ANSI · Dvorak
MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) keyboard layout
MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) is a Mac laptop keyboard built to the ANSI physical standard with a Dvorak letter arrangement. It has 78 keys in 6 rows. US Dvorak Simplified Keyboard layout.
Modelled on the Apple MacBook Air / MacBook Pro.
At a glance
- Platform
- Mac
- Standard
- ANSI
- Form factor
- laptop
- Keys
- 78
- Letters
- Dvorak
- Language
- English (Dvorak)
- Numeric keypad
- No
- Enter key
- Wide, horizontal (ANSI)
- Left Shift
- 2.25u, full width
Key map
What MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) is
As a laptop keyboard it has no separate numeric keypad and no navigation cluster: the arrow keys sit in the bottom row, and Home, End, Page Up and Page Down are reached through the Fn key. The function row is shared with brightness and media controls.
ISO or ANSI?
MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) is an ANSI keyboard. The three things a typist notices: the Enter key is a wide horizontal bar on the home row, the left Shift is a full 2.25u wide with no extra key beside it, and the backslash key sits directly above Enter. The right little finger reaches Enter with a short lateral move from the home row, and the left little finger has a wide target for Shift.
Where the symbols sit
These are the keycap legends on MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) for the characters typists reach for most, taken from the layout file. A symbol printed on a keycap with another legend is reached with Shift or the third-level modifier (AltGr on Windows, Option on Mac), depending on the operating system's layout.
On a US ANSI keyboard @ is Shift+2, the double quote is Shift+apostrophe and # is Shift+3, which is what most typing tutorials assume.
- @ shares its keycap with 2
- " shares its keycap with '
- # shares its keycap with 3
- ~ shares its keycap with `
- \ shares its keycap with |
- | shares its keycap with \
- / shares its keycap with ?
Home row and finger placement
The home row on MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) is A O E U I D H T N S. Touch typing starts here: the left hand rests on A O E U, the right hand on H T N S, and every other key is reached by a short move and a return to this row. CosmicKeys' finger guide animates that reach for each key of this exact layout.
This is the point of Dvorak: the five vowels A O E U I sit under the left hand and the frequent consonants D H T N S under the right, so far more keystrokes stay on the home row than on QWERTY and many words alternate between the hands. The physical board is still ANSI; only the letters move, so the lessons for this layout use the Dvorak positions for every finger animation.
Practice on MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) in CosmicKeys
CosmicKeys does not assume a US keyboard. Choose MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) from the keyboard picker and the on-screen keyboard, the finger animations and the per-key narration all use this layout's positions.
The core curriculum runs on every layout: home row, top row, bottom row, the number row, finger drills, mastery and speed lessons, plus custom lessons you write yourself.
There is also a Dvorak-specific lesson pack for the keys this layout has and a US board does not.
The typing test at /typing-test works on any layout and reports words per minute and accuracy; the lessons, finger-level analytics and hand-position guides are the part that depends on the layout you pick.
FAQ
Is MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) ANSI or ISO?
ANSI. It has a wide horizontal Enter key, a full 2.25u left Shift and the backslash key above Enter.
Where is the @ key on MacBook Laptop (Dvorak)?
@ shares its keycap with 2. Whether you press it with Shift or with the third-level modifier depends on the operating system's layout for this keyboard.
Does MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) have a numeric keypad?
No. Numbers are typed on the number row; if you enter a lot of figures you can pair it with a standalone keypad and CosmicKeys' numpad lessons.
Can I learn to type on MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) with CosmicKeys?
Yes. Pick MacBook Laptop (Dvorak) in the keyboard picker; the lessons, finger animations and narration then use this layout's key positions. The typing test needs no account.