User`s manual

8
to an infinite number of positions. THAT IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE
NO TWO PEOPLE ARE PHYSICALLY IDENTICAL.
Why comfort is important
A skilled baseball player has his/her own particular batting stance and
swing, depending on individual posture, body size and type,
musculature, and preference. Each batter chooses the bats, shoes,
gloves, etc. that fit him or her best.
Exactly the same level of concern should be shown in coping with the
complex sequence of muscle acts, which make up computer keying. We
can think in terms of “keyboard athletes.” However, until now,
keyboard athletes have not had the tools available to accommodate
natural posture and individual preferences.
Why adjustability is important
Flat keyboard forces computer workers to bend their hands and wrists
into an inherently awkward posture –a posture that decreases comfort
and increases fatigue.
In order to key more comfortably, the hands should be maintained in
their natural posture –that is, the same position as when they are
hanging relaxed at your sides. In an article included among selected
references by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Thomas J. Armstrong, Ph.D., states:
“As a general rule, tools and tasks should be designed so that they can
be used and performed without causing wrist deviation (bending) from
side to side or causing the wrist to be flexed (bent toward the palm) or
highly extended (bent away from the palm). The wrist should be
maintained in the same position as though the arms were hanging
relaxed at the worker’s side.”
If you are keying at a flat keyboard, maintaining your natural
posture is impossible. If you start with your hands hanging relaxed
at your sides, and maintain that straight hand/wrist posture while
bending your elbows to form right angles, you will be assuming