The Dvorak Zine

DVzine.org v5.0!

2011-07-24T22:14:00.000-04:00

After almost two YEARS of inactivity, I have secretly been working on DVzine.org for the last couple of weeks, making A LOT of changes. By my count, this is the 5th major revision of the site, and I think (and/or HOPE) it is going to be the LAST one. Let me explain...

When we first set up the site, we wanted it to be the most extensive Dvorak resource on the web. We plastered every page with our email address and asked for suggestions and links and anything else our readers wanted to send our way. As a result, we got a flood of emails that we could not keep up with. Our inbox STILL has hundreds of suggestions and links, which we just don't have the time to sort through.

It's important to keep in mind that The Dvorak Zine was always a side project for me GCB and Frunch. Although we are passionate about the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard Layout, it is not our PRIMARY passion. GCB is busy being the Tech Guy for the International Living Future Institute, Frunch is about to start his assistant professorship at University of Wisconsin - Madison and I am teaching comics at The Center for Cartoon Studies and working on my own Phase 7 Comics too.

So after some soul searching and a few lengthy email threads, "Team DV Zine" came up with three main goals for the future of this project:

1) We no longer wish to make DVzine.org the most extensive Dvorak site on the web. Instead, we like it just as it is - a small, manageable site which people who are new to Dvorak can use to learn about the keyboard layout and set it up and begin using it if they wish. For example: we do not need links to every single Dvorak typing tutor on the internet. We have about ten on our typing tutor page, which should provide plenty of variety for new users. 100 links would only be overwhelming and unhelpful.

To help with this, I have cleaned up almost every page on the site. They no longer say "Someday this page will have a bunch of other cool stuff, send us suggestions!" Instead, they stand as they are; maybe they could be better, but we know that they are at least good enough to help us get the message out about Dvorak.

2) We need an easier way to interact with the Dvorak community and keep this site updated with dynamic content. HENCE: this blog! From now on, ALL Dvorak Zine updates will be posted on DVzine.blogspot.com We have been using Blogger since 2005 to update the main page of the site, but since they removed FTP service last year we decided to make a stand-alone blog.

I have done my best to maintain the navigation scheme between DVzine.org and this blog. If you click any of the tabs above, they will take you to the corresponding page on DVzine.org. More importantly though, this blog has an RSS feed and we have turned on comments and sharing options for every post. I also went back through all of the old homepage entries (every post before this one) and added labels for easier browsing. You can also use the search bar at the very top of the blog to search any of the posts.

We hope that the ease of the blogger interface will mean more posts from us and more involvement from all of you. Please follow our site and leave some comments!

3) Lastly, and most importantly, we need other people to help us spread the word about Dvorak.

In the last six years Frunch, GCB and I have printed and distributed more than 2,500 copies of the zine and DVzine.org has been visited by hundreds of thousands of people all over the world. We have spent a lot of time, money and energy spreading the word about Dr. August Dvorak's wonderful invention and its many benefits. We feel like we have done just about all we can with this project, so now it's time for us to "pass the torch" so to speak.

As of today, I have changed the copyright on The Dvorak Zine to a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. This means that you are now free to use the raw content of the zine as you see fit, as long as you 1) give credit to its creators (Alec Longstreth, Michael Cardiff and Gabe Carleton-Barnes) 2) do NOT charge any money for your adaptations/modifications and 3) you must release your version under the same license. For all the legal details, follow the link above.

People have always been able to print out their own free copies of the zine. But this takes it one step farther. Now you can actually use the foundation of our zine to create your own zines, or new versions of the zine.

Hopefully this will mean that The Dvorak Zine can be translated into many languages (thus canceling out my very close-minded post from 2008, in which I basically shut down all such possibilities). I meant to email everyone that's ever contacted us about translations and let them know about the license change, but again, I don't have the time right now to do that. So I'm posting it here with the hopes that all of you can help me spread the word.

I AM still digging through the inbox, trying to update things here and there were I can, but it is slow going. When I DO have an update, I'm going to be posting them in this blog. Sorry this post is so long, but it's been a long time coming! There is a lot more on the way, and I'm excited to see where these new goals take us. Hopefully all of this will help us educate even more people about the simple beauty of The Dvorak Simplified Keyboard Layout. Together we can all change the world, one keyboard at a time!

DVzine.org UNDER CONSTRUCTION

2011-07-09T23:01:00.002-04:00

DVzine.org will be under construction for the next week. I will be updating the layout and trying to fix some links and other things from around the site. I will also be incorporating this blog into the site. Please be patient with us, we have some exciting plans in store for the site! They will be coming soon.

Viva La Dvorak!

No More Blogger! :(

2010-02-10T16:44:00.004-05:00

Blogger recently announced that it will be discontinuing FTP support for its services, which means that we here at DVzine.org will need to rethink how we autoload content on the homepage and in the updates archive. We are going to use this reorganization as an opportunity to rethink the site a bit, AND change hosting service. There might be some disruption in the service of this site over the next few weeks, but hopefully we'll get it all straightened out eventually. Until then, Viva La Dvorak!

Snow Leopard + USB Converter!

2009-09-05T12:38:00.003-04:00

Emails have been pouring in from Dvorak users who have installed the latest version of Mac OS X, Snow Leopard, which now supports both Left and Right handed Dvorak variations! This is great news for one-handed typists everywhere, (or people who would like to type efficiently with only one hand). Also, the International menu is called now "Language & Text" for those of you making the switch to Dvorak on a Mac!
We were also alerted to a great new USB Device, which can instantly convert a QWERTY keyboard into a Dvorak Keyboard, with no software or installation necessary. It's called the QIDO and everyone should head over to their site to check it out! This would be a great tool for people who have to use a lot of different computers, or computers in public areas.

