Intro to keyboarding was a requirement for all Freshman at my high school. Before that, I was a pretty good two finger typer. We learned on typewriters, and when I got a computer I had to adjust how I typed because I'd get a whole line of the same letter if I applied the same pressure I used with typewriter.

sometimes I misdial phone numbers because it is upside down

Yes, that is a problem! I got pretty good with the number pad when I was a payroll clerk and have to really think to make sure I get numbers right on a phone, especially if I’m entering information for an automated system

A group of us students from all three disciplines (Theater, Dance, Music) petitioned the Dean to have classes in practical survival subjects, like shopping and cooking on a budget, typing and to-date basic computer skills, tips on job hunting and interviews, etc. His response?

"We are training artists here. If we do that right, you won't need ordinary jobs to support yourselves."

This is so funny to me because it was my mom's dream to teach a class on what she called "cocktail party conversation" where you learned cultural literacy so that if your boss, client, or whomever had an interest in opera say, you had some basic information to throw in and not make a fool of yourself.

Because I worked in grocery BEFORE scanning, I am so good with the number pad. I HATE the laptop because there is no number pad, and I bought myself a keyboard for my Mac that had one.

I use the number pad a lot since I have all the ASCII codes memorized for accents and its just so much faster and easier for that as well as anything involving regular numbers. I can't imagine getting a laptop without it.

I don't type that fast anymore since I find I don't need to in order to keep up with my own thoughts (I did when I was I temp in grad school though), but one of the main reasons I chose my present laptop (ThinkPad) was because it had the least flat keys of anything I looked at. Though I might sacrifice that for a screen that's taller (more square), for editing purposes.

I've been a full touch typist since 7th grade. I think it's one of the most valuable skills I picked up in all of Jr. High School.

Same here (although it might have been 8th grade for me — I don't remember).

I noticed a lot of younger co workers aren't familiar with the keypad. So when they have to type in their employee number and password (which we have to do for every transaction) it can take them longer because they rely on the numbers above the letters.

Then a few of them mentioned they mostly use laptops that don't have number pad.

I used an adding machine a lot at work in the 90s. I just have laptop, now. Invoicing and taxes are no fun. I like the keypad better on the adding machine, plus I miss the printout on the tape. It made it much easier to check my work.

My parents insisted I take typing in 8th grade. I learned on a manual typewriter, and decades on I still hammer on my computer keyboard. On my last one, the more popular letters were worn off long before my job would replace it. Luckily I’m a decent touch typist. ~100 wpm.

"We are training artists here. If we do that right, you won't need ordinary jobs to support yourselves."

WTF? Was this man never an actual artist? One of the reasons that I abandoned my dreams of acting was that I found out that fewer than one percent of the actors in SAG made enough money to support themselves. Also, I saw a documentary on Bravo where this woman talked about her career, and she said "I've been waiting tables for 17 years, but if I ever have to fill out a form that asks for my occupation, I write 'actress.' " That really spoke to me. I knew that I was not confident enough in my talent to BELIEVE that I was an actress in the face of not getting work.

Cindy, a while back I came across an abandoned adding machine with receipt at work and I was SO EXCITED but it turned to not actually print. It was a sad day when I understood that no amount of tinkering on my part would fix it.

I never properly learned to type, so I can touch-type pretty well, but my technique is TERRIBLE.

My mother, on the other hand, refused to learn to type because she was NOT going to be a secretary, and it all worked out, since she never did become a secretary, except she still can't touch-type.

All those classes sound awesome to me. I did take typing in HS, because I had to fill up a time slot and it was all I could got. Typing and in the off semester “business machines” which I ended up dropping so I don’t know what it covered. What I do know is that both of those were considered basically a waste of a class by most of my (informal) academic track peers but I’ve been incredibly glad for the skill.