvenient, there's no need to change the rules. Over time, everything will become familiar - now I can easily type “h” with my ring finger.
Don't look at the keyboard
Sometimes you forget where the key is and want to look at the layout. There is no need to do this, because the wrong habit will develop. Eyes only on the screen.
Don't make mistakes
Beginners try to type quickly and end up pressing the wrong keys. These people manage to learn touch typing, but they continue to make a lot of typos. You have to correct typos and waste time.
To avoid this problem, do not chase speed while learning. Remember: the fewer errors now, the greater the speed in the future. Use your correct finger to type each key slowly. It will be tedious, but the result will be worth it.
The simulator will also help with this. To move on to the next lesson, you can make no more than two mistakes:
How to build training
Take a new lesson in the evening and repeat it in the morning. One lesson is about 15 minutes. In this mode it will be comfortable to train and go about your business.
There are 16 lessons in total. It turns out that the first stage of training will take 17 days. If you think it's too long for you, try exercising more often. But, most likely, you will get tired and abandon your studies. Therefore, I advise you to train little by little, but regularly.
You will have the following question.
Now you have learned how to blindly type the middle row. What to do in real life? One row is not enough to write a letter. Will you have to look at the keyboard?
Better not. Print out the "" diagram (version) and place it in front of you. Look at the diagram when you need a letter that you didn’t study.
When you go through all the letters and symbols, leave the diagram for a few days.
The main thing is not to look at the keyboard.
After completing all the lessons, you will roughly remember which key you need to press with which finger. To remember to the end, you need to practice and type words and text.
Suitable for the second stage of training website klava.org.
Select the “initial” mode:
There is a timer in the middle of the hat.
After a week, change the mode to “training” and you will already be typing. Do the same three times a day for 10 minutes.
“Training” mode on klava.org
This way you will learn to type without thinking about the keyboard.
Disable Capslock
Capslock keyinterferes:you accidentally press it, type in CAPITAL LETTERS, then erase them, turn off the caps and write again.
To save time, disable this key. Don't be afraid that this will create some inconvenience - it does more harm than good.
How to disable Capslock
on Windows
on Mac
How to learn to touch type fast
The main thing is to learn the blind method; speed will come with time. You don’t have to use any programs, but just practice: blindly, write a text, communicate by mail, chat with friends.
But in order to quickly gain greater speed, exercise on simulators. Type text on klava.org and compete in speed with real people on klavogonki.ru.
On klavogonki.ru, in normal mode, opponents type a random quote from a book
How learn to touch typein English
Learning two layouts at the same time is difficult and ineffective. Therefore, I advise you to learn Russian first.
After learning the Russian layout, people say that they begin to touch-type in English without any training equipment: the brain liked not to look at the keyboard and it tries to learn the location of the keys itself.
This is true, but still these people do not type as well as they could after training on simulators.
To type in English with ease and without errors, study in the same way as in Russian: having set the English language, start learning from vse10.ru, after completing all the lessons, go to klava.org and then hone your skills on klavogonki.ru.
Blindly not only text
Touch typing skills will be useful in programs. The rule is: the more you do with the keyboard, the faster you work. Reaching for the keys is always faster than poking with the mouse, especially if you find them blindly.
Let's take Photoshop as an example. To select a tool, I do not click in the toolbar, but press a hotkey. To select a layer, I don't click in the layers panel, but go down by pressing Alt + [, or up by pressing Alt + ]. Thanks to this I work faster.
Remember
- Starting position - fingers on FYVA and OLJ.
- Each finger presses its own keys.
- Complete all lessons on vse10.ru. New lesson - in the evening, repeat - in the morning.
- It will be uncomfortable at first, don't look at the keyboard, don't make mistakes.
- Practice in the “Beginner” mode on klava.org. Three times a day for 10 minutes for a week.
- Practice in the “Training” mode on klava.org. Three times a day for 10 minutes until you feel confident in touch typing.
- Increase your speed by competing on klavogonki.ru.
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The speed of completing a task on a computer may depend not only on obvious factors: processor performance or, roughly speaking, human intelligence. Sometimes the most limiting factor is purely mechanical work, namely typing on a keyboard. Thoughts go far ahead, but fingers do not have time to fix the text. This situation is obviously faced not only by writers, journalists, programmers, but also by all those who have to type text with two or three fingers without taking their eyes off the keyboard.
It is surprising that the ten-finger touch typing method, discovered back in the 19th century, is now many times more relevant for every active computer user. Its skillful use can significantly reduce the time spent entering text.
The review includes keyboard simulators, each of which has at least one distinctive feature among programs of this kind. Therefore, when choosing a simulator, you can be guided by the review headings.
"Keyboard Solo": a reliable all-rounder
“Keyboard Solo” is the most versatile keyboard trainer, so it’s worth starting the review with it. In addition to Russian, English and German, the course “Taming the Numbers”, which will be useful, for example, to accountants. The universal edition includes Russian, English and digital layouts.