Dvorak Day 2009 & New Dvorak Comic!

2009-05-20T00:23:00.005-04:00

Don't forget, this Thursday will be the second annual Dvorak Day! Dr. August Dvorak turned in his original patent for the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard Layout on May 21st, 1932, so now each year on May 21st, we try to get people to spread the word about Dvorak. Tell at least three of your friends about Dvorak on Thursday! You can also print out some of our simple flyers or print out your own copies of our zine, to give to people!

In other news, Alec has drawn another Dvorak comic, which was recently published in the Syncopated Comics Anthology. This comic includes the rest of our Dvorak research, which we could not fit into our original zine, and it revolves around Robert Parkinson's 1972 article about Dvorak. The book is available from Amazon.com and you should be able to order it from your local bookstore as well. It's full of other great non-fiction comics, so please check it out!

Know your limits...

2008-11-24T19:32:00.003-05:00

Frunch, GCB and I have been talking recently, trying to figure out the future of The Dvorak Zine and DVzine.org. As we get older, we are all becoming very busy guys, and we need to keep the scope of the project small and manageable, instead of expanding it into too many new areas which we will not be able to maintain.
One area we found, where we can cut back, is the idea of translating the Dvorak Zine in a variety of languages. We had created a rough draft of a French Dvorak Zine (which we mentioned here on the blog) but after a lot of thinking and discussion, we have decided to cancel that project. It opens a door to more translations, which we do not have the time to create.
We are deeply honored that so many people across the world, want to spread the message of our zine, but we no longer think that a direct translation is the best way to do so. Our zine is very specifically about an American invention, and American inventors dealing with the English language in a very specific way.
We encourage others to create their OWN zine, dealing with the specific history of their language's version of the Dvorak layout. If anyone wants to use our zine as a reference about the history of the keyboard, or as a template of how to use comics to get across this information, that would be great! But we no longer wish to try and port our zine internationally.
We will of course continue to list links of international sites in the International Section of our site.
Our main goals, as they stand now, are: 1) to spread the word about Dvorak with our site and zine 2) to help new Dvorak typists with their transition into the world of better typing by answering their questions via email 3) to use this blog to point people to new Dvorak resources as they become available. Those are responsibilities we can handle!

"I'm working on it, I'm working on it!"

2008-06-13T00:23:00.003-04:00

Well, the first Dvorak Day was a success! Many people wrote in to tell us about passing out flyers, or copies of the zine and hopefully we convinced a few new people to give Dvorak a try! We'll have more time to plan out NEXT year's Dvorak Day, so start thinking up some new ways to spread the word.
The title of this entry is a line from Han Solo, when everything is going wrong on his ship (the Millennium Falcon). This is a bit how we feel here at DVzine.org this summer! While there have not been many updates recently, we are still fighting the good fight! Recently Alec exhibited at the 2008 MoCCA Arts Fest where he passed out many copies of The Dvorak Zine and heard from people who had picked up the zine years ago and are now happily typing Dvorak! Alec is also working on a new 12-page Dvorak comic which will be in the next volume of Syncopated Comics. ALSO Gabe and Alec are preparing to be interviewed for an upcoming documentary about QWERTY.
This is all to say that there are still many updates in the works and we will get to them as soon as we can. We appreciate your continued patience. Soon enough we'll launch back into Hyperspace!

The 1st Annual Dvorak Day!

2008-05-17T22:17:00.011-04:00

We hereby declare this Wednesday, May 21st to be the first annual DVORAK DAY! In 1932, Dr. August Dvorak turned in the patent for his simplified keyboard on May 21st, so we thought "What better day to get out and spread the word about Dvorak?!" Since this is the first year, we thought we'd start out small, by making up some flyers to pass around to our non-Dvorak friends.

There are four flyers total, which you can get in the Downloads section. You just print out the PDF file double-sided, cut the sheet on the dotted lines and you are ready to spread the word about Dvorak! Be creative and come up with your own ways to tell others about Dvorak on Wednesday, and send in your stories. That way we can all have some more ideas for NEXT year's Dvorak Day!
We also wanted to note that while doing some research for these flyers, we learned that the world's fastest typer, Barbara Blackburn passed away on April 18th, 2008. Barbara was a lifelong Dvorak typist and did a lot to promote the greater efficiency and SPEED that were possible when typing Dvorak. We are sad to see her go, and send our condolences to her friends and family.

Dvorak Day - May 21st!

2008-04-24T02:43:00.004-04:00

Well, the new site updates are far from over, but people can at least get the idea of what's going on. The biggest update is our new international section where we will be posting translations of the zine and other resources for our international friends of Dvorak.
The other big announcement is that we are declaring May 21st International DVORAK DAY! The original patent for The Dvorak Simplified Keyboard Layout says it was filed on May 21st, 1932 so we thought this was as good a day as any to celebrate Dvorak. (We were going to use Dr. Dvorak's birthday, but he was born on Cinco De Mayo!) The goal for Dvorak Day is to tell at least ONE new person about the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard. You don't have to "convert them" but just spread the word to a new person. Just think! If every year we doubled our ranks, eventually we would HAVE to take over, right?!
Anyways, we'll post more info about Dvorak Day as it draws closer and also more about various updates around the site. Viva La Dvorak!

