I watch some people at work on computers or typewriters and there is one question I ask myself: Why don't they learn to type? You know the sort of person I mean. They use the 'hunt-and-peck' method with just two fingers. They look up and down at the keyboard and the screen or paper, up – down, up – down as if they are watching a yoyo.

It doesn't have to be like this. Touch-typing is easy. It takes very little time to learn. I used a self-study course while I was at university. It took twenty minutes a day for ten days and after that I was typing faster and more comfortably.

Back in those days most of us didn't have access to the internet. Instead I used a flip-chart and a cassette (which cost me less than ten pounds). Nowadays there are websites that make it easier. They are also free. There are programs you can buy, but these are really for people who want to be super-fast typists, or who have no internet access.

So why don't people learn it, especially as so many people now use computers? I have a theory about this. It looks complicated when you see someone else do it, and I reckon a lot of people compare it with a skill like playing the piano or the guitar. In reality, there is no comparison. Touch-typing is a skill that can be learned in a couple of weeks while playing a musical instrument takes years of practice.

Once you start it is so natural that you actually start to feel uncomfortable looking at the keyboard as you type. This is a good thing as you pay more attention to the screen or to any document you are reading as you type. In fact, when you get the hang of the principle (each finger is responsible for specific letters) you can even teach yourself to type in another alphabet. A course might help you to speed up, but a few self-made exercises will be enough for you to feel comfortable at the keyboard. To prove it, I taught myself to type in the Cyrillic alphabet. No labels on the keys, no subscription, just a piece of paper on the wall next to my monitor and a lot of typing. It's easy. Go on, give it a try!

Glossary

a typewriter maszyna do pisania

to peck dziobnąć

I reckon = I think = I have a theory that…

to get the hang of something chwytać coś, jak się coś robi

Cyrillic = the alphabet used in the Russian language, as well as Ukrainian and a number of others.

a label nalepka

On the subject of things people do in offices, here are a few pieces of office equipment in this wordseach. There are ten hidden inside it. Which ones can you find?

T T V K P F J P J R E W R Z Y H X W K R

U E M E B H B Q X I W Q I X D E A K M T

T V N H Y R O T A N I M A L J T S O E O

Q Y Y I S D W T G Z E F H N H F L V Z J

O E O I B S C Z O Q O I C Y X S I R X J

P H U J W A T E R C O O L E R S Z V L I

P U E N I H C A M X O R E X G J N V G S

G J R Q J N S G P F R P V U W F M C J V

N J N N X W C W N L I S I O S K A K F X

M G C D H K Z P D I E L W E S B T N H H

H K E H O Z O B A V L R S H R E D D E R

Q K I B S E J D H O I I Q N S H Y W Y Y

I H M F A X T O T C S K F G W T L H Z F

U A K G A R X I R K Q P B D E Z A Z L Z

Z T Q H S S N L D R L T D F S Q I B Y P

S L O W U E U V F N K V Y K V U A X Q M

L C U E F N Q M Z J S R N W L F X V H O

M S C B Q Q O I B T E T F A F F B Y F D

Y V J R U C J J Q Z S U I I T Q I X J X

E P X O R F D C T F P R K A D N W G W B

Two of these words mean the same thing. Which two?

KEY

water cooler

shredder

fax

laminator

swivel chair

photocopier

Xerox machine

stapler

guillotine

filing cabinet

A photocopier is the British word for what the Americans call a Xerox machine.

Did you know?

There is something called the BAT keyboard, which uses just one hand for typing. It was originally used for a personal organiser, because the second hand was used for holding it.

The standard qwerty keyboard was designed to slow typists down. There was a problem with letter keys jamming when they were pressed too quickly together. Instead of fixing this problem, they just tried to change the behaviour of the typist.

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