The first impression after installation may be skeptical: too informal approach. However, the further the user moves away from the beginning of the course, the more meaningful these digressions become. They allow you to take a break from fairly monotonous exercises. Perhaps the greatest benefit from the text material is recommendations on correct pressure, posture, and correct technique, which is important for touch typing with ten fingers. Looking ahead: only Solo provides this information evenly throughout the course.
Before performing the exercises, you need to do a warm-up, which helps you adapt to Solo. In real time, as well as after training, you can view statistics: average score, rate of gain, number of errors. Statistics are available not only for exercises, but also for days; you can use them to track the dynamics of exercises.
Keyboard training does not contain meaningful phrases; these are pre-prepared “synthetic” expressions - unlike, say, the VerseQ discussed below, where the typing string is generated based on user errors. By the way, in Solo, mistakes are extremely unwelcome; you often have to redo the task several times. The requirements for passing are strict, the exercises become more complicated with each new level, of which there are about a hundred. Yes, apparently, it’s not for nothing that the program includes psychological tests.
The program's interface makes an ambivalent impression. Comparing with previous versions of “Keyboard Solo”, it cannot be said that the new interface, designed in gray and green tones, has significantly improved the ergonomics of the program. On the one hand, it is quite convenient to use; all settings and elements are well documented in the help. But you can find fault with the fact that the virtual keyboard does not indicate which finger to press this or that key; no hints are displayed during the exercise. As a result, without sufficient experience, you need to return to the description of the exercise.
VerseQ: learning from our mistakes
The most important thing in the description of the program is not that the user will be able to touch-type “literally in an hour” (according to the author of the simulator). Another thing is attractive: VerseQ uses algorithms in training that are not based on “coaching”, and also does not “punish” for mistakes made during exercises. Moreover, the course is based on user errors and problematic phrases, in which, according to statistics, difficulties most often arise. Moreover, according to the plan, the user will not learn about his mistakes from statistics; VerseQ quietly adjusts them to further exercises. Despite this, general statistics are displayed both during training and as training dynamics by pressing F9.
Three operating modes are available - with German, Russian and English layout. There are no introductory exercises; in addition, all the letters of the alphabet are already involved from the very beginning. However, you should not expect that the text you type will be meaningful: as a rule, these are repeated combinations of letters that are phonetically related (they can be pronounced). The technique is based not only on pressing, but also on transitions between keys.
A distinctive feature of VerseQ is a moderate “tone” of presentation, a soothing color scheme and a neutral design in general. It is unknown how much effort it takes to leave the program in a state of irritation. By the way, if we talk about the price issue, in “Solo on the Keyboard” a warning about the unregistered version appears after each exercise, in VerseQ - only at the beginning of the program launch.
All the most important information is collected in a concise help file: how to use the program correctly, teaching methodology, keyboard techniques. Perhaps what is missing in this simulator is more detailed instructions for working with the exercises, as is done in “Solo”.
Typing Master – a classic of the genre
By and large, this simulator could not be included in the review, since it does not support the Russian-language layout, but still: a) it is useful for improving touch typing skills in the Latin alphabet in English, Spanish, German, French or Italian; b) Typing Master is an excellent example of a structured, calibrated course.
Not every user will like the strict approach and conservatism of Typing Master; at the same time, compared to Solo, the program is presented even more concisely. Typing Master offers the following courses:
- Touch Typing Course - directly, a course on touch typing
- Speed Building Course - increasing speed
- Numbers Course - a short course on typing on the top number row
- Special Marks Course - an express course on additional symbols: brackets, mathematical signs, etc.
- Numeric Keypad Course - course on using the numeric keyboard
Each course consists of theoretical and practical blocks. At the beginning of the exercise, the time required to complete the task is indicated, and you are also asked to select the difficulty (from 90% to 98% of correct hits). In the mode of learning new keys (“new keys”), the letters to be typed are in no way related to each other phonetically, but in the “drill” mode you need to enter words: there are separate exercises for words, sentences, and paragraphs. At the end of the task, statistics are displayed, from which you can find out which keys cause the greatest difficulty.
Additionally, it is worth noting TypingMaster Satellite - an assistant that works in the background and tracks mistakes made, and also creates individual exercises for the most complex combinations.
The interface was created by developers who pay attention to detail. First of all, it is very intuitive and literally explained which finger to press this or that key, with the accompanying keyboard diagrams. It is very useful that errors on the keyboard are displayed in the form of crossed out keys (other simulators do not have this, which leads to several repeated errors after one incorrect press).
TypingMaster does not allow you to deviate one step from the given program and is somewhat reminiscent of dry language grammar courses. However, this cannot be called a disadvantage; rather, it is a characteristic feature of this simulator, which will either deter the user or push him away.