Weekend Updates

2008-04-12T13:13:00.004-04:00

Well, Gabe and I are going to be updating the site this WEEK, so there will most likely be a little chaos while pages and sections shift and are updated. We apologize for the confusion this might cause, but hopefully the end result will be a more organized site with better content!
To tide you over while we fiddle with the site, here is a Dvorak inspired Limerick I wrote!

There once was a man named Dvorak.
For inventing, he had quite a knack.
He designed a keyboard
That was largely ignored,
But now it is making a comeback!

Viva La Springtime!

2008-03-22T16:35:00.004-04:00

I know, I know: Two months with no updates???! Well, all I can say is, we are not sleeping over here at DVzine.org headquarters. We are busy with many projects!

We finally finished converting The Dvorak Zine into French! It is going through some proofreading right now, but will be available soon, as both a webcomic and as a printable PDF. Get ready for Dvorak, people of France!
We received our largest ever order of Dvorak Zines (over 400 copies!) for the attendees of the 2008 GEL conference. So Gabe and I have been doing a lot of Folding and Stapling these days.
Last but not least, we are gearing up for some rearranging and updating of the site, so that things will be easier to use and up-to-date!

Hang with us, and Viva La Dvorak!

Happy New Year! +100,000 hits?!

2008-01-16T19:35:00.001-05:00

Well, it's 2008 and learning Dvorak is a perfect New Year's Resolution!!! :) We've got a few Dvorak-related resolutions here ourselves at DVzine.org central, so hopefully there will be some more activity on the site this year, including a ton of backlogged updates, some translations of the zine (French AND Spanish?!) and some other top-secret surprises that are in the works...

Back in December, our friend Ruth Engelberg was driving home from work in Seattle when she heard Dvorak mentioned on the Sound Focus program. DVzine.org gets a mention about 6:00 into the broadcast, so thanks to Glenn Fleishman and all the folks at KUOW. Hooray for public radio!

Also, UK dvorak enthusiast Colin is trying to get his government to take a look at Dvorak as an official layout for the UK! If you are living in the UK, please sign this petition! He needs 200 e-signatures by April 18th!!!

ALSO, we cleared 100,000 hits on the front page! It's great to think that we've got some new people typing Dvorak from making the zine and this site. Keep spreading the word and we'll change this world yet!

Viva La Dvorak in 2008!

BoingBoing.net CRASH!

2007-11-12T14:20:00.001-05:00

DVzine.org quickly exceeded it's bandwidth allotment the other day, after being linked on the popular BoingBoing.net blog. It is finally back up, so thank you everyone for your patience! We will be taking orders for physical copies of the zine and answering emails again! Viva La Dvorak!!!

GCB, SPX, RSS, ETC!

2007-10-31T19:12:00.002-04:00

Hello everyone! Sorry once again for the long lapse in blog posting. It has been a busy time here at Dvorak Zine Central, as GCB recently moved to New York City where he will be living with Alec. That's right! Two thirds of Team Dvorak Zine will be in the same place. This will make it much easier to spread the word about Dvorak!
Speaking of spreading the word, Alec had a successful trip down to the Small Press Expo a few weekends ago, where he was handing out (and selling) The Dvorak Zine. It was really great to see some returning people, who had bought the zine last year at SPX and now type Dvorak!
We're still waaaaay behind on site updates, but there were a few things we HAD to share right away:
1) We FINALLY set up an RSS feed for DVzine.org! You can use that link in your RSS readers to keep up on our latest updates, and also use it to more easily browse through the archive of previous posts. Web 2.0... WOO!
2) Jonathan emailed us to say that he has set up Step-by-step instructions for converting an apple Macbook keyboard to Dvorak! We were wondering if this was possible, but didn't have a spare Macbook to try it on, so that was good to know!
3) And Mime sent us a link to Autohotkey which is a new utility for Windows users that helps their computer stay in Dvorak more easily and keep the keyboard shortcuts (copy, paste, etc) in the same places. Mime also set up some instructions in their message board so check it out!
4) Last but not least, we are still slowly working on the French translation of The Dvorak Zine. Actually, the translation is done, Alec needs to just finish placing it into the comic. He is almost done wiping clean the pages (which we could also use with OTHER translations) and then he just needs to drop in the translation. Thanks for your patience while he gets this done!

Well, that's it for now. Hopefully there will be some more updates soon (we're doing our best). Viva La Dvorak!!!

Dvorak Zine Spotted In The Wild!

2007-09-24T22:32:00.001-04:00

Gabe's friend Jesse alerted us to the fact that The Dvorak Zine showed up in a recent episode of JetSet. Check it out! (starts 3:25 in to the video)
Also, Gabe is moving to New York! This will bring together 2/3rds of Team Dvorak so hopefully there will be some more activity around the site as we try and tackle the French translation of the zine and some long overdue updates to the site! Until then, Viva La Dvorak!

Helio Mag Article!

2007-07-20T19:29:00.001-04:00

Hey Dvorak typists, check it out! There is an interview with Alec, Frunch and the GCB over on HelioMag.com! The interview was conducted via email by Steve Salardino and ended up being SO LONG it will be posted in two parts. Read up on the secret origins of Team Dvorak Zine!

PART ONE | PART TWO

Dvorak Videos!!!

