Teaching an old dog... to type.

August 21, 2017 10:01 PM

I need something to distract me for a while, so I decided to learn to type. Probably to go along with this is some basic grammar and spelling. My typing now is two fingers while I stare at the keyboard. Any good tutorial you'd suggest? I really hate voice writing, and I doubt we'll get to the "shoot a chip in his head to make him a perfect touch typist" level of tech any time soon
posted by Marky to Education (7 answers total)

Typing of the dead is available on steam for $20. I type at 70+ wpm, this game* helped get me there: http://store.steampowered.com/app/246580/The_Typing_of_The_Dead_Overkill/

There is also http://play.typeracer.com which has a practice mode, but it's no TotD.

*Actually a much earlier version, but I'm sure this will work just as well
posted by askmehow at 10:19 PM on August 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

It is a while since I looked at online resources - but here is a MakeUseOF review of 6 recommended ones - and form these my pick would be typingweb.com
posted by rongorongo at 10:26 PM on August 21, 2017

I stuck a copy of the keyboard layout to the edge of my screen, and put duct tape over all the letters on the keyboard except the home buttons (f and j). Once I couldn't cheat, I learnt where the letters were pretty quickly. Or at least, my fingers did. I don't think my conscious brain is really involved, as I'd still have to guess where single letters are if asked.
posted by kjs4 at 12:13 AM on August 22, 2017 [1 favorite]

TyperShark. It's out there in both web game and downloadable. I think it's a pretty good way to increase your speed.
posted by Emperor SnooKloze at 12:21 AM on August 22, 2017

If you type a lot already, you will learn quickly. I learned to type at 30 after many years of hunt and peck email, and I found that I binged the lessons because it's not really usable until you get to a certain point. Make sure you stick with it long enough to learn the number row, it's really handy and a nice way to show off, banging out carets and ampersands without looking.
posted by rhizome at 1:25 AM on August 22, 2017

I'm not going to make specific product or tutorial recommendations but add the suggestion to spend some time on online chat. My typing speed ramped up when having spirited conversations on msn back in the day.
posted by Trivia Newton John at 2:49 AM on August 22, 2017 [2 favorites]

BBC Dance Mat Typing! It's goofy, fun and aimed at kids but I've also used it on my mother to help her re-learn touch typing after a long time away from the keyboard.
posted by the thought-fox at 4:27 AM on August 22, 2017 [2 favorites]