Stamina - freedom of action
After getting acquainted with Typing Master, Stamina turns out to be the most “frivolous” simulator in the review. The program will not appeal to users who find the developer's sense of humor inappropriate and at the same time are entirely committed to learning the ten-finger typing method. Lack of seriousness begins with help, all kinds of comments and ending with voice acting. There are special complaints about the sound expressed by visitors on the program's home page. This point can be fixed with a patch or through the “Censorship” option in the Stamina settings.
Despite the above, you should not draw hasty conclusions and ignore the simulator. Just pay attention to the variety of training modes - “Lessons”, “Phrases”, “Letters”, “All symbols” and “External file”. Of greatest interest are the lessons that are divided into basic exercises, letter combinations, numbers and symbols. Regarding the lessons with the numeric keypad: the developer states that he “did them without really trying” and invites users to participate in the development process themselves (quote: “Can you do something smarter?”).
Unfortunately, the author of Stamina placed the program with its wide capabilities in an inconvenient shell, so when starting the simulator it is not entirely clear how and in what sequence all this functionality should be accessed. On the other hand, the help quite clearly explains the course methodology, basic concepts, typing techniques (position of fingers on the keyboard, etc.). Particular attention is paid to an alternative method of placing fingers on the keyboard.
The keyboard simulator can also be recommended for working with the Ukrainian or Belarusian layout (this is something you won’t find in other simulators). The basic distribution contains lessons in Russian, English, Ukrainian, and it is possible to include phrases in other languages.
Thus, the main feature of Stamina is the freedom of action provided to the user. Therefore, you can perform the exercises in any order and create your own course. The downside of the method is that it is unknown how quickly concrete results can be achieved with this approach.
Klavarog - online training
Klavarog is a self-sufficient online simulator, indicating that the project can exist and develop through donations. And the development progress is actually noticeable if you look.
In Klavarog, similarly to Stamina, there is no set sequence such as step-by-step exercises from simple to complex. The simulator fixes errors and adds problematic words to each generated line of text (the principle of operation is similar to both Stamina and VerseQ).
It is convenient to navigate the keyboard layout using the color scheme; it can be enabled in the program settings (the “fill” icon). A very useful hint in the form of a hand is which finger to press the desired key (a similar feature was noticed only in Typing Master). Experienced users can turn off all hints or switch to Zen mode, where there are virtually no distractions.
In addition to standard courses with Russian and English layouts, there are courses on digital layouts, Esperanto, and the programming languages PHP, Python, SQL, XML/XSLT. Dictionary exercises are worth special attention: you need to enter the correct translation of a word from the available options. If the word is chosen incorrectly, you must enter it three times. This way, you can kill two birds with one stone: your keyboard and language skills improve at the same time. However, due to the fact that the set of words is generated by the program, it is quite easy to guess the correct translation.
Unfortunately, this keyboard simulator does not allow you to record results, track statistics and skill development. In general, it would be nice to be able to create an account on the site - technically this can be done.
You can make your suggestions for the development of Klavarog on the page.
Bombina: a simulator for the little ones
“Bombina” occupies a free niche where there are no competitors. This simulator is designed to teach schoolchildren (or rather, even children of primary school age) the ten-finger touch typing method.
The program shell is “cartoonish” and should be evaluated by children. However, adults may also have reasonable complaints. The interface is not intuitive in all places, and it will seem inconvenient that the navigation elements or, for example, the “Start” button at the beginning of the exercise are not clearly marked enough: you have to look for them. For example, who would have thought that the image of a rag is the local analogue of the “Exit” button.
Questions arise about the method of operation of the simulator: how training occurs, what parents and children should pay attention to. It turns out that there is quite detailed help that exists separately from the program. It is recommended to start “Bombina” with an introductory course, where finger positioning on the keyboard is explained in detail and a description of the keys is given. Then you can move on to the exercises. If in other simulators the emphasis is on transitions and keyboard chords, here you need to pay attention to the jumping “chips” and repeat their movements.
Bombin has difficulty levels that affect the number of mistakes allowed in the exercise. You can activate automatic transition from one difficulty level to another: it will work after successfully completing the exercise with a high score at least three times.
As a result, given that the program has many interactive elements and modes (there is even a logic game), it can be recommended for teaching children computer basics. At least Bombina would be a smarter choice than the endless string of casual games.
Table 1. Comparison of keyboard trainers by functionality
| Name of the simulator | Terms of distribution | Keyboard support | Training modes |
| Shareware | Russian, English, German, Italian, digital | Warm-ups, tasks, exercises, exam | |
| Trial | Russian, English, German | Exercises | |
| Trial | English, Spanish, German, French, Italian | Exercises, games, tests | |
| Freeware | English, Russian, Ukrainian + | “Lessons”, “Phrases”, “Letters”, “All symbols”, your own text | |
| Donationware | Russian, English, digital, Esperanto, phonetic + | Training, initial, speed, vocabulary, programming | |
| Freeware (1 user), shareware (multi-user version) | Russian, English | Exercises, games, your own text |