2007-05-18T17:41:00.002-04:00

We got an email from Denmark today, alerting us to an excellent new site for Danish Dvorak Typists: http://www.danskdvorak.dk None of us read Danish, but while poking around the site (which looks great!) we were AMAZED to find TWO Dvorak Promotional videos that had been made by August Dvorak himself! What a find!!
Check them out below and thanks to YouTube user ANCELME for uploading these videos!!!

Summer 2007: Back to Work!!!

2007-05-06T21:52:00.001-04:00

Well, as Dvorak-supporter Colin pointed out, it has been a whopping 13 weeks since we have updated the home page. YIKES!
The main reason for this silence, was that Alec has been INSANELY BUSY finishing up his two-year illustration program at Pratt Institute. But on Friday he graduates, and it will be back to work on the Dvorak Revolution!
Exciting things have still been happening during this "down time." The Dvorak Zine received a glowing review in this year's Best Zine Ever and it will also be a "Zine of the Month" for patrons of the Independant Publishing Resource Center in Portland, OR. Also, we sorted out some printing problems we were having, so we now have a nice healthy stack of Dvorak Zines to distribute to the world! Alec will be using these at the MoCCA Arts Fest this summer in New York to help spread the word about Dvoark. Swing by and say hello if you are in the area!
There are tons of updates slated for almost all secitons of the site. Also, Alec is going to continue working on the French Tranlation of the Dvorak zine, aided by our new friend Daniel in France! There should be a lot of updates this summer, so keep checking back!

The Dvorak Zine: an important part of any collection!

2007-01-25T18:03:00.001-05:00

Today, Alec sent me a link to my local library's website, which is publicizing its new Zine collection with none other than The Dvorak Zine! If that page has changed since this post, you can see the image here. At the time of this post, Portland's Multnomah County Library system owns 10 copies of The Dvorak Zine, and 8 are checked out. I think that's pretty darn cool-- and the dvzine team is very excited just to have our book circulating through the fantastic US Library System.

In fact, this is a great idea for all you street-teamers out there: check your local library for a copy of the dvzine, and if they don't have one, request that they put a copy or two in their system! Just think of all the 5th-graders looking for school report topics at the library that could stumble across The Dvorak Zine... and be changed forever!

The Dvorak Zine: Changing the World, One Card Catalog at a Time.

2006: A Good Year!

2006-12-20T10:10:00.001-05:00

Well, I apologize for the lack of updates this season. It just wasn't possible for me to fit DVzine.org updates into my hectic schedule. Next semester will be less stressful though, so hopefully I can get to some much overdue updates and improvements around the site!
Even though the front page was not bustling with activity, GCB, Frunch and I were still answering tons of Dvorak-related emails, I'm still working on the French Translation of the zine (which will hopefully be done by this summer) and the rest of the site saw a lot of use (we broke 60,000 hits!)
On top of all that, we've now printed almost 1,000 copies of the zine and distributed them all around the USA (and to some countries abroad as well!) Plus people are still downloading the readable PDF, printing out their own copies of the zine and reading it online! Let's hope we can keep this momentum going in 2007!!!

Slow and Steady Wins The Race

2006-09-26T20:01:00.001-04:00

This picture of Alec, Frunch and the GCB was taken at the Portland Zine Symposium this summer. It was the first time the creators of The Dvorak Zine had all been in the same place since the zine was released back in June of 2005.
I must apologize for the long delay in updating the site. I am EXTREMELY busy with school and work right now, so unfortunately DVzine.org is being forced to take the "back seat" for a while...
But fear not! Email questions are still being answered, orders of zines are still being sent out, I'm still printing up copies for Microcosm Publishing. It's mostly just the website updates I don't have time for right now. I will do my best though! And hopefully the site will get a big update before the end of the year.
In the meantime, I will be at The Small Press Expo October 13th and 14th in Bethesda, MD spreading the word about Dvorak! So swing by and say "Viva La Dvorak!"

Frappr Map and Zine Symposium

2006-08-02T16:00:00.001-04:00

Just a quick post to say that Jose' had the great idea to create an interactive map on Frappr.com for Dvorak Typists. We here at DVzine.org think it would be really cool if everyone typing Dvorak marked their location on this map. Not only would it give us some idea of how many people are typing Dvorak, it would also give us some idea of where we are all located!
I also wanted to let everyone know that Alec, GCB and Frunch will all be making an appearance at this year's Portland Zine Symposium. It will be the first time all three authors have been in the same place since the inception of the zine. So come swing by August 12th or the 13th and talk Dvorak with us!

50,000 hits & French!

2006-07-15T01:35:00.001-04:00

Sorry it's been so long since I updated the site. The Dvorak Zine headquarters just moved from Manhattan to Brooklyn and I have yet to set up a reliable internet connection, so this post is a little over due...
First of all, we made it to 50,000 hits!!! Thanks to everyone for checking out the site, emailing suggestions and tips, printing out copies of the zine and spreading the word about Dvorak!
Secondly, Microcosm Publishing reordered more Dvorak Zines because they had sold all the ones we sent them, and Alec distributed about 100 copies at the MoCCA Arts Fest. Alec (and possibly GCB & Frunch!) will all be at the Portland Zine Symposium August 12th and 13th so swing by and say hi!
Thirdly, as you can see below The Dvorak Zine is being translated into FRENCH!!! A huge thanks goes out to Dvorak enthusiast Ivan who is sending in the translation one page at a time. We're going to try and have it done for Angouleme this year!

