Re: How to get rid of *GNU Emacs* buffer on start-up?

[Xah Lee]

Hi Erik Fragga,

On the subject of RSI, perhaps you should use Dvorak, and you'd be
interested in my article here:

How To Avoid The Emacs Pinky Problem
http://xahlee.org/emacs/emacs_pinky.html

Text version follows:
-------------------------------------
How To Avoid The Emacs Pinky Problem

Xah Lee, 2006

Emacs makes frequent use of the control key. On a conventional
keyboard, the Control Key is at the lower left corner of the keyboard,
usually not very large and is pressed by the pinky finger. For those
who use emacs all day, this will result in repetitive strain injury↗.
This page lists some tips on avoiding this pinky problem.

I've been using computer since 1991, at least 8 hours a day on average
every singe day. I was a QWERTY touch-typist with 80 wpm and worked as
a secretary for about 2 years, then in ~1994 i switched to Dvorak. I
started to use emacs everyday since 1998. I am a keyboard and key
macro nerd, and have used tens of keyboard macro or keymap type of
utilities on the Mac, unixes, and Windows, always looking for the most
ergonomic and efficient way to operate the keyboard and computer. This
page summarize my experiences applied to emacs.

The best way to avoid the pinky problem is actually to use a good
keyboard. Let us start with some tips on choosing a good keyboard.
Tips For Selecting A Computer Keyboard

Here are some keyboard hardware advices:

• Buy a keyboard such that the Alt and Control keys are large.

• Buy a keyboard where Alt and Control are also available on the right
side.

• The Alt and Control key's positions on the left and right sides
should have the same distance to your left and right thumbs (while
your hands are rested in standard touch-type position). Specifically:
the distance from the left Alt to the F key should be the same as the
right Alt to the J key.

BAD
Apple keyboard

above: The Apple keyboard as of 2006. Note the ridiculous distance of
the right side's modifier keys. It is not possible, to use the right
thumb to press the alt key while the index finger remains on the J.

Many keyboards don't have full set of modifier keys on the right side,
and when they do, they are positioned far to the right, making them
not much usable for touch typing. For example, the keyboards made by
Apple Computer, their right-side Command/Alt/Ctrl keys are inferior
citizens. They are placed far more to the right, making the right set
of modifier keys difficult or impossible to reach with the thumb. It
makes these keys essentially decorative in nature. (Apple did this to
make the keys flush at the lower right corner; sacrificing function
for esthetics.).

GOOD
Microsoft Natural Multimedia keyboard

above: The Microsoft Natural Multimedia keyboard. Note, the keys are
split and oriented for each hand. And, the Ctrl, Alt are very large
and symmetrically positioned with respect to each hand's thumb. (See A
Review of Microsoft Natural Keyboards)

For more extensive commentary on various computer keyboards and
design, see: Computer keyboards Gallery.
How To Press The Control Key
Use Your Palm or Semi-Fist

Do not use your pinky to press the Control key.

For most PC keyboards, it is very easy to press the control key using
your palm. Just open your hand somewhat and push down with the meat at
the chopping edge of your hand. Alternatively, you can roll your wrist
a bit, curl in your fingers into a semi-fist, then sit your fist on
the control key.
Use Both Hands

Do not use a just one hand to type a Control+‹key› combo.

Use one hand to press Control, use the other hand to press the
combination key. This is the same principle for pressing the Shift key
in touch-typing.

When the key you want to press is on the left side of the keyboard,
use the right side of Control key. For example, to press “Ctrl+a”,
hold down the right Control with your right palm edge, and use your
left hand to press “a”. Make this into a habit. Using a single hand to
press “Ctrl+‹key›” combo usually means your hand needs to cram into a
particular shape, thus putting stress on it when done repeatedly.

This is also why choosing a keyboard with Control keys positioned on
both sides of the keyboard symmetrically, is important.
Software Ways To Avoid the Pinky Problem

A good keyboard and good typing habit is good. But suppose you are
stuck with a lousy keyboard or your notebook computer. A notebook
computer usually don't have control key on both sides of the keyboard.
Its control key is very small, and it cannot be pressed by palm. Here
are some suggestions for this situation.
Swap Control and Alt

Try swapping the Control and Alt keys.

Emacs's are developed for Lisp Machine's keyboards of the 1980s, which
have the Control key near the space bar, and the Meta key further away
from the space bar. So, Control key is the primary modifier key.
However, today's keyboards have Alt instead of Meta, and the Control
key is placed at the far corner instead. Emacs did not change its
shortcuts. It simply mapped the Meta to Alt. That is why today, most
frequently used keyboard shortcuts have the more difficult to press
Control key instead of the Alt. For more detail on this and other
aspects of emacs's shortcuts, see: Why Emacs's Keyboard Shortcuts Are
Painful.

