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Unsung Heroes, Part 4

Feb 20, 2002  By Marcel Gagné
 in
This finger goes here and that finger...

The body of this article is still being converted and will be available shortly.

email: mggagne@salmar.com

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Don't forget typespeed

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 03/26/2002 - 03:00.

http://www.sicom.fi/~bestis/typespeed.html

The "unix commands" module is very fun.

Re: Unsung Heroes, Part 4

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 03/01/2002 - 03:00.

So, this is the "Sysadmin's Corner", right !?

But still you tell your beloved readers, nah, strike that, "Sysadmins" stuff like:

tar -xzvf gtypist-2.5.tar.gz
cd gtypist-2.5
./configure
make
make install

For God's sake ! What do you think I am administering ? A cell-phone ?

Other than that, I find it was a good idea to touch this topic. Heck, since this is an article for people who need learn typing I even forgive you the "newbie"-instructions "./configure;make;make isntall"...
As someone who has a little experience (more than nothing at least) with typing tutors on the computer let me give my personal impressions:
Many years ago (before the internet, when getting "free" software meant ordering PublicDomain Diskettes for $0.50/each, back in the days when such an incredible little machine as the Commodore Amiga still was being considered High-End...(around 1993) I started a typing course that came on a Fred-Fish Disk. It was Shareware but had the first three demo lessons enabled. Wow ! That was really good. It not only made you type in dumb letters (yes, it did that as well) but it actually told you the professionalism behind it, the theory ! I.E. How to lay your hands on the keyboard (yes, as is with the piano), how to move your fingers, which finger is supposed to touch which key and so on... Also, it is not needed to show which key one typed on a colored keyboard...you already see the letter on the screen. And this is all that you should need to watch...This is maybe the most important thing in such a tutor !!!!! You want to lear it right ?! I mean, I can become a fast 7 fingers typer without tutors that only make me enter text fast. Oh, besides, I never payed the Shareware fee, so I am still typing with 7 fingers (but very fast and without the need to look).
Out of this reason

Out of this reason I can absolutely not recommend KTouch !!! It is simply no tutor but more a trainee. Okay, now I will check out the other progs :-D

Re: Unsung Heroes, Part 4

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 02/28/2002 - 03:00.

I work for a school and we are planning on converting to Linux for all new student computers. When I looked this fall for typing programs, I didn't find much. Thanks to this article, I now have all the software I need to do the conversion. (Although a simple database interface would also be VERY helpful). I'll keep looking, I know there are several out there.

Bill Tihen

TASIS (The American School in Switzerland)

Re: Unsung Heroes, Part 4

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 02/23/2002 - 03:00.

Children are not idiots. They do not need flashy graphics to learn typing.

I, for one, am sick and tired of games, "hands-on activities", bright colors, and all manner of time-wasting non-academic junk all in the name of making it easier for children to understand things.

Children, I say again, are not stupid! In the 7 hours they spend at school each day (in the US), they do what could be learned in 45 minutes, were all the junk taken out.

Re: Unsung Heroes, Part 4

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 03/06/2002 - 03:00.

MOST children may not be idiots, but if genetics have anything to do with it, I bet yours are...

Re: Unsung Heroes, Part 4

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 02/27/2002 - 03:00.

Of course children are not idiots. That's why they appreciate humor and creativity. Obiously some adults lack that insight. Tux typing is brilliant.

Re: Unsung Heroes, Part 4

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 02/26/2002 - 03:00.

And yet the 45 minutes would be as dull as dish water thus inspiring the child to learn... ziltch.

Re: Unsung Heroes, Part 4

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 02/21/2002 - 03:00.

I'd buy your book on system administration but it

costs and arm and a leg in Canada check out

the price at chapters www.chapters.ca

Doesn't anyone sell books for $20 anymore? LOL.

Still love your columns :)

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