[nwah1]

If you use any other keyboard for any other purpose, the more removed from the standard layout you are, the more disoriented you'll be when switching between the two.

I think if keyboards originally were designed for thumbs to press Ctrl and Alt, in addition to Space, it would be the standard, and it would make sense.

As of now, Ctrl+C, Ctrl+X, Ctrl+V are so standard that I wouldn't want to switch, and am glad that even Colemak doesn't force me to.

But pressing Ctrl+C requires much less hand movement than pressing a traditional backspace. If minimizing hand movement is the goal then backspace is the biggest offender. It is also one of the things that tends to skew the results for Colemak in studies regarding hand movement, making it appear better than it actually is.

Colemak would've been a better standard. But it is not the standard. Don't learn it. Just learn how to type correctly on QWERTY and get a keyboard with the features I mentioned.

[verisimilidude]

> If you use any other keyboard for any other purpose, the more removed from the standard layout you are, the more disoriented you'll be when switching between the two.

I don't find this to be true. At all. I use standard QWERTY on my Macbook. At my desk, I use an Ergodox (tented, split, columnar/matrix, thumb clusters, etc.) with a custom Dvorak-based layout. My job frequently requires I switch between desk and laptop usage. It's not a problem and not something I need to think about. My brain and hands just do what they need to do wherever I happen to be typing.

If anything, I think the opposite of your statement is true. The further away from the standard you get in your exotic preference, the easier it is to compartmentalize that layout, the easier it will be to switch as needed.

[evancordell]

> If anything, I think the opposite of your statement is true. The further away from the standard you get in your exotic preference, the easier it is to compartmentalize that layout, the easier it will be to switch as needed.

This has been my experience as well - even with very muscle-memory intensive things like vim.

[ShawnCleverdon]

> If you use any other keyboard for any other purpose, the more removed from the standard layout you are, the more disoriented you'll be when switching between the two.

Not for me. I use a Kinesis Ergo Advantage at work and home, and have no problems using a standard QWERTY keyboard (infrequently). Switching requires no thought or practice.

The Advantage products shift the major keys where you would normally use your little finger on a QWERTY keyboard to your thumb. It is heaven.