Yes. Any time I capitalize a letter on the left side of the keyboard. Isn't that normal?
That is the way I was taught, but not the way I did it then. Never developed the habit, so I never do it.
Damn, that makes sense. I one hand everything with my left hand. Maybe it's because of muscle memmory from playing videogames lol
I tend to use right shift for pretty much everything. The arrow glyph has worn off the key I use it so much.
Important factors:
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British English keyboards, like the one I have, tend to be ISO, with a larger shift key on the right. Bigger target. Easier to hit.
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I have at least a couple of passwords that each have at least one shifted character from the left side of the keyboard and it's much easier to use both hands when I need to type those.
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It might even go back to the fact that most of my early typing was on a Commodore 64C and the positions of surrounding keys. Hitting shift-lock or run/stop by mistake would have been a nuisance. Caps lock isn't quite as annoying because it's not a literal mechanical toggle, but even so, the right shift avoids that particular error.
I was taught to type that way, but I was never that good at using my right pinky while typing a letter with my left. Or maybe I just wasn't good at coordinating which shift key to use with which letter. So I started just always using the left shift key which I somehow never had a problem with.
If I have to type capital A, left pinky holds shift and ring finger hits the A. This isn't the "right" way to touch type, but I can still type pretty fast.
But to do that you are bending your wrist sideways which will eventually start causing wrist pain. Better if you can get out of that habit before it starts causing trouble.
I hope I can. I've been doing this for like 25 years ...
Oh. Well if it hasn't started hurting after that much time, maybe you're OK 😄
I usually hold shift with my left pinky for any letter on the keyboard, because I prefer to type with both hands.
i don't type capital letters
because fuck capitalism :3
That's capitalisation. Capitalism is a philosophical view that the universe is solely based on randomness
That's casualism. Capitalism is the practice of eating the flesh of your own kind
That's cannibalism. Capitalism was a practice done in the First Brazilian Republic that is also known as "rule of the colonels".
That's carnivorism. Capitalism is when an organism has tissue made of different genetic composition
That's chimerism. Capitalism is a large-scale and violent event in the natural world.
That's a cataclysm. Capitalism is a criminal act conducted with computers and resulting in violence, destruction, or death of targets in an effort to scare people and coerce a government to alter it's policies.
That's cyberterrorism. Capitalism describes a chain of events where an initial action or event triggers a series of subsequent events, each building upon the previous, leading to a larger, often unforeseen, outcome.
That's a cascade. Capitalism represents an aesthetic and intellectual approach that values reason, order, and balance, drawing inspiration from the enduring legacy of ancient Greece and Rome.
that's classicism. capitalism is something that is askew, awry, or crooked.
Yes, I trained myself only to use opposite hand shift combinations. You can do this with a programmable keyboard, autohotkey, or karabiner.
So Left Shift+a doesn't do anything, only Right Shift+a will output A
It was a exercise in getting better typing hygiene.
Ooh, clever way to train yourself!
You shouldn’t be able to use the left shift key and hit “a” at the same time anyway as your left pinky should be used for both?
Yea, but the lazy way is to move the whole left hand to the right and pressing a with the ringfinger... Slower and a bad habit but I am doing it since I learned how to type
Yes, I touch type so use it whenever I capitalise a letter typed by the left hand.
I thought this was strange, but I noticed my muscle memory actually uses left shift for letters typed with my left hand, and right shift for my right, I use my pinkie in either case.
Yes, I use both. Learned typing that way.
It's funny, isn't it? My mom made me take a typing class at the community college one summer - on IBM electric typewriters. This was before everyone owned game consoles, much less PCs. You'd think in today's world, typing classes would be even more in demand, but are they? Do kids take typing classes in K-12?
I learned typing on a mechanical typewriter back in school. I thought it would speed up my typing on the computer, but actually didn't, because what I did on the computer was programming, which is quite incompatible with ten-finger typing.
But nowadays it is actually helpful when I write texts, although I have to switch context quite often (reading the original text in one window, then switching to the editor to write the summary). Still faster than other peoples "eagle typing": looking for the right key and descending on it with one finger.
I found the opposite. I'm a programmer, too, and still found touch typing to be a huge advantage. However, as with QWERTY, Dvorak isn't optimized for some of the most common keys in programming: (), [], {}. But that's OK, because since I started using QMK keyboards, all of those keys are now in a layer and on the home row.
