We do not have a particular person driving the discussion though, I do not see that that would help us in any particular way.
Also, if you are not the person currently at the keyboard, you are not allowed to just take over. We used strict time boxes at first to make sure that this didn't happen, these days we are a bit more relaxed since it isn't really an issue anymore.
> The person typing should not be driving.
What's the reasoning behind this? My guess is that it's to prevent pair programming from turning into lone programming with an observer. If that's the case it wasn't a problem for our specific situation. No matter who had the keyboard, there was collaboration. Why separate the keyboard from the person who can fastest/best get the code on screen for consideration?
> Also, if you are not the person currently at the keyboard, you are not allowed to just take over. We used strict time boxes at first to make sure that this didn't happen
Why? Of course you shouldn't snatch the keyboard out of someone's hands, but such behavior should be addressed in other ways than by making rules. I suspect it's not that, but something else. Even so, I have to wonder if it's a social issue that would still be better addressed in other ways than by imposing rigid structure.
Anyway, switching when we wanted did not seem to pose any problems. If we missed out on some benefits then I'd like to know about them.