Want to type faster but can't seem to break the "hunt-and-peck" method? Das Keyboard is holding a new challenge, with prizes for anyone who's brave enough to ditch the crutch of labeled keys and are willing to go blank for thirty days. From last week's press release:
"Das Keyboard is inviting hardcore typists, writers, tech enthusiasts, programmers, and developers to embark on a fun, professional challenge to improve their typing speed and accuracy by mastering a blank keyboard. For 30 days participants will use a blank Das Keyboard Ultimate keyboard or another keyboard with blank keycaps…"
You see, Daniel Guermeur, founder and CEO of Das Keyboard was a coder before he was a purveyor of beefy, mechanical keyboards. Looking to improve his speed and accuracy, he developed a blank keyboard so that he would stop looking at the keys as he typed. After just a couple of weeks, he'd memorized the placement of all the symbols on the keyboard and had doubled his typing speed.
I'm a big fan of Das Keyboard's decks, having picked up one of the original models nearly twenty years ago. The Das Keyboard Ultimate is substantial, with a sturdy, anodized aluminum frame. The Cherry MX switches are crisp and precise. There's no blingy RGB LEDs to distract you, just a bit of luxurious-looking red chrome adorning the volume knob on the upper right. Little details like the footbar also being a ruler are greatly appreciated. Typing on the Das Keyboard Ultimate feels satisfying in a way that pounding on a butterfly-switch laptop keyboard can never be. But first you've got to get comfortable with not looking down. The Ultimate's blank keycaps can make that happen.
Touch typing is a bit of a lost art. Adults of a certain age will remember taking typing classes in high school. There we learned about the home keys F and J. You rest your pointer fingers on those two keys (that’s why they have little bumps, so you can find them without looking), have the rest of your fingers rest on the keys next to them, with your thumbs on the spacebar, then you use that position to type without looking at the keys. Today, where everyone's first exposure to a keyboard is one where you stare at the letters on the screen by default, hunt and peck typing is learned at an early age.
With the Das Keyboard Ultimate (or a blank set of caps), you can take your typing speed to the next level. Typing becomes more like playing an instrument than hunting for symbols. Once you get comfortable enough, your fingers search out the keys on their own. Doubling your typing speed in a few weeks like Guermeur did is totally feasible.
Even better, Das Keyboard is giving away goodies for participating in the typing challenge. All you need to do is post your current TyperX typing score on social media, then post again after two weeks, and finally thirty days later after you start (along with a video of your keyboard to show that you really are using a blank keyboard!). For participating, Das Keyboard will send you keycaps, keycap pullers, stickers, microfiber cloths, and other useful items. In addition, three lucky participants will win a Das Keyboard of their choice on May 2. You can read all the rules and details on the blog post.
The challenge officially started last week, but you have until April 30th to complete it. So there's still plenty of time to grab a blank keyboard or set of caps and get started. You'll be astonished at how much more efficient you are once you stop looking at the keys!