Same. That's why it's there, folks.
Ergonomically, you should use the Shift (or Ctrl or Alt) key on the opposite side of the keyboard as the key you are modifying. This helps prevent carpal tunnel issues because you can keep your wrists straight and not be twisting them unnaturally to reach key combos. You should also not have your wrists resting on the wrist rest or other surface while typing as that also contributes to carpal tunnel problems. Just use it in between stretches of typing (or maybe people just hunt and peck these days, I dunno).
Just as I learned on a mechanical typewriter.
No, I repurposed it as a nightstand
Yes, because I ran out of keys to bind in modded Minecraft.
I think a good followup question for this one would be "Were you able to answer the question from memory?"
I couldn't remember, so I had to do some typing to see. And based on the amount of visible keycap wear, I'd say they get used equally.
Yes. Proper use of touch typing uses both shift keys. That's how I type.
I touch-type, so yes.
Well, I don't use the wrong shift key /s
I do. Perhaps, as another poster pointed out, it ties into typing classes I had back in the late '80s or early '90s.
Once every blue moon I'll use the right shift to Ctrl+Shift+m and unmute a Teams call but thats the only time I can think I've used it.
I legitimately know people who press the caps lock key, type what they need uppercased, then press the caps lock key again. That said, I use both shift keys.
Yes. I still use my computer for mostly writing, so proper technique includes using the Right Shift key when capitalizing anything on the left hand side of the keyboard.
Interesting. Ive never thought about it but I think I actually capitalize exclusively with RShift.
Yes. E.g. when typing a capital P Q. But less often for more complex chords, I use left hand modifiers more often when using multiple modifiers.
That is the exact opposite of how you're supposed to do things (assuming you're on a qwerty keyboard or other keyboard where P is typed with the right hand). The reason there are two shift keys is so that you can hold down the one that is not the one you're typing the letter with, i.e. you should be using the left shift key to type P, but the right shift key to type Q, W, E, R, etc.
Yeah, but I'm gonna one hand it anyway!
You're thinking of a different qwerty.
Ah, you're right, I got my left and right mixed up in that example 😅
Anyway, I use both.
I forgot that it was even there lol
Nope
I use a Dvorak keyboard to touch-type, so no, never.
There are dozens of us! Dozens!
Why would that be a factor?
Because all the letters are under the right hand and all the punctuation under the left.
I have to be missing something here.
Is it that very few words start with A, O, and Q?
I type with both hands usually so use both, but when doing the one hand thing it's always the right shift key. That one is more worn on my keyboard.
Right shift has gotta be my least used key. I actually don't know if I've used it more than like 10 times in my life
My keyboard has two shift keys. I don't think I've ever used the right shift key, not even for usage with emulators for consoles with a lot of buttons... the modifier is always the left shift key since it's closest to my left hand and I can have my right hand on the other side where the arrow keys are. The arrow keys, WASD, Z, X, A, S, Q,W, 1, 2 etc have always been sufficient for most games.
Only if I need to type a capital letter with one hand
Thank you for participating in our market research. The right shift key will now be replaced with a "Grok" key. Goodbye.
Nope. I use left shift for everything.
Even if you do use both shift keys correctly, it still feels awkward to me since you have to sacrifice a pinky from home row and shift your hands.
It's why I've been curious to try a layout where Shift and Alt are swapped, that way you can use your thumb to press shift and keep your fingers in place.
Interesting that none of those modified layouts move the Ctrl key to a better position.
Thats a good observation. I would think I use Ctrl more frequently than Alt, so it would make sense to have Alt where Ctrl usually is, and Ctrl where Shift usually is.
I have literally only ever used the right shift key when playing, like, two different games. Both were simulations with insane amounts of controls. One is ARMA, and the other was a flight sim.
I used it because it had a function bound to it that wasn't on the left shift.
Edit: Oh and I think there was a pinball game on DOS that used both shift keys to operate the flippers.
Left shift only works for games
Right shift is for typing
I had to type a bit to check, but found that I mostly use the right shift if the letter I'm capitalizing is on the left side of the keyboard. Oddly, it wasn't 100% though.
Never. I exclusively use my left thumb for the space bar, too.
