What thumb do you guys use to press the space bar?

By smoke_pope - updated: 3 years, 8 months ago - 37 messages

By smoke_pope - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Personally I only use my left, but that was a habit that I had picked up before I started touch typing. I am genuinely curious to hear from you guys! I read online that ideally one should be using both of their thumbs. I feel like this would be an incredible undertaking for a nonexistent increase in speed. Cheers!
By chaarawtaza - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I use both thumbs.
By smoke_pope - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Do you alternate thumbs between words? Or does it depend on what letter you typed last? hahaha no problem if you never think about it.
By chocoboburger - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

From someone who is still learning to touch type quickly and accurately (around 55 wpm with 90% accuracy), I press it with my left thumb almost all the time. I am also someone who is used to pressing the spacebar for video games during which my right hand is on my mouse.
By chaarawtaza - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I'm at 38 w.p.m. and 95 accuracy, I would like to be at your level at some point in time, I have to continue to practice, I would have to say that my right thumb is my dominant for the spacebar.
Updated 3 years, 11 months ago
By bart9782 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I use my right thumb, all the time, my average speed is 74/75 WPM, not sure if it might help training my left thumb as well, BTW: I'm a righty
By richarizard - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Idunno how it came to be, but I always use my right thumb.

Only time I use my left hand is if I have to reach for a key like " - " or " + " with my right. Although I'm trying to break that habit, since I find using my right in those times to be faster/more accurate.
By inellipsale - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

i always use my left thumb my average is 100wpm i don't know what's optimal though I'm satisfied with my current speed though
By dademan87 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

My keyboard is a Kinesis Advantage 2 and the space bar is only available to your right thumb. The left thumb is backspace.
By sinistro25 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Left thumb for the win!
By ze_or_qwerty - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I use left thumb probably because I initially started typing because of video games. I don't think using both thumb on the same function is beneficial at all, but I do think giving your other thumb some purpose in life by giving it shift or backspace or something is a thing every keyboard should start doing.
By yimpage - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Weird I use my pointer finger, maybe because my laptop key board is so small? I just wrote this using thumbs and space bar and it felt so weird to me
By hunterz1200 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

When typing, I only use my left thumb. I did this before using a smaller keyboard, and have adjusted the layout of the 40% keyboard I'm using accordingly.

I'm not sure that using either your right or left thumb while typing is actually all that impactful on your typing speed. I have seen people who type faster using both thumbs, their left thumb, or their right thumb. Ultimately, I do think it's just personal preference.

For reference, I type at an average of about 140WPM.
-Kaiser
Updated 3 years, 11 months ago
By safarijohn - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I use my right index finger or my left thumb. Probably comes from getting fairly fast at pecking before I focused on touch-typing.
By ilovepotatoes - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I've never actually thought about it surprisingly, but most of the time I'm using my right thumb.
By smoke_pope - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Thank you Kaiser! Yea I suspected that it really wouldn't matter. I have improved greatly without changing which finger hits the space bar. The only benefit I could see is that maybe it would be more comfortable?
By smoke_pope - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

yea! Hard to believe that we are constantly hitting the spacebar. Try typing some quotes without the spaces! Very strange!
By _derkaiser_ - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I'm not even sure if it's a matter of comfort either. It's the space bar. Most keyboards just have a 6.25u or 7u key on the bottom row. Because of this, it's pretty much equadistant from either thumb. No matter which one you hit it with, you're still pretty much doing the same amount of work.

I guess it could be more comfortable if you have some issue with one thumb? I'm fairly sure it's a matter of preference, kinda like which shift you use. (I exclusively use the left shift if you're wondering)

Interesting topic, though. It's kinda odd to think about what thumb you presss space with. Funnily enough, in my first response I actually said I used the left thumb first before realizing I absolutely don't. Pff how'd I even mess that up? I've got like 3k tests and forgot? Gahh, this hobby.

-Kaiser
By allors4612 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I type an average of 89 WPM with qwerty and use the left thumb. When I started to learn Dvorak that practice followed me too. I'm a righty.
Updated 3 years, 11 months ago
By jmiguegarcia - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

How can I use my two thumbs in the key board? Or what exercises I would do? I only use my left thumb.
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By cnt_ply - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Right, always. average about 90
By tj10777 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I always use my right thumb.

I also have a split keyboard with two space keys, so I remapped the other space bar to backspace. This has a nice symmetry since my right thumb moves the cursor forward and my left thumb moves the cursor back.

My main keyboards are a Kinesis Advantage 2 and an X-Bows Knight
By smoke_pope - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

You use your right index finger?? I would love to see that! I was trying it for a couple quotes and it is wild! Not as uncomfortable as I thought it would be though hahaha.
By blaugershnauger - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I am a gamer as well, but I always use my right hand for the space bar when typing. Obviously when gaming I use my left hand, but I found it interesting that I didn't continue to favor one over the other.
By alexnguyen11 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Personally, i've always only used my right thumb as a spacebar, which I didn't realize until a couple months ago when i fracture my right wrist at the base of my thumb. Needed a thumb splint and therefore my right thumb was unuseable. Typing was extremely difficult because i had use my left thumb for spacebar. Took my WPM down from averaging 155wpm to about 85 wpm!
By gbzaid - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Does it matter?
Updated 3 years, 11 months ago
By sunny_r_banks - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

I find myself using mostly my right but do use my left thumb depending on what letter I last pushed. I used to type about 90 wpm with over 95 accuracy, but since being a stay at home mom for the last 15 years, I'm at about 78 with 95 accuracy.
By user546595 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

Most of the time, I seem to use my right, but sometimes I sue my left. I think it depends on which row my hands are typing.
By user546595 - posted: 3 years, 11 months ago

*use, not sue. That's what I meant.
By pablosorbach - posted: 3 years, 10 months ago

The only difference between my dad's technique and mine is that he uses both thumbs (thumb of the contrary hand of the last letter of a word) and I use strictly my right.
I think we're both quite good typists.
The key is to stick with something and practice it.
If you still haven't decided I'd say go with only left, the right hand is already busy with backspace.
Alternately you can do what I did and stick with your dominant hand's thumb.
By ary - posted: 3 years, 10 months ago

Well, I don't use my thumbs at all. I'm not a touch typist, and with an average speed of around 90 words per minute with 95% accuracy, I always use my right index finger. I only type with my left middle finger and pinkie along with all four of my fingers on my right hand. It's weird, but does anyone else only type with 6 fingers?
I use my index finger to press the space bar... Anyone else?
By ioeau - posted: 3 years, 10 months ago

I use a custom keyboard layout: space bar is now letter z, and letter k is the space key!
By violence_rage_momentum - posted: 3 years, 10 months ago

I use my right thumb.
Usually people use their dominant hand.
By madhur - posted: 3 years, 10 months ago

I confused in typing betweeen I,O & KL & CV
how to improve my typing error...............
By zizuke - posted: 3 years, 9 months ago

Just do what you feel is right bro. No worries.
By not_that_great - posted: 3 years, 8 months ago

Right thumb gang AHOO
By cypressshade - posted: 3 years, 8 months ago

I have an ErgoDox EZ, so the keyboard is configured with a space bar underneath the left thumb, and enter key underneath the right thumb.