More updates are on the way (after I get an internet connection) so until then, Viva La Dvorak!!!

Calling All Michigan Dvorak Typists!!!

2006-06-12T13:01:00.002-04:00

Kim Kovelle is writing an article about Dvorak for Metro Parent Magazine in Detroit. She will be featuring The Dvorak Zine but also needs a testimonial from a Michigan Dvorak typer. So if you are willing to be interviewed, please email us and we will put you in touch with her. It would be ESPECIALLY helpful if you are a parent, but it's not essential. Help spread the word about Dvorak to the next generation of typists!!!

DV Distribution!

2006-06-08T01:44:00.001-04:00

The Dvorak Zine has been picked up for distribution by Tower Records!!! We're not sure which stores it will be in, or how many copies they will have, so please keep an eye out and let us know if you see it! We sent them 80 copies, so hopefully they will spread those out around the country!
For those of you in New York City (or the surrounding areas), Alec will be at the MoCCA Comics Festival this weekend (June 10th and 11th) signing copies of The Dvorak Zine and trying to convert as many typists as possible. Swing by if you get a chance. There will be a lot of really awesome minicomics and zines to check out! Viva La Dvorak!

DVzine.org Typing Tutor!

2006-05-03T03:48:00.001-04:00

Well, after a couple of weeks of hard work, the DVzine.org Typing Tutor is finally online! So people can now learn Dvorak without even leaving our site! The tutor is basically just a flash interface for Dan Wood's tried and true ABCD Dvorak Typing Course. Thanks Dan for letting us use your text!
There are probably still some bugs here and there, but I think it's good enough to use for now. There are still INFINITE possibilities for improvement (and bells and whistles!) so hopefully it will continue to improve. For now, happy Dvorak Learning! VIVA!!!

Micro Updates!!!

2006-04-11T18:01:00.001-04:00

Well, I finally worked up the energy to dig through the DVzine gmail account this afternoon and update the site with the dozens of suggestions and links from all of you. So there are A LOT of little updates all around the site. Some of the more prominent ones include:

In the Windows Set-Up Section there are directions for getting Dvorak on your log-in screen and a link to another Awesome Utility that helps you keep your computer in Dvorak
(There are also new helpful links and tips in the Mac and Linux sections)
TONS of links to awesome FREE Typing Tutors have been posted on the Typing Tutor page
UK, Estonian, Finnish, and other resources have been added to the International Page
Posted a linke to John's Dvorak Widget over in the Stuff Dowload Section

Thanks to everyone who sent in tips and links! (And sorry for the horrendous delay getting them posted!) Other than that I'm still chipping away at the DVzine.org Typing Tutor in Flash. Wish me luck!

Site Map / Converter

2006-04-04T19:23:00.001-04:00

Well, the version 2.0 site redesign has been fully implemented throughout the entire site! There are still a few content gaps here and there (it seems there's always SOMETHING to work on...) but for the most part the site is up and running. One of the biggest updates is a brand new Site Map which will hopefully help people figure out all the things DVzine.org has to offer.
The other exciting update is our new Dvorak Converter! I built this as a programming "warm-up" using Macromedia's Flash. Next I'm going to begin building a DVzine.org Typing Tutor. But more on that later. For now? Viva La Dvorak!

The Zine Section v2.0!!!

2006-03-10T23:36:00.001-05:00

Well, I spent FOUR HOURS tonight completely overhauling The Zine Section. I reorganized a lot of the content that was already there and built some new pages too! Hopefully it will make it easier for people to read the zine, download the pdf and print out their own copies!
The Zine Section is the biggest section with the most pages, so hopefully the other sections won't take as long to update. Please let me know if you find any broken links!
Also, I FINALLY built a little favicon.ico file for DVzine.org! Talk about long overdue! Keep checking back, there should be a whole bunch of new stuff coming in the next few days...

DVzine.org v2.0!!!

2006-03-07T21:57:00.001-05:00

Well, if you didn't notice, DVzine.org v2.0 is IN EFFECT!!! Take a lap around the site to check out the new tabbed navigation system. There is also a secondary navigation system with a "You Are Here" arrow to help users figure out WHERE they are in the site and what else is available in that section of the site.
Although I have implemented the revisions throughout the entire site, some of the secondary navigation pages are not linked up yet, as there will still be some big organizational changes coming along soon. Patience is appreciated as parts of the site go up and down in the coming weeks. You can check always check the front page for the most up-to-date info!
In other exciting news, our friend and fellow Dvorak typer Ivan is translating The Dvorak Zine into FRENCH, which will be the first non-English version of the zine (??!) Hopefully that will be available as a PDF download some time this summer. Viva La Dvorak!!!

Navigation v2.0!

2006-02-28T19:14:00.002-05:00

Well, things are definitely moving forward with the DVzine.org v2.0 redesign. Armed with some new PHP knowledge from class and a lot of help from my friend Nate Beaty I was able to build these new Test Pages which demonstrate the new tabbed Navigation system. Hopefully that will start to be implemented SITE WIDE starting some time next week

In other news, The Dvorak Zine was recently reviewed by Eleven Year-Old Greta WHO IS NOW TYPING DVORAK! Yeah!!! That might just be the youngest Dvorak typer we've had so far! :) Viva La Dvorak!

Dvorak interview!

