The 10 finger method is a very established technique to efficiently use your computer keyboard. With some practice and the correct finger positions you can type „blindly“ on the keyboard. If you have it down, you can significantly lower your error rate and increase your typing speed at the same time.
Although the advantages of the 10 finger-method are perfectly obvious, still many people are hunting and pecking away. Here you are starting at your keyboard until you spot the right key and then hit with your index finger.
After some years you start using more fingers and you might know the positions of the keys better – however, without a distinct finger-key-combination only a few people can manage „blindly“ and equally fast.
Using the 10 finger-method there is a basic position for your fingers, from where you can reach any key you need. Your left fingers are placed on the keys A, S, D and F. Your right fingers are on the keys J, K, L and ?. Your thumbs are on the space bar.
You can find the basic position without looking at your keyboard. The keys F and J, where your index fingers are placed, have a little bump. This is how you can feel where to put your index fingers, the rest of your fingers are placed accordingly then.
Each finger has to hit several different keys. On the chart you can see the coloured marks: they show you which finger and which key correlate.
You want to hit the E. Here’s your left middle finger in charge, which is in the basic position placed on the key D. Reach with your left middle finger to the E and return afterwards to the basic position on the D.
The objective is to anchor the handling of the keyboard in your subconscious. Our subconscious helps us dealing with more or less complex actions within seconds, almost automatically.
While hunting and pecking you need a certain level of consiousness (where’s the next key?). However, the distinct finger-key-combinations help you to focus on the most important thing: the content.
If you have adapted your own writing system and have been using it for a long time, you will probably be slower than before after switching to the 10 finger-method. Do not be discouraged. After a short time you will notice a significant progress and write faster and more comfortably than with your old system.
Using the 10 finger-method has several advantages which improve your daily work on your computer.
By using the 10 finger-method subconsciously you can increase your typing speed significantly, in other words you will be saving precious time.
Since you don’t have to focus on hitting single keys any longer, you can concentrate on the texts you’re writing. You don’t have to switch back and forth anymore, your brain gets some relief and can work more efficiently.
The permanent eye on the keyboard supports an unhealthy posture at work. Using the 10 finger-method you don’t need to glimpse at your keyboard all the time. This helps you to sit upright and in a good position.
Our typing trainer shows you a visual keyboard right underneath the exercises. In the beginning this is helping you not to look away from the screen. So you can memorize the keys better and faster.
In case you have already managed the 10 finger-method, you can adjust the display of the visual keyboard to increase the learning effect.
Pleae remember: first thing’s first. It is important to put correctness before speed! Under real conditions you’re burning a lot of time correcting your mistypings afterwards. For each error you will lose points.
If you mistype something in an exercise, only one error will be saved while you can correct your mistyping. You won’t lose any more points, in case you just realize that you have mistyped later on.
Now you know all the important basics to get started with all your 10 fingers! Try our Typing Trainer right now!