I listen to a lot of music at work, because it makes work more bearable and colleagues less audible.

I was sitting typing a particularly bland batch of bilge, when it occurred to me that the lyrics of the song I was listening to were far more interesting, so I started to type them instead.

[Casually drumming his fingers on the metaphorical start line, he waits. The song starts. Our young hero quickly panics.]
"Purple jumping weasels that's quick!"
[His pudgy fingers fly across the keyboard, but still the singer races ahead.]
"Stop singing, damn you, I'm only on line 2!"

My first attempt ended up looking like this:

"The vcut ratye mime walking throughnjt ej dirty streets,,of Paris in the hot autumn heat, sun melting the fakew msilse away, just looking for a place to stay/the actress gave up all jer pld dreams/and traded up now she is a queen/royal families don’t gave time for that shiot/your crystal bvall you keep it hid/

Thej tractor trailer rdriver radios help me someone I’m out here all alone, truck driving the black night awyay, praying for the light ofd day/the jkid in threw mall works at hod dog on a stick/his hat is a funny dshape/his heart is a brick/ taking yopur ordper he will look away/he doesn’t hgave a thing to say/but me I’m feeling pretty good ads of now/not so sure when I gfot here or how/sun melting the fakle smile awayI trhink you know I’ll be ok."

This was not a fast song, nor am I an especially bad typist,although I am somewhat fat-fingered.

I contend that this could be an excellent way to learn to type, whilst simultaneously conditioning the short-term memory.

For beginners, something slow and repetitive, intermediates can try gospel or indie rock, whilst truly nimble fingers can attempt punk or Busta Rhymes.
-- DocBrown, Aug 18 2004

In the sixties.Learn to type to an old gramaphone player.
-- skinflaps, Aug 18 2004


Better than my attempt [bwv61]. Faster song too, dammit. [Runs off to devise some method of squashing stupid, fat fingers]
-- DocBrown, Aug 18 2004


I suppose so [contracts], I was just surprised how hard it was to keep up. I'm sure it'd be useful for people trying to learn to type quickly - surely no dictation task could ever faze you once you'd managed to keep pace with really speedy lyrics.

Yeah, I like the fingers [bwv61], they're just not good at typing or sewing - my great misfortune as a tailor/typist. Ah well ;)
-- DocBrown, Aug 18 2004


If you knew the song, you could cheat and go ahead during instrumentals. Or you could just type instrumental over and over.
Good one, Doc. I'm gonna try it not with lyrics, but descriptions of classical music. Or dreams. So long as it's not work.

I wonder if anyone would be able to keep up with Busta Rhymes.
-- yabba do yabba dabba, Aug 18 2004


keep up with Busta? Even if you succeeded perfectly, the spellchecker'd have a fit. After all, how _do_ you spell "Woohaaah?" in a way that Word won't complain about?
-- david_scothern, Aug 19 2004


"Woo ha" seems to pass the spell checker. Doesn't really convey the sense of the words as well without a few more "o"s and "a"s but it is lexically acceptable, apparently.
-- DocBrown, Aug 19 2004


I tried this whilst listening to Guns'n'Roses. "Paradise City" is just physically impossible to follow with one's fingers. I tried it and it was an ugly mess--looked like a different language. Here's an excerpt: "take me tdoent to the oaroadis ecity where the greaedss is greene adn the gorla ate orety, oh woh tn yo u pleast tka me home" But a [+] for you, [Doc], this is a great way to practice typing.
-- Machiavelli, Aug 19 2004


[Machiavelli], reminds me of "I'll name that tune in...<insert number of notes to be played>" (TV program, maybe only local to the UK?).
I wonder how many would have guessed the song correctly if you hadn't named it?
-- Ling, Aug 19 2004


"Name that Tune" was popular inthe US, too, [Ling]. I know, my song's a mess, isn't it.
-- Machiavelli, Aug 19 2004


I'll name that tune in .... 20 incredibly quickly typed words. Or maybe not.
-- Ling, Aug 19 2004


What about "One Week" by Bare Naked Ladies?
-- zigness, Aug 19 2004


I would have got [Machiavelli]'s but I'm scared to even try "One Week"!
-- DocBrown, Aug 20 2004


List alert
-- phundug, Aug 20 2004


I find this is actually quite useful for adding to wpm. Start with blues and work up to techno-pop. Bun.
-- Blumster, Nov 29 2004



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