Typing Equipment: What are my Options?

The increasing rate of injuries due to repetitive stress and carpal tunnel syndrome from frequent typing and keyboard use have made plenty of people question whether there's an alternative somewhere to standard keyboards. Each profession has its supplies and tools of the trade, and typing does as well. The keyboards we find all over the place are not the most effective ones to use and those who type regularly or work from home in writing or data entry positions should invest in proper equipment for the task.

Buying a keyboard with a V-shape design is a good start. They're often referred to as ergonomic keyboards, and they make it possible for you to place your hands in a more natural position for typing so the wrist isn't skewed towards the "pinkie" fingers.

Split keyboards take it one step further. They're sold in three different kinds: fixed, adjustable, and contoured. Fixed-split keyboards are literally split in pieces, they come in two or three pieces, so one can set each section of keyboard in the position that's absolute best for him or her, so they can more easily maintain the natural, proper position from elbow to fingertips. Adjustable-split keyboards can also be adapted to form an angle, tilting the vertical center raise. Contoured keyboards win the award for being the most typist-friendly, as they're not only split and angle-adjustable, but the position of the keys themselves is laid out in curves for exemplary finger placement.

And the list of different keyboards continues on and on.

Vertical keyboards are split too, only these types of keyboards are set upright, so the typist's hands are in a position resembling a hand-shake.

Dvorak keyboards are simpler, with a different alphabetic arrangement than the standard QWERTY keyboard that does a better job at equally distributing typing between all the fingers. Several people have made the switch for ergonomic reasons and have discovered that switching over was easier than they thought it would be.

Chording keyboards close off the parade of alternative keyboards for typists, these types use combinations of keys that symbolize letters, numbers, and words. Think of pressing chords on a piano to obtain a sound, and you have grasped the basic principle of a chording keyboard. The typist can choose the location of the keypads, and there's less finger movement involved, on the other hand, these types of keyboards require training and reduce typing speed.

To see whether or not your keyboard is keeping you up to speed, go see the About Us page and take a short typing test.

About The Author Chris Dunn manages a medical transcription business that sponsors a site offering free typing tests. Please visit href="http://www.free-typing-test.com/ WEBMASTERS: Use of this article requires links remain intact.