1. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    Apostrophe key nightmare

    Discussion in 'Writing Software and Hardware' started by OurJud, Mar 31, 2017.

    What started out as relatively amusing has now become the bane of my life.

    About two years ago I had call to change the keyboard for my computer, and ever since cannot type a word requiring an apostrophe with hitting the semi-colon key instead, resulting in a never-ending stream of 'don;t' and 'can;t' that I'm constantly having to correct.

    I've changed my keyboard twice since then to no avail, and can only assume that the apostrophe and semi-colon keys on my old keyboard were either reversed or that the overall size was different.

    What frustrates me more than anything is the fact that my little finger flatly refuses to learn the new position of the apostrophe key, despite me having swapped the old keyboard out over two years ago.

    Why do I constantly hit the semi-colon key for an apostrophe, and what's the solution? I've read up on key-remapping, but it seems a very complicated process requiring me to start changing things I'm not comfortable doing.

    For the record, from left to right, the last six keys on the ASDF row go (sans shift): j k l ; ' #
     
  2. Wreybies

    Wreybies Thrice Retired Supporter Contributor

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    A recent keyboard change has me doing the same thing with regards the apostrophe key, but I'm hitting the return key instead. This keyboard has the same layout as my old one, but there's a difference in the size of the enter key and I keep hitting it. Doesn't becomes too much of an issue unless I'm posting online and I suddenly "post" an incomplete post when I meant to hit the apostrophe. o_O
     
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  3. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    It's driving me insane, it really is. The simple answer is to say use your eyes and type a little slower, but fast typing is just something that has developed to the stage where it;s now second nature.

    And yes, I'm purposely not going to correct the above typo in order to prove my point :D
     
  4. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    I don't suppose you could convince your word processor's dictionary to see ; as a misspelled version of ' and autocorrect it?

    Probably not.
     
  5. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    It's a radical solution, @ChickenFreak, given how little I use the semi-colon. I may look into that. Cheers.

    Although that wouldn't help on forums and such, and that's all I'm concerned with.
     
  6. Elven Candy

    Elven Candy Pay no attention to the foot in my mouth Contributor

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    I'd had some experience with keyboards that had different height keys than each other and even keyboards that had some odd shapes, like being indented in the middle so the keyboard was shaped like a u. I always had similar problems as you're having with hitting the wrong keys. Then I found the one keyboard that really fit my fingers, and it's SO much easier to type. If you can remember what it looked like, maybe you can hunt for a keyboard that looks very similar. That's what I did to find the one I'm using now. The pictures and dimensions online and the reviews gave me the impression that it was pretty close to the one my fingers learned on. Other than the "key set" with Delete, Insert, Home, End, and Page up & down, my fingers took to this keyboard quickly (I still hit Page Down often when I mean to hit Delete, and that drives me crazy, but it's better than having apostrophe troubles!).

    If all else fails, have you tried looking for your old keyboard on an auction website or something? Do you still have your old keyboard or remember the brand or anything?
     
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  7. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    And therein lies the problem - I no longer have it. I'm 99% certain it was a Dell, so that's a start I suppose.

    Logic tells me it probably wasn't the keys which were in different positions, but the overall size was smaller. This would explain why my little finger constantly falls one key too short when I go for the apostrophe.
     
  8. Elven Candy

    Elven Candy Pay no attention to the foot in my mouth Contributor

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    The spacing between the keys can mess you up, too. Some keyboards have a lot of space and some have a little space. See if you can try different ones out at an electronics store to see what fits you best. I ended up spending $30 on a wireless keyboard just because the keys looked right, and I haven't regretted it for a second.
     
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  9. Earp

    Earp Contributor Contributor

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    One way to solve the problem would be to forget all this new-fangled 'touch typing' nonsense and use the keyboard as Mr. Qwerty intended: type with two fingers (preferably your index fingers) while looking at the keys. Works for me.
     
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  10. kenc

    kenc Member

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    That looks like a standard UK keyboard. The position of # varies a lot depending on the country, but yours in the UK position. The apostrophe should be in the same place on most keyboards, although can be moved for certain languages that have need for extra symbols.

    The semicolon should pretty much always be to the right of L. However, some French keyboards (with AZERTY layout) have the M key there instead. Azerty is a truly terrible layout though, even for typing French!

    If you don't use semicolon much, perhaps you could switch apostrophe with semicolon, since the semicolon key is easier to reach.
    There is a nice tool called AutoHotKey which lets you arbitrarily remap keys.

    Then of course, since Qwerty itself is not very efficient, you could go completely crazy and learn a more optimized layout like Dvorak or Colemak instead :p

    Addendum: the standard spacing for keys is ¾", so your key spacing is something else, you must have a very weird keyboard!
     
    Last edited: Apr 2, 2017
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  11. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    There is always that. My typing is a kind of bastardisation of both touch-typing and index-finger gorilla prodding, but whichever way you type your hand automatically obscures the apostrophe key, which seems to be half the problem.

    Anyway, talk about first-world problems! I'm sure I'll survive this.
     
  12. Homer Potvin

    Homer Potvin A tombstone hand and a graveyard mind Staff Supporter Contributor

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    This thread is funny. Every time I change keyboards/computers I have to learn how to type again. It's a lot like switching guitars with varying neck widths and thicknesses. Fingers want to go here but the the key/fret-note isn't there. Sigh... muscle memory.
     
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