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New Keyboard Saves Accountants Time


Jan. 18, 2008 (SmartPros) Accountants handling data entry have a new best friend: a keyboard with the tab key located to the right of the number pad, rather than clear across the keyboard.



Wayne Wilson understands an accountant's pain. He's worked for 33 years in data entry, including 21 years as a CPA. Those years showed him how inefficient the regular keyboard setup is for accountants.

"When you're entering data, you type all the numbers with your right hand and then have to stop and use your left to hit the tab key," Wilson said. "It's completely inefficient."

He looked for two years for other keyboards with a different setup, but couldn't find any. That's when he decided to build and patent his own keyboard.

Wilson's R-Tab keyboard has the tab key on the right of the number pad, making it easier and more efficient for accountants to use.

"Instead of having to interrupt the left hand and hit the tab key, you don't even have to break the typing stride of your right hand," Wilson said. "The tab key is right there."

Wilson's not the only one who's had the idea of altering a keyboard to help accountants. Microsoft had built a keyboard that had the tab key where the num lock key typically is, but Wilson found that it was actually slower than a regular keyboard.

"I built one of those Microsoft keyboards, and it tested slower than normal," Wilson said. "No point in using a keyboard that is supposed to be more efficient when it really turns out to be less so."

The R-Tab keyboard, on the other hand, was considerably more efficient when tested.

"When we tested, the keyboard improved efficiency by 15 percent to 27 percent," Wilson said. "And the longer people used it, the more their productivity increased."

According to Wilson, accountants who use the R-Tab keyboard will find that they're able to finish data and number entry in a much quicker manner.

"If you use it, you're going to fall in love with it," Wilson said. "You won't be able to go back to the old keyboard."

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