Tamil typing test

How this test counts

The test counts 5 characters as one word: each letter, vowel sign, pulli (்) and space is one character as Unicode stores it, so கா counts two (க and ா) and க்க three. Shift is not counted. DoTE's syllabus gives the speeds but not how it counts a Tamil word, so read your net speed beside its 30 and 45 as practice, not as an exam result.

Net speed counts only the words you typed exactly right, with the space after each. Gross speed counts everything you typed. A word is checked when you press Space after it, so a word you are still typing when the time ends does not count. A word you leave out or add counts as one mistake, and the words after it still count.

Typing Tamil on an English keyboard

Tamil 99 puts the vowels under the left hand and the consonants under the right. The home row has அ இ உ ் எ on the left and க ப ம த ந ய on the right; the pulli ் is the F key. Each consonant key types the letter with its a sound, as க.

Type a consonant, then a vowel, and the two join: க then ஆ gives கா, ம then ஐ gives மை. A consonant, then the pulli, gives a pure consonant: க். The same consonant twice puts the pulli on the first by itself: க, க gives க்க. So do the soft and hard pairs ங க, ஞ ச, ண ட, ந த, ம ப and ன ற: ந, த gives ந்த. Where two such letters must stay apart, type அ between them: ந, அ, த gives நத.

Shift + Q, W, E and R type ஸ ஷ ஜ ஹ, Shift + T types க்ஷ and Shift + F the aytham ஃ. To type Tamil 99 everywhere, add Tamil in Windows: Start > Settings > Time & language > Language & region > Add a language. Its keyboard, Tamil 99, has the same keys as this page. Hold the Windows key and press Space to switch between your keyboards.