Why Are the Letters on a Keyboard All Mixed Up?
The QWERTY keyboard may look confusing but the layout of the letters has been around for more than 120 years. Over the years, others have tried to develop different layouts but the QWERTY layout remains the universally accepted keyboard.
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History
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The typewriter was patented in 1878 by C.L. Sholes. The patent included a drawing for the QWERTY key layout that is used today. The original keyboard prototype, developed in 1868, placed the letters in alphanumeric order.
Significance
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The letters on the typewriter are attached to a long metal lever that places the letter on the paper. When arranged alphanumerically, the typewriter lever keys would frequently collide. The QWERTY layout was developed so that common letters were placed farther apart to give the lever keys room to move.
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Benefits
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Once typists were familiar with the odd layout of the QWERTY style keyboard, their speed and efficiency increased.
Fun Fact
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The only modification to the original design was the addition of the "shift" keys. The rest of the design remains the same.
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References
- Photo Credit Keys on a computer keyboard spell out the word fraud image by Antony McAulay from Fotolia.com