By switching the Alt and Control key, will make Emacs's keyboard
shortcuts much easier to use as it was designed.

The other advantage of swapping Alt and Control, is that on Windows
and Linuxes, most direct shortcuts involve the Ctrl key. By swapping,
Windows shortcuts are made easier since now Control is right under
your thumb. On the Mac, shortcuts are made with the Cmd key. If you
swap Control with Cmd, the primary modifier Cmd will be at the corner,
thus make it more difficult to use all other applications. The best
thing to do on the Mac is to swap Control and Cmd only in Emacs. I do
not know if it is possible to swap Ctrl and Alt within emacs.

For system-wide swap of modifier keys on OS X, see: How to Swap
Modifier Keys on OS X.
Swap Cap Lock and Control

Another commonly suggested solution is to remap the the Cap Lock and
Control key by swapping them. This is not a optimal solution, because
the Control key is still pressed by the pinky, and somewhat displaces
your hand on home position. Also, there is now only one Control key,
making the left pinky doing double work. (modifier keys comes in pairs
for good reasons. Try pick out a Shift key and type for a week)
However, if you are stuck on a lousy keyboard such as laptops, and
unable to swap Ctrl and Alt, then making the Cap Lock key as Control
might be a practical solution.

For detail, see: Why You Should Not Swap Cap Lock With Control.

It is not possible to swap cap locks and control key within emacs,
because the cap-lock key signal is not received by applications.
However, you can do it with several system utilities. In unix-like
systems, this is done with xmodmap. See Emacs wiki: moving the Ctrl
key↗.
Use a Ergonomic Shortcut Layout

If you are adventurous, the best solution is to use a ergonomically
designed shortcut layout for emacs.

See: A Ergonomic Keyboard Shortcut Layout For Emacs.
Dvorak Keyboard Layout

Perhaps a more important ergonomic improvement one can make is by
using the Dvorak keyboard layout.
dvorak keyboard layout

I've been using Dvorak keyboard since 1994. It works beautifully with
emacs. It makes typing more comfortable. (i use emacs since 1997). If
you use unix/X11, you can switch to dvorak by running
dvorakKeymap.txt. On Mac OS X, use “System Preference: International”.
On Windows XP, go to “Control Panel:Regional and Language Options”.

For more info about Dvorak layout, see Wikipedia: Dvorak Simplified
Keyboard↗.

A web comics introducing Dvorak: http://www.dvzine.org/zine/index.html

A video game: The Typing of the Dead↗.

  Xah
∑ http://xahlee.org/

☄

On Sep 22, 1:25 am, Eric S Fraga <ucec...@eeepc.chemeng.ucl.ac.uk>
wrote:
> On 2008-09-20,XahLee<x...@xahlee.org> wrote:
>
> > On Sep 19, 8:32 am, Eric S Fraga <ucec...@ucl.ac.uk> wrote:
> >> On 2008-09-19,XahLee<x...@xahlee.org> wrote:
> >> > [...]
> >> > than graphical user interface or using a mouse. This seems ridiculous
> >> > today, but such voices are commonly seen all over newsgroups. (Since
>
> >> the reasons still stand and they are not ridiculous.
>
> > In argument, you can't just say something is ridiculous. You have to
> > give reasons.
>
> Excuse me?  *You* said the reasons were ridiculous, not me.  The
> reasons are there, as you implied.  Let me give you a couple:
>
> 1. RSI: I cannot use a mouse without pain.
> 2. speed: I type 60+ wpm, which is not particularly fast but results
>    in faster output than using the mouse, especially if the GUI is badly
>    designed (which applies to most graphical apps in my experience).
>
> Others will have their own reasons and calling them ridiculous is
> potentially insulting.  If you prefer a graphical interface, fine.  I
> do not.
>
> > Perhaps you think something is obvious. But in arguments, others might
> > think the opposite is obvious. That's why good argument needs explicit
> > reasons.
>
> I agree; you said reasons had been given for text based interfaces.
> You then said these were ridiculous and then failed to give any
> reasons why.  Maybe you should start listening to your own advice?
> Just a friendly suggestion.
>
> --
> Eric S Fraga, UCL
> GP Key: FFFCF67D F'prnt: 8F5C 279D 3907 E14A 5C29  570D C891 93D8 FFFC F67D
> BF >++++++++++[>++++++++++>+++++++++++[<]>-]>++.>++++.<-----.++++++.------.