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Why do I type so fast yet write so slow?

Seriously, compared to most people my age I don't really actually spend that much time online/typing, probably average really. I can knock out 145wpm which I do count as pretty good. Not exceptional but it is up there in the top 10% easily.

But when it comes to exams and writing generally, I'm kind of slow. Maybe average. In an exam I see people next to me writing twice the amount I am writing, but they probably type far slower than me.

Why is this? :frown:

Reply 1

ShadowConspiracy

Maybe it's just you in person, I find that if I write fast it becomes messy and unreadable

Reply 2

SirRamAlot

Because you think more carefully about what you're writing? Whereas the other people you see may be just waffling from the top of their head.

Reply 3

Fried Sock

I write slowly and I despise it in comparison to typing because I like my fingers to be free and not chafing together to the max.

Reply 4

Flyer8

Muscle memory on keypad, plus ppl may write less these days, means you need to practice writing, it will graduately get faster.

Reply 5

S_123

Same it's so frustrating because I'm taking essay subjects for A level next year.

Reply 6

Tabris

You can press several keys almost instantly after each other. That alone makes typing much faster than writing.

I often get hand cramps in essay based exams. That, and my hand-writing ranges from extremely slow and neat, to a reasonable pace and illegible, even to myself. God knows how women manage to write neatly and quickly.

Reply 7

The_Lonely_Goatherd

I wouldn't let it bother you. I'm very much the same. I think it's coz it's faster to type than to write and so in typing, it's easier for me to keep up with my brain, whereas in having to form the letters and words myself, the whole system slows down :yes:

Reply 8

Blueflare

You type quickly and write slowly. Use the extra time to check your grammar. :colonhash:

As other people have said, it's common to be able to type much faster than you can write because pressing a key is faster than forming a letter with your hand.

Reply 9

Sithius

Blueflare

You type quickly and write slowly. Use the extra time to check your grammar. :colonhash:

As other people have said, it's common to be able to type much faster than you can write because pressing a key is faster than forming a letter with your hand.

If I'm typing fast then I have no extra time yo. :yep:

No, but I'm not comparing the two things per se. Rather I'm comparing to the averages (far above average in typing, slightly below/average in writing). :p:

Anyway I wasn't aware many people wrote with their hands these days? It's mostly done with their fingers, at least I think that's how a majority of schools teach pupils to write nowadays.

eat

What a hilarious subject to make a poorly-disguised brag / egostroke thread about.

This is even below "i have an 8 inch penis / 178 IQ is that small / bad" threads. I mean, words per minute?

He'll love this one, just what he's looking for.

To answer the question you already know the answer to - you probably don't write particularly fast with pen and paper because you don't get as much practice, and there's more room for improvement with a keyboard.

You're red so you're destined to be cynical. I'm not bragging here at all, I'm genuinely curious. I do get annoyed in exams (especially as I do a subject with essay questions) that it takes me so long to write what I want to write, when on a keyboard I could type it and then some in a fraction of the time.

Reply 10

River85

Sithius

Why is this? :frown:

I'm a fast typer but my writing speed is in the bottom 20% of undergraduates. But then I am dyspraxic (not that I'm saying you have dyspraxia).

Reply 11

Sithius

River85

I'm a fast typer but my writing speed is in the bottom 20% of undergraduates. But then I am dyspraxic (not that I'm saying you have dyspraxia).

Interesting. :p:

Yeah, without a shadow of a doubt I don't have dyspraxia. I guess I just haven't spent enough time practicing writing to actually become quite good at it.