I could probably type faster if I fixed those issues, but 30 years of bad habits die hard.
yes - ctrl + shift ) splits the kde konsole
other than as a keybind in a singular Minecraft mod, no never. Always the left one, I also never use the caps lock key
Which one is the wrong one?
exclusively. i never use the left shift for anything other than running in games.
With emulators mostly.
So, everyone who said "no" never learned how to type or what?
Yes I have never learned to type and left shift isn't getting any use.
Subjectively should I learn how to type ? I do like 60 wpm currently without training and use probably 7/10 fingers.
I use the right Shift key to capitalize when touch-typing. I only use left Shift for Ctrl+Shift+Esc.
yes it gives me access to "%", which is handy for string interpolation
I rarely use the key as shift. It's reassigned to a different function when tapped and that's what I use it for most of the time.
I rebound it, I never use it
I use it to wake my computer up when the display is off.
Yeah, pretty sure i use it for capitalising symbols on the right of the keyboard.
In fact, i think i might use it for some of the symbols above the numbers, too.
I need to get in front of a keyboard and find out.
I on the other hand use it to capitalize the letters on the left side of the keyboard.
Officer? This man right there.
This, I very striktly press always the opposite shift. One hand types the desired symbol, the other modifies it.
Do you copy/paste with one hand or two?
Yes, but not as often as the left.
While touch typing, I pretty much always use the left shift key. To type "A" for example I slid my hand over one set of keys and pressed the A key with my ring finger. Right shift ends up used mostly with the punctuation marks to the right, like I actually move my entire right hand down to hit shift and ?
I also strike T, Y and B with different hands depending on what I'm typing.
There may be some other eccentricities but I do mostly touch type properly, asdfjkl; and all that.
yep when game controls wasn t with wasd u have to use arrow keys to move the player
Yes, when doing Ctrl+Insert to copy then Shift+Insert to paste
Yes, but I don't use the right control key.
I also don't use the right alt key, except for keyboards where I don't have a menu key, and don't use it as alt in that case. In both cases, I bind that to Compose.
I actually use them frequently, like I have Ctrl+Alt+L bound to lock my computer, and workspace commands using the arrow keys and the like. It's easier to do one handed.
same, I don't remember using the right control key ever
I only use it when I have food in one hand and can't reach the desired key + left shift with my other hand.
Yes, ofc! I have it switched to the up-arrow on my 60%.
Otherwise no.
only for keybinds that use shift and some other keys that are a little to far away from Lshift on my keyboard.
My brain refuses to remember that they there are any utility keys below the enter on a US keyboard. The right pinky moves over and up, never down. I also never hit the spacebar with my right hand.
I never formally learned to type, I just picked it up because my hands have been glued to keyboards since the 80s.
Yup, because I re-map WASD to my arrows and the right shift is near there.
No, never. My keyboard doesn't even have one (40%)
Yes, sometimes, on one of my keyboards the left one doesn’t work for some weird software related reason
Never because I can reach left shift with my pinky from basically anywhere on the keyboard
Yes but only occasionally. I have them mapped as space cadet shift keys so left shift key is ( on tap and shift on hold, right shift key is ) on tap and shift on hold.
I use ( a lot but my ide normally adds the ) for me so I don't need it as much for that.
Also, I use left shift for most capitals as I rarely gpt further than ; on the right side of the keyboard.
Smaller keyboards I have shift on hold of A and L as I don't have dedicated shift keys kn those.
Constantly, but only at work. I use it for ? and that's it.
That red-headed step-child? No way.
Sure, if I'm inputting data with the Numpad.
... You use capital numbers?
No, the Shift key has uses other than for standard alphabet keys.
I know the shortcuts, but I have never used shift with the numpad. I have used computers before numpad existed on computers. Maybe I am missing out on something.
Just a bad habit for data entry that stuck from use of the old IBM keyboards. Somehow it felt better to shift my attention to the right-hand side instead of the standard layout and extending my hand to the keyboard's top just below the F-keys. Everything I needed was right there on the right 1/4 of the keyboard...
I didn't know it was a thing don't think I've ever used it
I'm just really not observant
Haha can't wait
No, I don't. I know the proper way is to use right shift to type capital letters with the left hand, but I fell out of that a long time ago.