However, this can be pretty easily mitigated by setting a shortcut to change the keyboard layout (usually CTRL+Space on Windows or CMD+Space on Mac). This way if someone uses my computer I quickly change my keyboard setting in less than a second. No inefficiencies.
In addition, I find myself frequently using a shortcut like this when I need to change back and forth between typing English and Chinese (Dvorak feels very naturally for typing with Hanyu Pinyin - a method of typing Chinese using the Roman Alphabet, so it's not just good for English sentences).
> I suppose if you were a full-time typist these inefficiencies would be made up for by the increased comfort of the bulk of your day.
Lastly, I can verify this on a personal level. I can type 80+ WPM on either QWERTY or DVORAK, but DVORAK is way more comfortable to type on. Would I recommend everyone switch? No. But, I find it to be worth it.
This becomes particularly obnoxious when Explorer is somehow "partially" switched to a different keyboard, such that minimizing everything sometimes will and sometimes won't switch you back to the layout you're using in Explorer.
Not to mention that it's really easy to accidentally switch layouts. I've certainly done it a number of times.
In the end, it's just far less of a hassle for me to stick to QWERTY on Windows.
Having to think about which keyboard layout I was using added more time and stress than was ever going to be repaid by the supposed benefits of using Dvorak.
I gave up after about 3 months, reverting purely to using Qwerty.
That's quite odd. Maybe it's because I'm a programmer, but I had the symbols down just as fast as the letters.
> Not knowing what mode the keyboard is in to type one's password.
There's no reason to have both modes on one's personal machine, and I'm very hesitant to type my password on someone else's. If anything, it actually makes me think more carefully on whether I actually want to do that.
> On Windows, in particular, the settings seem to flicker back and forth between Qwerty and Dvorak between programs, and between invocations of the same program.
Windows keyboard management is a nightmare, but that shouldn't be a reason to avoid the layout. It's a lot smoother on Linux and OS X.
I have memorized my password in both modes.
All it takes is a quick glance at the keyboard to know which "mode" I'm typing in. Because whenever I type dvorak the keyboard looks Dvorak, when the keyboard looks qwerty it switches my brain that way.
I don't have Qwerty as an option on my computers. It's dvorak only.
* Having difficulty finding symbols because the keycaps no longer match (I don't know why they don't memorize them after all these years)
* Not knowing what mode the keyboard is in to type one's password.
* Having to use someone else's machine and being startled by the switch, or someone uses their keyboard and switches it back.
* On Windows, in particular, the settings seem to flicker back and forth between Qwerty and Dvorak between programs, and between invocations of the same program. No idea why it's not a global system setting. * Have to reset the keymappings in most video games.
I suppose if you were a full-time typist these inefficiencies would be made up for by the increased comfort of the bulk of your day. But for everyone else -- who spend less than 10% of the time typing English sentences -- the standard is probably easier overall.