2006-02-18T15:42:00.001-05:00

Alec Longstreth (the comics artist who drew The Dvorak Zine) was recently interviewed for the Indie Spinner Rack podcast. It's an hour-long interview about Alec's minicomics, but if you skip to about 75% of the way through it, you can hear discuss The Dvorak Zine. He also tells a great story about a recent Dvorak experience that Frunch had in Silicon Valley. Viva La Dvorak!!!

Moving right along!

2006-02-14T23:16:00.001-05:00

Well, as I mentioned before, I am now working on DVzine.org as part of my interactive media class. And I think it's actually going to WORK!
I spent about three hours tonight building a new TEST PAGE that implements my new page design using lots of PHP. (Check out the TABS!) I also had to build a new Cascading Style Sheet for the new layout. As if that wasn't enough, I also linked up all the old Archive Pages so you can keep track of how much work I HAVEN'T been getting done on the site in the last few months.
So now it's just a matter of implementing the new design all over the site, going through the backlog of suggested updates and then maybe some other little suprises. Anyways, the ball is rolling! Oh, and DVzine.org is one year old today! Viva La Dvorak!!!

Roadmap for the future

2006-02-10T22:06:00.001-05:00

It's been really hard to find the time to update DVzine.org in the last few months. Besides being the webmaster of this site, I am also currently a full-time student at Pratt Institute. Luckily, this semester I am taking an Interactive Media Class which covers topics like HTML, CSS and PHP. I talked to the teacher and she said I could use DVzine.org updates and improvements as my HOMEWORK, so hopefully that will finally force me to complete some updates!
So posted below is a new blueprint for how I am going to lay out the site. Check back throughout the semester for improved navigation and layout and organization. Woo!

Promises, Promises

2005-12-08T16:37:00.001-05:00

First of all, 40,000 hits!!?! Woo! If even a FRACTION of those people are starting to type Dvorak, we are making some progress! Viva La Dvorak!
Secondly, I wanted to take a quick moment to disclose my "game plan" for DVzine.org. I'm dealing with FINALS right now at Pratt, but I will then have an ENTIRE MONTH OFF (woo!) I'll be going home to Seattle for a few days, but then I'm coming back to New York where my two main objectives are: 1) To finish PHASE 7 #006 and 2) To completely finish updating and improving DVzine.org!
There are going to be some really neat additions, so please check back in early January for the finishing touches on this site! We are still checking the DVzine email address so let us know if you have any questions about learning Dvorak. Thanks for helping us spread the word!

Back in the Saddle?

2005-10-28T19:16:00.001-04:00

Well, it's been a WHOLE MONTH since the last update. I feel really bad about the lack of updates (especially since there is such a large BACK log of things that need to be updated!) but school is really taking its toll on my free time these days. Luckily the site is still pretty much fully-functioning (people can read, order the zine and print out zines, plus learn A LOT about Dvorak!). So I'm trying not to beat myself up about it. In an effort to try and get back on track though, I'm going to carve out a little section of time each week to do a few minor updates. A journey of a thousands words starts with a single keystroke, right?!
So first off, I finished my portrait of Dr. August Dvorak that I did for my Illustration class at Pratt Institute. Other minor updates around the site include:

Added some more International Resources including links for Italian, German, Greek, Maori and Brazilian Portuguese versions of Dvorak!
Fixed a couple of broken links, goof-ups and outdated material
FINALLY added an imposed PDF formatted for metric A4 paper for all our international street team members!!!

So hopefully there will be some more small updates coming soon. Thanks to everyone who has written in and ESPECIALLY to those of you who are giving Dvorak a try! Viva La Dvorak!

DR. AUGUST DVORAK???

2005-09-28T20:30:00.001-04:00

HEY! LOOK WHAT I FOUND burried DEEP in the bowels of the University of Washigton Libraries Digital Collection. A picture of DR. AUGUST DVORAK (???!)
Although I'm not 100% sure it's him, the following clues suggest that it IS him: 1) CHECK OUT THE KEYBOARD LAYOUT ON THE BLACKBOARD!!! 2) The photo is from November 14th, 1932 which is the same year his famous report on typing was finished (perhaps this photo was taken for a newspaper article about it???) 3) according to the notes for the photograph, on the sleeve is a handwritten note that reads "D. Dvorak Class Etc., U of W 11/14/32"
I've emailed the Museum of History & Industry in Seattle (who own the photograph) for permission to post it here on the website and I'm going to go ahead and use this man as the referenece for my DVORAK portrait. WOO!!!

Visual Reference Request!

2005-09-22T13:32:00.001-04:00

My current assignment for my illustration class is to do a portrait of an OBSCURE INVENTOR (??!) I want to do Dr. August Dvorak (of course!) But I need some visual reference. His depiction in the zine was fabricated because I could not find any pictures of him on the internet. Does anybody out there have a photograph of Dr. August Dvorak? Please email it to me if you do! Thanks!

Web Updates Vs. The Front Lines!

2005-09-12T23:42:00.001-04:00

Alas, each time I try to work on the DVzine.org updates, something else gets in the way. This time, it's PRINTING ZINES! We got an awesome offer from Microcosm Publishing to help us distribute The Dvorak Zine. So I have to print up 40 copies for them and then I need to print up another 100 (or so) for the rapidly approaching Small Press Expo. (Come swing by and say hello if you are in the Washington D.C. area September 23rd or 24th!)
After refilling my toner cartridge SIX TIMES though, I finally had to buy a new one. With that and a bunch of paper and cardstock (and more toner off of Ebay) I've almost spent $150 this week just to make more Dvorak zines (GULP). So it would be a great time to donate if anyone can help out with a few bucks. We lose money on all externally distributed zines (since they are bought at 50% the cover cost), plus I usually end up giving away as many zines as I sell at these events. I may not be the best business man, but I'm good at spreading the word about Dvorak!!! Any help would be greatly appreciated--every dollar lets us print another zine!

