I learned Colemak on my work machine while using QWERTY on my home machine. It made typing in general rough for a time, but forcibly transitioning back and forth has eventually gotten me to the point that when using my work laptop, my fingers instinctively go into 'Colemak mode', and when using my home laptop, my fingers instinctively go into 'QWERTY mode'. It's an extremely useful switch to be able to manually toggle in my head, as it's no longer crippling to use someone else's keyboard.
I use dvorak full-time on my desktop PC, but I never bothered to switch my cell phone key layout so it's still qwerty, and I send a few texts a day. I don't even notice the change anymore, I can fluidly switch between the two. I've been using dvorak for almost 20 years, it's so much more comfortable for typing quickly, as I usually do on my desktop PC.
I type 85-95wpm (peaking around 130wpm) in Colemak on a Kinesis Advantage I with cherry brown keys. I documented my switch to Colemak five years ago (February 2013) and am still on it:
- [7 weeks of colemak](http://petrustheron.com/posts/colemak.html)
- [21 weeks of colemak](http://petrustheron.com/posts/colemak-21-weeks.html)
- [Back up to speed on Colemak](http://petrustheron.com/posts/colemak-speed.html)
Don't switch unless you have RSI issues and you won't have to type on other people's computers. Whichever layout you choose, map Caps Lock to Backspace on QWERTY for an easy boost (and Backspace as Space key to learn faster).
To type fast, don't focus on speed; instead aim for 95%+ accuracy. Then push your speed up. The trick to touch typing is to maintain home row position, and the Caps Lock/Backspace mapping helps with that: [How to Type Fast](http://petrustheron.com/posts/how-to-type-fast.html)
I'm not sure how long it took to settle - it's one of those things you don't realize has become natural until you actively notice it - but I think it was the scale of a couple of months.
I'm not sure if there's a 'special recipe' to be generalized to all people; unfortunately, I only have my experiences on this to draw on, and the stories of a few others.
Does the transition just feel disjointed for you, like it takes you a few minutes to switch modes fluidly? Or is it longer-term?
It's longer term — I have to type one or the other for a few days before it feels like I'm not fighting the keyboard. Glad to hear it's not like that for everyone, though!
