Date: Thu, 29 Oct 1992 13:54:55 EST From: Cliff Lasser Subject: Four month review of the DataHand keyboard To: Multiple recipients of list SOREHAND X-To: Carpal-ext@Think.COM, SOREHAND%UCSFVM.BITNET@CORNELLC.cit.cornell.edu Two months ago I circulated a rather long report on my experience with using the DataHand keyboard manufactured by Industrial Innovations. At that time I had been using the keyboard for two months and had the following to say about it: - it had significantly increased my typing ability and reduced my pain - it had not yet cured my injury and it would take time to tell whether it ever would - small hands are potentially a problem, especially for the thumb - I recommended that people with tendonitis give the DataHand a try I have now had my DataHand for over four months and it is time for an update. I will keep it brief since I'm very busy. 1) The condition of my forearms has very substantially improved. My left forearm no longer hurts, and my right forearm only hurts occasionally. For a while I was regularly icing my forearms at the end of the day, but I rarely do that anymore. There are activities that still irritate them, such as carrying luggage, but typing is rarely one of them. 2) I can now type as much I want. Before getting the DataHand, I could type text for at most a couple of hours a day and programming was pretty much out of the question because editing code was particularly painful. Now I do as much typing as I want to do, including long hacking sessions on weekends. My right forearm sometimes gets a bit sore after especially long sessions, but that is no longer an impediment. 3) The thumb pain that developed shortly after I started using the DataHand has gone away. 4) I have had other pains in my hands, wrists and forearms, but they all seem to have been related to my typing posture. For example, I found it very tempting to rest my elbows on my chair's armrests. This led to an irritated ulner nerve (the "funny bone" nerve). Now that I've made a point of sitting properly, all of these pains have gone away. 5) Many people have asked my what my typing speed is. I just timed myself at about 35 words per minute. Note that I only learned to touch type about 8 months ago, and that I have switched over to the Dvorak layout. This speed isn't great, but I spend most of my time editing code and text so it is not an issue for me. In closing, I now believe my injury may completely go away at some point in the not too distant future. Before I started using the DataHand, I was frankly in fear of damaging my career in software engineering. I am certain that the DataHand has been instrumental to my recovery and would very strongly recommend others to give it a try. The cost of this keyboard is small compared to the cost of a damaged career. I can only thank Industrial Innovations for producing the DataHand and wish them luck in reaching the large numbers of people who would benefit from using it. Cliff Lasser Thinking Machines Corporation Cal@Think.Com PS: Industrial Innovations Inc. can be reached at 602-860-8584. I have no financial interest in Industrial Innovations, just a personal debt to them for helping me type again!