While we're on this subject, here's a shift pattern diagram for the transmissions we had back when I started out:
Once you got used to shifting one of these it was possible to shift it just as smoothly as any automatic.
2 hand shifts were required to keep the engines of that time in the proper RPM range of 1500 to 2100 RPM (yes, you put your left arm through the steering wheel and shifted the compound with your left hand while shifting the main with your right hand, without using the clutch of course).