How old are you?

Carzal · Post by **Carzal** » December 10th, 2007, 3:35 pm

is that neccesarily a good thing?
I'm at the ripe old age of 18.
And, as much as a newcomer can interject, I think that age IS an indication of typing skill. Alot of older people (not all! just most) are slow. And young kids have alot less exposure and experience than teenagers, who started at more or less the same age, but have been doing it for somewhat longer. Plus, we have (insert long string of swear words) essays to write.

Post by **Noy** » December 10th, 2007, 6:14 pm

Do you think that people before you didn't have essays to write or that they didn't use keyboards? Do you think that after the age of 30 people calculate things out on a slide rule, write things out long hand, and copy with a mimeograph machine?

My guess is alot of 40 year old probably type at the same level or even better than many 20 year olds, particularly now with the failing typing standards. Moreover the quality of people under 19 years expression has fallen significantly since I entered university, which wasn't too long ago. Talking to other professors they lament the quality of submissions they see today, compared to 5 or even 10 years ago.

Carzal · Post by **Carzal** » December 10th, 2007, 8:49 pm

No, of course not. But if I compare my grand-father, or even my father, to me, I'm a far better typer. Of course, there are people (my younger sister) who have succumbed to the wonderful world of MSN speak, and seem to be unable to type without using the "word" 'u'.
People who are 40 and older used keyboards, but not as much. They never had MSN when they were young, wheras we do.
I'm saying this in general, not for everyone: my mother, who is a professional editor and translator, would whup me or anyone I know at typing speed.

Also, for the quality of people under 19 failing since you entered university, I don't belive for a second. In essay quality, that I can't say, but for typing ability and speed, I simply don't believe it. People under 19 have grown up with computers, with games, with forums like this and with MSN.

Flametrooper · Post by **Flametrooper** » December 11th, 2007, 12:54 am

I'm just trying to dispel the stereotype everyone under 19 uses MSN-speech.
Yes, many do, but not nearly all.

Noy wrote:Moreover the quality of people under 19 years expression has fallen significantly since I entered university, which wasn't too long ago. Talking to other professors they lament the quality of submissions they see today, compared to 5 or even 10 years ago.

Sadly, this is often true, although not always.

Noy wrote:Do you think that people before you didn't have essays to write or that they didn't use keyboards? Do you think that after the age of 30 people calculate things out on a slide rule, write things out long hand, and copy with a mimeograph machine?

No, I don't think that...did I ever say I thought that?

Jozrael · Post by **Jozrael** » December 11th, 2007, 4:46 am

They typed just as much, just with typewriters, before computers were ubiquitous.

They had the same amount of stuff to accomplish, and they for the most part didn't do it by hand (handwritten).

Edited for appropriateness.

DDR · Post by **DDR** » December 11th, 2007, 5:23 am

Well, typing on a computer is like writing in my room. Just behind the window, there are infinite distractions.

As for students? Yep, quality's falling.

Post by **turin** » December 11th, 2007, 6:16 am

My understanding is that typewriters, for the most part, couldn't type as fast as computers, or they'd jam... so while people did type before computers, they didn't type as quickly.

The Doctor · Post by **The Doctor** » December 11th, 2007, 6:32 am

My age? I'm twelve. That's right, a twelve year old programmer. I'm a genius.

Post by **Dave** » December 11th, 2007, 7:36 am

turin wrote:My understanding is that typewriters, for the most part, couldn't type as fast as computers, or they'd jam... so while people did type before computers, they didn't type as quickly.

Only the very old type writers jammed easily. That was solved many years ago.

My mother, for instance, used type writers for many years, and could type very fast.

However, type writers weren't near as ubiquitous as computers are today. In school, for instance, an essay would typically be hand-written, not typed. I think there likely is a correlation between age and typing skill.

David

Uprising · Post by **Uprising** » December 12th, 2007, 4:43 am

Personaly, I don't feel that it matters what age you are. You could be really old, and yet not have any skill. (aka knowledge) Just for the record though, I'm fourteen, one month till fifteen.

Post by **CIB** » December 12th, 2007, 6:58 pm

Uprising wrote:Personaly, I don't feel that it matters what age you are.

It does matter, but it's only one factor. Unfortunately, there are many people who think that age is everything.

Post by **F8 Binds...** » December 13th, 2007, 4:15 am

I think pianists have the best typing skillz.

(edit: I reached my 500th post. I feel ancient.)

Post by **Baufo** » December 13th, 2007, 5:58 am

F8 Binds... wrote:I think pianists have the best typing skillz.

I don't think so. Playing a piano is quite different from typing.

I believe the most important thing for typing is to know the position of each key by heart and to know it without thinking about it.

Jozrael · Post by **Jozrael** » December 13th, 2007, 7:32 am

I think, in general, if you are a young age it is best to refrain from saying so until you have 'proven' yourself. People are much less likely to judge someone who has shown considerable merit in giving advice if they find out he is 13 than someone who enters the forums with an immediate announcement of their age and proceeds to give advice (even equally meritorious).

I am 19.

wsultzbach · Post by **wsultzbach** » December 14th, 2007, 12:20 am

I am 14.