To:   AFL Don
From: Chuck Stites (ChuckS 1073)

Easy IIe Dvorak Keyboard Modification

BACKGROUND

     About three years ago a new student came to my school.  He had a severe birth defect.  He was born without any fingers on his left hand.  Surgery was performed and single joints were transplanted from his left foot to create "finger-stubs".  He now has a semi-usable left hand.  For his birthday, prior to enrolling in my school, his parents had purchased a IIgs for him.  At that point he was using the Christopher Columbus method of typing ("Discover and Land on it").

     I had begun using Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing for my 5th and 6th graders -- as an alternative to my favorite program (Typing Made Easy).  The Apple II version teaches, not only standard QWERTY, but Dvorak board.  For those not familiar with Dvorak, it is an arrangement of the keyboard whereby all of the vowels are on the home-row (AOEUI), keyed with the left hand, while the right hand keys the most commonly used consonants (DHTNS).  From just the home-row, one can type almost 70% of the English language.  Up reaches are less prone to mistakes, therefore the top row consists of the next most common characters and letters, while the bottom row has the least used characters and letters.

     I had done some experimenting with the Dvorak layout and found it to be intriguing.  But when I discovered that this student was not only handicapped (in the above mentioned way), and really showed an aptitude for using the computer, I decided to try the Dvorak system on him.  After all, all of the vowels are executed with the left hand, and the balance of characters/letters for that hand are used less frequently than is the right.

     He took to it like a fish to water.  (By the way, the IIgs keyboard can easily be changed through the control panel -- Dvorak = American Simplified Keyboard.)  At last speed check, he was typing (with 0% errors) around 70 words per minute.

     I own a couple of IIc's and a IIe.  I spend most of my time on the "e".  I really wanted to have Dvorak available for my "e".  In the back of the "Mavis" booklet there are a number of manufacturers listed who sell hardware to convert the IIe.  I called all of them.  They were either no longer in business, or no longer making the hardware.  

     I had read in "Apple Thesaurus" by Aaron Filler (Datamost, 1984) that the Dvorak keyboard was available -- built in, like the IIc (and IIc+) -- but that was all that was mentioned.  After spending considerable time reviewing reduced schematics of both the "e" and "c" in "Apple Thesaurus", I discovered that the keyboard switch on the "c" merely broke a connection from the keyboard ROM chip -- part 342-0132-D.

     I removed the chip and gently bent one of the legs out and slightly up (away from the motherboard).  Then I inserted a piece of insulated wire, that I had stripped approx 3/16" of the insulation from, into the base for the chip. The location is the sixth hole up from the bottom -- as you look at the motherboard from the keyboard side:

                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                  ----|o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|   |o|
                      |o|_^_|o|

The other end of this wire is attached to one side of a 3-pole micro toggle switch (from Radio Shack -- approx $2.00).

     The other outside tap has a wire from it to the lower left hand corner of the mother board where there are three small rectangular silvered contact points. (There is also a fourth point, but it is roughly square.)  The wire from the toggle is soldered to the middle of the three rectangular contact points.

     Now you can attach a third wire to the center tap of the toggle switch.  This wire is attached, either by carefully soldering -- use a heat shield of some sort so as not to damage the ROM chip -- or buy a small slide on connecter and solder the wire to the connecter.  If the latter, then slide the connector carefully onto the leg of the chip you previously gently bent outward.

     Presto!  By flipping the toggle switch one way you have standard (QWERTY) and the other way you have Dvorak.  And you can switch back and forth in "mid-stream".  

     If you have never done any soldering, may I suggest you go the latter route.  It is very easy to damage an IC chip with heat.

     Good luck, and ENJOY.  Get a copy of Mavis, leave your switch in the standard position.  Configure Mavis for Dvorak and learn how to use this old/new keyboard.  When you feel ready, use Appleworks (or your other wordprocessor) and flip the switch for Dvorak.

     In no time at all, you should easily increase your touch-typing skills (especially if you already now real touch-typing) by at least 100% or greater.

     If you are a user of a BBS the length of time online costs $$$.  The faster you can type, the less time online -- or at least less time responding in a Real-Time Conference.

     Feel free to e-mail any comments to me.

                 Chuck Stites
                 ChuckS 1073 (AOL)
                 C.Stites (GEnie)