typing and programming

[aszxcv]

i am so use to looking down on keyboard when i type i type with one hand btw but i am trying to learn to type with both hands without looking down to be more efficienti can do the alphabet a-z easy but i run into problems with knowing where positions of symbols such as $, ", {}, [] are atmy question ishow many wpm do you folks type?and does anyone else program by looking down at keyboard first

[Ingolme]

I haven't taken any typing courses or anything. But despite typing "incorrectly" I actually type pretty fast.Since I program a lot, I can find the <, >, [, ], { and } keys pretty easily. I'm on a laptop keyboard though. Most tabletop keyboards are different than mine. The fact that my keys are flat makes it easier for me to type.

[boen_robot]

It's all in the habbit.I'm more used to "normal" keys (non-flat ones), and on such keyboards, I type pretty fast, though I've seen girls that type faster.Sometimes, some special symbols are a little hard for me to find, especially on dark. Symbols that require "Shift + something" to be more precise, like !@#$%^&*()_+... I sometimes type one when I mean the other, but I can easily find the right one if I'm in doubht.If your primary alphabet is not pure Latin (as is in my case - here in Bulgaria we use Cyrillic), try to find a phonetic version of your alphabet, i.e. one that has the sound of a letter mapped to the equivalent latin letter. That way, you won't have to memorize two keyboard layouts, but just one.But in the end, it takes practice. Try to type without looking at the keyboard, and the more you do it, the more you'll get used to it.

[aspnetguy]

I probably look at the keyboard 40% of the time and I keep improving. I can type about 30-40 wpm. The more practice you do the better you'll get.

[AElliott]

It's just a case of typing a lot I think, you can go for all this touch-typing stuff, and it probably is the more efficient way of typing, but I'm too set in my ways to switch. My hands are roughly in the right spot, it counts... right? I do it two handed, and can probably locate a lot of the common symbols on here. Incidentally, because I have in the past been too lazy to switch from a US to UK keyboard map I might be able to switch quickly to a US model if need be. The US one is all wrong, the "@" is way out of place.

[jeffman]

I don't touch type, and I only use 4 fingers most of the time. But I learned how to go fast in college, and I do a lot of typing at work, and of course I've written some novels, so yeah, I go pretty fast, and I pretty much look at the keyboard all the time.But when I'm coding? When every typo is a disaster? A little extra speed does not matter. I spend most of my time tweaking, not typing. A lot of copy and paste when I create function bodies, for loops, select options, etc. That's not really typing either.

[Natechs]

I can type fairly fast as of I code almost every single day. So I'm fast!

[real_illusions]

i type so fast my keyboard sets on fire...*orders a new keyboard...*

[Kahor]

I am really fast (I've seen faster though) but that comes from using computer since I was 10 or so, moreover I very often switch from Mac to PC (bootcamp on mac intel and a ubuntu laptop), so I have both special characters keyboard layouts in mind and can switch without prob, though sometimes I'll mix em up.I started learning the {}[]()...characters when I started programming, practice is everything. On the other hand I've seen people use computer for years and still type with just one finger or two, but they were a bit old You need to keep practicing and make an effort to look on the screen and not on your keyboard.Edit : I just tried a WPM (reading) test with words and number in english (not my first langage) and got 72 WPM (with 6 typos for 5 lines of text), not too bad but I think I could get better in french and in all words (the text was from a classic english book and had some hours and date like 10:09 p.m, or even names I'd never heard of, which is a pain to write ^^)You can try this : http://www.typeonline.co.uk/typingspeed.php to see how fast you are typing, and show off here (I hope it's ok to post this link, totaly unrelated to me in any way)

[Kingy]

I touch type, learnt on good old mavis beacon years ago and it's a real life saver for me, I slow down on numbers and symbols though.

[popcorn]

I type faster then anyone I know. I'm also really good at finding the <, >, [, ], { and } keys because I use them soooo oo ooo much. I also don't look @ the keyboard when I type.

[chess19]

It varies. If I'm actually typing at full speed, I can peak at about 80 wpm. But yeah. My normal typing isn't as fast as 80 wpm, really. The problem is that I can't think at 80 wpm (or program at that rate either), well not if I don't want it to look bad. So, there's really a practical limit as to how fast you need to be able to type. The 80 wpm is only really useful when directly copying something, like typing up something handwritten out, or directly from a book. One thing that I think is cool about how I type is that I correct simple errors without consciously recognizing them, such as if I miss and press the wrong key. I recommend typing correctly, it's really not that long to learn, and it really does help.(Just took the test, 83, one mistake on the word "high", and I could probably go faster if I tried again.)

[boen_robot]

Wow... I must be really slow. At least when copying anyway.Taking the test, I got 44 wpm and one mistake on the word Werthenberg (missed an "h"... but seriously... I have no idea what that is, and lost a lot of time on it when trying to read it).

[smartalco]

I average about 80 wpm when typing something like this post that makes sense, uses all standard characters, and... ok I'm out of criteriaI also touch type all the time, even when coding, I haven't had to look at the keyboard to type in probably a good 3-4 years (I'm 18, so since I was ~15)

But when I'm coding? When every typo is a disaster? A little extra speed does not matter.

In that case you should still be touch typing, because you need to be watching the monitor to make sure you didn't make any mistakes, you just shouldn't be going at all-out speed

[justsomeguy]

I type at 120wpm with my left pinky only.

[Kingy]

I type at 120wpm with my left pinky only.

What supplements do you take? >.>I used to be able to peak between 90-100 but I dropped to 80 and now I actually have no idea. O_oIt's harder because with this Mac keyboard (being a US keyboard) I find myself typing all sorts of symbols I didn't want by accident.