Taking the necessary effort to learn how to touch type is a very essential skill for prospective programmers. Still, there are some who derisively deride this skill claiming that it is only applicable to professional typists and court of law stenographers. Well, this to some degree is certainly the case, but virtually any professional can greatly benefit from touch typing. More so those who are obliged to carry out their professional duties in front of a computer screen and use the keyboard on a frequent basis like programmers. Here then are some excellent reasons why typing skills are so important in studying programming languages for students.
Touch typing can significantly improve typing speed and accuracy
Without doubt, the most notable advantages that come with mastering touch typing are realizing substantial improvements in both typing speed and accuracy. In essence, touch typing lets programmers work without having to constantly look down on their keyboards in the search for the right keys to press. This naturally can have tremendous ramifications in your speed and accuracy when you code. Generally speaking, the average typing speed now stands at 41 words per minute (WPM). However, when you take the smart decision to make the effort to learn how to touch type, you can easily be able to increase your typing speed to no less than 60 WPM. This definitely means that you will in the long run find yourself coding your programs in a faster and more accurate manner than you previously did
Touch typing can significantly enhance programming productivity and efficiency
The hunt and peck technique and its variations are badly suited to boost productivity for programmers. The more time you have to spend in fussing over your keyboard as a programmer, the harder it will be to effectively keep up with live code and viable coding ideas. At the same time, the more time you spend in rectifying typing errors, the more difficult it will be to concentrate on the flow of your coding ideas. Significant amount of time is wasted in debugging due to typing errors.
On the other hand, by deciding to embrace touch typing, you will quickly come to realize that your typing accuracy has significantly improved. This means you will find yourself making lesser coding errors as the time passes by. In turn, this will lead to a profound improvement in your coding efficiency and productivity. When this happens, you will be able to greatly minimize the exact time you have been allocating to debugging your programs. This in the long run will enable you to become a better programming student and eventually an all round professional programmer.
Touch typing can significantly enhance your comfort as a programmer
At this juncture, it is very important to note that touch typing is not only about improving typing speed and accuracy. This skill also focuses on improving your comfort as a programmer through ideal computer ergonomics. Quite simply put, you can invest in the finest ergonomic computer chair, but without the right typing technique, it will all be a sheer waste of money. Using inefficient typing methods such as the hunt and peck technique usually leads to exposing yourself to serious repetitive stress injuries.
Some of the most prominent of which include tendinitis and carpal tunnel syndrome to name but a few. Nevertheless, by taking the effort to master the skill of touch typing, you will soon come to discover effective ways of preventing such injuries. This particular typing method is highly noted for been in an excellent position of imparting the right typing ergonomics best practices. All of which have been specifically designed to totally do away with the potent risk factors of sustaining repetitive stress injuries.
Some of the most notable of these are teaching you how you can be able to integrate an ideal typing posture that will greatly minimize the strain exerted on your neck and upper back. While also teaching you the right finger placement on your keyboard. This goes a long way in conveniently allowing you to evenly distribute the overall strain over all your fingers. Rather than on a few of them as you would ordinarily do with poor typing techniques such as the earlier mentioned hunt and peck method. Well, now you certainly fully understand why it is very important to take the necessary time and effort to master touch typing as a programming student.
Author Bio:
My name is Daria Postoyalkina, I’m a development manager at Ratatype. This project helps children and adults to learn touch typing via an online typing test and lessons. I am in charge of developing the proper typing lessons and exercise for typists who want to improve their typing speed.
