Re: Emacs learning curve

[Sean Sieger]

    Powerful text editor should depend on ergonomics and muscle memory and
    make rebinding keys easy (for different keyboard layouts like Dvorak).
    While Emacs is otherwise very powerful text editor it has these serious
    flaws:

      - The default movement keys are not ergonomic.

      - While rebinding movement keys is technically easy, in practice it is
        very difficult because many/some major modes will reuse the f-b-n-p
        mnemonic practice anyway. User would need tons of custom hooks for
        different major modes to change bindings like C-c C-fbnp to
        something more ergonomic.

    The established (mnemonic) practice leaves me to conclude that
    tolerating the suboptimal default keys is still lesser pain. The
    situation is suboptimal but will probably never change.

Context has considerable bearing here.  The greater the touch typing
skill, the lesser the difficulty.  No?

You guys, I work with a 100-mph television talent, while on the air,
before the world (one can't see him do this for framing), this man types
... I'm tellin' ya 100-mph.  With an index finger and a scrunched up
hand.  I asked him, how fast, he said 100-wpm.  I want believe him, but
I take it with a grain of salt.  The point is could he ever capitalize
on key combinations, editing power like we know of Vi or Emacs?  No
way.  Right?  I also asked him about touch typing and he said his body
refuses.  Got me?  The context is our own context.  Our limitations are
our own limitations, in the center there are cool-daddy tools like GNU
Emacs.