Ten-finger touch typing simulator. Especially good for accelerating speed. Rich interface customization options, detailed statistics and help.
Observe a secretary or programmer at work. His fingers seem to flutter over the keyboard. And in a matter of minutes, a decent amount of text has already been typed. “What speed! What agility!” - you are amazed. But everyone can do this!!!
Today in the world there are many tutorials for ten-finger typing. Also, a lot of programs have been created, so-called keyboard simulators. We will talk about one of them. This is the Stamina keyboard trainer.
Why do we choose Stamina? Here's why:
- free!
- clarity of the methodology
- accessibility of explanatory language
- comic form of program design, etc.
The advantages also include a flexible configuration system (you can customize almost everything: background music, background image, color design of the program and much more) and the presence of several training options: standard fingering and alternative.
But first things first. If you are ready for daily “torture” of yourself, then let’s get started.
Program installation
First, we will need to download the archive with the program and install it on your computer. In the archive you will find only one file (aka installation :-), which you will need to run to start the installation. At the end of the installation process, you will be asked to run the program, which we will gladly agree to. And you will immediately be prompted to create an account with your name (more than 400 records are supported in total).
And, as we see, the jokes begin immediately, so you won’t be bored!!!
Not only the program itself will be loaded, but also “Help”, called by the author - “Aibolit”. For those who like to master everything using the “scientific poke” method, I would still recommend reading this manual, if only to lift your spirits (I read it with pleasure myself: 0))). Be sure to check out the “Bonus” section. There you will find a whole selection of jokes from the author of the program, poems of his own composition and a small but interesting game called “Fastmind”.
They read it, laughed and already realized something. Now let's take a look at the program itself.
Stamina keyboard trainer interface
It consists of two fields: a text field and a virtual keyboard. In the upper left corner of the field for working with text we see a set of commands and options. In the upper right corner there is a timer that records the time spent doing the exercises. In the lower left corner is the user name. In the center there is a field for entering words and “abracadabra” of letters (this is where you will begin to comprehend the basics of high-speed typing).
At the bottom there is a virtual keyboard, the letters of which are separated by green lines. This is done so that you know which finger to press which key. The index fingers of both hands simultaneously grasp 2 columns of characters, while the thumbs are used to press the Spacebar.
Initial hand position
- the little finger of the left hand on the “F” button (in the English layout - “A”)
- then the fingers of the left hand are placed in order up to the index finger, which lies on the “A” (“F”) button
- the little finger of the right hand on the “F” button (“;:”)
- index finger on the “O” (“J” button).
After pressing any key, the finger returns to its original position, while it does not touch the keyboard, but only slightly hangs over it. Now, trying not to lose this arrangement of your fingers, type as accurately as possible what you are offered.
Where to begin
Now specifically about actions. By default, the program is set to “Lesson” mode. It’s worth starting with him. Here you will learn how to quickly and correctly type simple letter combinations, words and punctuation marks. If you make a mistake, the program produces some kind of sound (sometimes not very civilized :-). At the end of the course you will have an exam that will show your progress and achievements.
Stamina also has lessons on “Combinations of letters” and “Numbers”, but they didn’t put much effort into them. The lesson begins when you press the space bar. There is no time limit in this mode, so focus on typing accuracy and speed will come with experience. After completing the lesson, Stamina will show a graph of your typing speed and percentage of errors.
If we enter the “Mode” menu, we will see that in addition to “Lesson” there are several more modes:
- Phrases – here you will type ready-made articulate phrases at speed. Unlike the “Lesson”, “Phrases” keeps track of progress, which we can view by clicking on the “Progress” tab in the menu, and also sets a timer. That is, if you did not have time to type all the phrases, then in “Progress” you will be considered a failure.
- Other modes: “Letters from phrases”, “All characters” and “External file”. The first is a mode that resembles “Phrases”, but differs in that the letters from the phrase are scattered. The “All symbols” mode is the same “abracadabra”, but punctuation marks are also added to the letters. Finally, “External File” is the ability to open your own text file in txt format for training.
Options menu
- “Layout” – allows you to change the keyboard layout for training. Stamina has 3 languages available: Russian, Ukrainian and English.
- “Keyboard” – if you uncheck the box, the virtual keyboard will not be displayed.
- The next three tabs allow you to work with background music. In the "Song List" menu we can add our own music by clicking "+files" (to add a single file) or "+folder" (to add an entire folder). The “-delete” button deletes the selected file, and “Killall dead” removes so-called “dead links” from the list, those that refer to non-existent or deleted files. Nearby there is a square with two buttons (Play and Pause, respectively), a box with a checkmark (allows you to play not the entire file, but only a certain period of sound) and a slider (sound level, which can be adjusted with the Page Up (louder) and Page Down (quieter) buttons) ).
- “To the construction site...” are the direct settings of the program (read more about them in the book “Keyboard simulator Stamina - Your path to high-speed typing”).
Having configured the program in the most convenient and attractive way for you, you can start training. At first, you need to train for 10-30 minutes every day (then you can do it 2-4 times a week). When you have thoroughly mastered all the “Lessons”, you can start working with phrases and texts.
conclusions
To achieve results, you need to have a fair amount of patience, since the result will not be visible immediately. But if you want, then with the help of this simulator you can achieve amazing success in teaching touch typing. Good luck to you!
P.S. Permission is granted to freely copy and quote this article, provided that an open active link to the source is indicated and the authorship of Ruslan Tertyshny is preserved.
P.P.S. You may also be interested in the Rapid Typing Keyboard Trainer program https://www.bestfree-test.ru/soft/obraz/typing-tutor.php - another keyboard trainer designed for a wide range of users, but more abstruse.