PHP / CSS !

2005-08-30T23:59:00.001-04:00

Well, I spent SIX HOURS tonight reworking DVzine.org to utilize PHP (for the new streamlined navigation bars at the top) and Cascading Style Sheets for all the formatting on the site. How did I know how to do this? Because my good friend Nate, who is an awesome webdesigner, gave me some pointers and sent me some links to various tutorials around the web. Much like switching from QWERTY to Dvorak, switching the site to PHP and CSS was slow and arduous (I had to go through EVERY page on the website and hand drop-in the new code), but in the long term it was WELL worth it, as it will be extremely easy to make site-wide changes by just altering a pair of documents. Hurrah!
Now that I've taken care of that I will start updating the other content of the site. I'm going to try and do small updates here and there (a few each night?) instead of massive updates because I don't have time for that!
Thanks too for all the zine orders and emails with suggestions. Keep them coming!

Back on track!

2005-08-18T21:21:00.001-04:00

Well, after a whole month "off" from working on the site, I'm ready to jump back in and finish off version 1.0!! Plans include: relearning Cascading Stlye Sheets (and then using them to improve the site), redo some graphics here and there, incorporate the MANY updates people have been emailing in, creating a sitemap and also just filling in the last little gaps around the site.
On the Dvorak front, I just got back from a two-week trip to the Pacific Northwest where I distributed over 100 copies of the Dvorak Zine at the Portland Zine Symposium. Frunch even showed up for a bit to help spread the word!!! It got a great reaction and a lot of people came back the second day of the symposium to tell us that they had relabeled their keyboards or had started typing Dvorak. Hooray!
Also, we made it to 30,000 hits! HOORAY!!! Hopefully we can continue to spread the word about Dvorak and really get some people to make the switch! More updates will be coming and I apologize in advance if some of the site is broken over the next couple of days... VIVA LA DVORAK!!!

We Shall Double Our Efforts!

2005-07-09T09:58:00.001-04:00

Instead of continually promising to "finish off" the site and then NOT being able to do it because of other time commitments, I'm going to set a REALISTIC GOAL and then actually meet it. SO, Version 1.0 of the site will be totally "done" (getting content into those last few pages with placeholders) by the end of AUGUST. The last few additions will not really add any functionality though, so you should think of DVzine.org as the Second Death Star: It is a bit shabby on the outside, and not quite finished, but still fully functional.
Also, don't forget we've added some Dvorak Zine T-shirts over at our CafePress Store. They're a little pricey because CafePress takes $15 off the top (yikes!) But check them out as T-shirts are a great way to spread the word about Dvorak.

Arrggh!

2005-07-05T00:17:00.001-04:00

Updates ARE in the works, but are still not ready to "go public" quite yet. Sorry for the delay. There is going to be some cool stuff coming up though, including Dvorak Zine T-shirts (from CafePress.com)!
Hopefully Alec will get to the updates this week. Until then, keep spreading the word about Dvorak! :)

Two links and not much else!

2005-06-28T23:24:00.001-04:00

We recieved a great link today from fellow Dvorak typer Pupeno. It's a page over at shiar.org that deals with international variations of the Dvorak Keyboard layout. It's got Spanish, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish and Esperanto! Check it out!!!
Another Dvorak typist, Brian, sent us a link to this strange webpage that will automatically convert your typing from QWERTY to Dvorak. So if you were using a computer that you were unable to change the keyboard settings on, you could call up this webpage, type Dvorak comfortably and then cut and paste your text as needed. It's weird. Go see for yourself!
There are still a few loose ends we need to tie up on the site and hopefully we will be dealing with them this week!

Weekend of Rest

2005-06-26T23:59:00.001-04:00

Well, the email front finally calmed down enough for "team Dvorak Zine" to take a well earned break this weekend! As a result there are only a few small updates to report, but as always, there are more on the way!
A few resources for Dvorak-esque layouts in ESPERANTO were added to the International Page (thanks Michael!)
We also added a FREE, open-source Dvorak typing tutor to the Typing Page, which we had forgotten to post originally (sorry Kamil!)
Alec also spent some time this weekend catching up on Zine orders and printing up extra copies which he distributed to the Jigsaw Zine Shop in New York City. He also printed up 10 copies to enter The Dvorak Zine in the Tokion 2005 King of Zines contest. Let's hope it wins!
More improvements, additions and updates will be coming this week!

20,000 strong!

2005-06-23T23:41:00.001-04:00

Frunch added a TUTORIAL on how to safely rip up the keys from your QWERTY keyboard and convert it to a DVORAK keyboard! He also went through much of the site and made minor additions and corrections.
Gabe sent in a few more Frequently Asked Questions for you all to check out. From SPAIN! What a trooper.
And Alec fixed another TWO spelling mistakes in the Zine (thanks Scott!) and then recompiled the PDFs and fixed the web version too. All printed versions will be updated from now on--sorry to those of you with the original print runs with varying degrees of correctness. (Rare, limited-edition errors! Right?)
We also achieved 20,000 hits today! WOO! Granted, those are not 20,000 unique visitors, but STILL. When you consider that most data suggests there are about 100,000 Dvorak typers in the world, it is pretty exciting to see that A FIFTH of them might have been here (and to the mirrors of the site during our slashdot day!). There are plenty of emails coming in of people converting to Dvorak and convincing their co-workers and friends to try it too!
We will change the world... You'll see!!!

