Special character composition

[David Corbin]

On Thursday 25 September 2003 22:45, Brian T. Schellenberger wrote:
> | > You don't touch type, do you? :-)
> | >
> | > But it would work for people that don't.
> |
> | But I do touch type.  Not "exactly like you're supposed to", but I'm
> | probably good for 50 WPM (corrected).   Why did you suppose that my
> | suggestion meant I don't touch type?
>
> Because since ` and e are both on the same hand, it's hard to type.
>
> And ` and a are impossible to touch-type together since they are on the
> same *finger*.
>
> By touch-type of course he would have meant "correctly" touch typing; if
> you use more than two fingers but not in the official (or at least an
> consistent) way, then held-down keys would work.  For those who do, it's
> essential in theory that shift-type keys have one on each side.
>
> That said, there is only one CTRL key on keyboards and somehow we manage
> even atrocities like ^a.  But if there were very many of those, it would
> sure slow down the touch-typists.  To type things like that I have to
> essentially move my left hand "off the keyboard" just as I must do with my
> right hand when using the mouse, and it slows down the typing a *lot*.

I barely use accented characters (only because I'm learning Portugese) and I'm 
so slow thinking in Portugese, touch-typing is hardly a concern.   My 
"no-standard" touch-typing has mostly to do with shift/alt/ctrl type stuff.  
Thiinking about it, I never use the right hand for modifier key.  If I need 
to type "Shift-A", I hit the A with my "S-finger" (left ring).

Having said all that (like anyone cared), I retract my suggestion as poorly 
thought idea.  But the original (make the dead-keys be alt or ctrl oriented) 
suggestion was a good one, I think.  Particularly for programmers and others 
that seldom but do occaisionally need accented characters.

David
-- 
David Corbin <dcorbin at machturtle.com>

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