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</p> <p>The Dvorak Keyboard</p> <p>Almost everyone knows that the QWERTY keyboard was designed by Christopher Sholes to prevent the arms in old manual typewriters from jamming. Fewer people know that a University of Washington professor and efficiency fanatic, August Dvorak (a cousin of the composer), in 1936, designed a keyboard to maximize efficiency (by placing common letters on the home row), and make the stronger fingers of the hands do most of the work.</p> <p>I was surprised by the factoid (gathered from Grolier's Encyclopedia) that part of the QWERTY layout was driven by the decision to place all of the letters in the word "typewriter" on the top row so that salesmen wouldn't have to hunt and peck.</p> <p>I've always been bothered by poor design or engineering, so ever since hearing about the Dvorak keyboard I wanted to switch. I finally took the plunge in 1989 and haven't regretted it. Since then, because of repetitive stress injuries (RSI) and carpal tunnel syndrome, many people have asked me about the Dvorak keyboard, and bit by bit I've become something of an evangelist.</p> <p>Pictured below is the Dvorak keymapping. I learned it by printing out a diagram like this one, and placing it next to my terminal. I regained comfort after a couple weeks, and eventually passed my old speed. It is definitely more comfortable than QWERTY. An unintended side effect is that it is a pretty effective security device (just ask any of my coworkers).</p> <p>