The Dvorak Blog

2005-06-22T22:28:00.001-04:00

Well, upon Frunch's urging (and some others!) we have set up a blogger account for the front page here. That'll make it easier for Alec, Frunch and GCB to each post their own updates to the front page!
I also went through and took all of the OLD entries and converted them into blogger entries, so they are up in the archive section now. Aren't we high-tech?
The downside to all of this is I had a BUNCH of other updates I wanted to get to tonight, but the blogger stuff ate up all my time (did I mention I also have a full time job and COMICS to draw???) Luckily Frunch is going to be going through the site tonight, making some corrections and additions.
Tomorrow night I'm going to fix some MORE spelling mistakes in the zine that were found and then recompile the web comic and pdfs. Let's hope these are the last errors! I also have some more FAQs that Gabe sent me from Spain. We are always workin here at DVzine.org!

Street Team Edition!!!!

2005-06-21T20:13:00.001-04:00

The Street Team page has been improved with some photos and illustrations. That'll make it easier to download and print out your very own copies of the Dvorak Zine to distribute! Help us spread the word!!!
Thanks to everyone who offered to help mirror the PDF version of The Dvorak Zine! If you download the file, try to randomly pick a server, so no one person gets stuck with all the bandwidth!
Also added some new Typing Tutor and Hardware links to the Type Dvorak Now! Page.
Hey, WINDOWS USERS, check out this great tip from Jonathan that fixes the application specific nature of Windows keyboard settings AND lets you utilize standard QWERTY control-commands while still tying Dvorak! More about it on the Windows help page.

The PDF is back!!!

2005-06-19T21:37:00.001-04:00

The BIG news is that the PDF has returned to the Zine section! Thanks so much to our fellow Dvorak supporters for helping us host that file. We are still hoping to get a few more mirrors going, so please let us know if you can also host the file.
Also cleaned up the INFO section a bit with new icons, a better description of Frunch's TYPING ANALYZER and a fixed link in the INTERNATIONAL section.
Lastly, set up a Dvorak Zine CafePress.com Store to sell the new Dvorak Keymap Sticker (which lets you easily convert your QWERTY keyboard into a Dvorak keyboard!). If you have some self-adhesive paper the sticker is also available as a free download over in the TYPE DV NOW! section. If people have any interest, we could get Alec to design a Dvorak T-Shirt through CafePress at some point... Let us know!
Look for the STREET TEAM section to go LIVE this week!

Weekend OVERHAUL!

2005-06-17T04:33:00.001-04:00

The massive WEEKEND OVERHAUL session has begun! Please bear with us as the ENTIRE site will be making a lot of changes this weekend. We'll list them below as they are finished and uploaded:

New front page layout, created Update Archive
Posted a request for help hosting some large pdf files!
Updated resources on the International Page
Fixed the LAST (?) typo in the actual zine! ("inefficIent" on page 3!)
Reformatted the Zine, Info, Type DV now! and FAQ pages.
Created new place-holder pages for the Street Team, History Page, HTML Citation List, Keyboard dismantling tutorial and a bunch of others...
Gabe answered a BUNCH of Frequently Asked Questions
Took out A LOT of Alec's overt use of capitalization, per GCB's revisions

Okay... and now it's 4am, so I'm going to FINALLY go to sleep. More content will be added "tomorrow" Zzzzz

New Desktop Images

2005-06-16T21:55:00.001-04:00

Added new DESKTOP IMAGES in the typing section as a teaching tool for new Dvorak learners.
Went into the actual Zine files and fixed some "typos" (even though they aren't TYPED!) I think there are only a few left...
PLEASE NOTE: I am working full time at my DAY JOB, not getting much sleep and BARELY keeping up with the barrage of emails and zine orders. I canceled my plans for this weekend and will be working ALL DAY Saturday and Sunday updating the site and getting more content on here. So please bear with me... MAIN GOALS: Working on the INTERNATIONAL section and updating the FAQs!!! Patience is appreciated!

ANALYZER!!!

2005-06-15T21:58:00.001-04:00

Fixed more TYPOS (geeeeez!) and set up FRUNCH'S TYPING ANALYZER!!!! Check it out in the info section, especially with the "key by key" setting. Totally rad! Good work Frunchy! Changed front page to have updates. Mailed off the first batch of zine orders from 6/14/05

SLASHDOTTED!!!

2005-06-14T22:00:00.001-04:00

We got SLASHDOTTED! Thanks to Brian McGroarty for mirroring the site for us!!! Answered DOZENS of emails from all over the world. Made minor improvements on the sites (fixed a few TYPOS!!!) and unfortunately had to take down the 3.4 MB PDF version of the zine to be able to make the site LIVE again. (It might make a return!) Solidified plans for an INTERNATIONAL section and a STREET TEAM version of the zine which you will be able to download and print out!!!

MoCCA!

2005-06-12T22:02:00.001-04:00

Distributed about 100 copies of The Dvorak Zine at MoCCA Arts Fest in New York City!

Phase 7

2005-06-01T22:06:00.001-04:00

Sent about 80 copies of The Dvorak Zine to the PHASE 7 SUBSCRIBERS all over the USA! (and Japan, Africa and Spain too!)