Qwerty - why?

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Solution
bambiboom


proon,

The first typing keyboards were the ones used for the first tape read/ write Morse telegraph keyboards and they were A > Z. The QWERTY layout was the result of the first typewriters (1890-1900?) tendency of the type levers sticking together on common, adjacent letter combinations. That is, typing, E / F or M / N with adjacent levers converging on the same point would jam them together. It's possible to use that design, but speed was limited by the precision necessary to cleanly start and stop each movement The QWERTY arrangement also involved letter frequency- in English we type in order of frequency : E> T A O I N S R H D L U...
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proon,

The first typing keyboards were the ones used for the first tape read/ write Morse telegraph keyboards and they were A > Z. The QWERTY layout was the result of the first typewriters (1890-1900?) tendency of the type levers sticking together on common, adjacent letter combinations. That is, typing, E / F or M / N with adjacent levers converging on the same point would jam them together. It's possible to use that design, but speed was limited by the precision necessary to cleanly start and stop each movement The QWERTY arrangement also involved letter frequency- in English we type in order of frequency : E> T A O I N S R H D L U. Letter frequency is very powerful in another way as one of the principal method of breaking codes.

I use to play with the family's 1949 Underwood as a kid and I tried on purpose to get the levers to all collide in a bunch.

The QWERTY arrangement doesn't make any sense on a computer of course, and I think a much better arrangement would be to have the letters arranged by frequency of use-. but, hundreds of millions of people would have to relearn typing and billions of working hours would be lost!

Cheers,

BambiBoom

> On Dell SK-8135

 
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Solution
I used to try and mess up our family typewriter too. Hah good fun!
And there you have the simple truth - qwerty makes no sense on a computer - it just makes everything more difficult than it needs to be.
 
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How is any other layout 'easier'?
 
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Easier to learn for starters.
I've been using keyboards for 40 years and I still wouldn't be able to write out the order of keys from memory - although I would get QWERTY easily enough. And before you say it, no, I'm not stupid (all the time).
 
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Bambiboom nailed it, with mechanical typewriters they had to organize the keys based on frequently used letters that appeared together to avoid constantly having 2 levers next to one another jamming. Oddly proon has a point, I couldn't sit there and write out every letter on the keyboard if given a blank keyboard and yet I manage to type just fine without looking at the keys - so apparently on some level I'm quite aware of where the keys are located including other common used keys like shifts and backspaces etc. I can do it without thinking, but when consciously thinking about it I stumble. Go figure.

Sometimes it's about what works. Internal combustion engines haven't changed much over the years in their foundation. Why go through all the trouble to reinvent the wheel? Sometimes the old saying 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' is just as good as 'an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure'. They've tried all different sorts of keyboards and all it does is confuses people and trips them up. Everything from changing the key assignments to split keyboards, wave keyboards, funky sphere shaped things like a combination of mouse/keyboard with the keys arranged in goofy locations - none of them caught on.

If someone is having trouble on a qwerty keyboard I highly doubt an alternative keyboard would be beneficial. It means they need to learn the skill of typing. There's no real shortcut to progress (though many people are hellbent to find one). Look at exercise machines. Everything from big springs to electronic pulse machines to jiggling mechanical 'belts', diet pills out the wazoo, you name it. You know what works? Activities that burn more calories than the person is taking in. Period. For a solution so simple, the reason it's such a complex problem? Laziness. It's like any other skill, if someone is brand new at something like mechanical work, tightening bolts etc it won't speed them along the path any better handing them a box end wrench, open end wrench, line wrench, socket, air ratchet, etc. It's an obstacle of learning the fundamentals and once that's achieved the rest becomes easier.

Back to typing, I may not type 'properly' as in my fingers aren't perfectly aligned to the technically correct 'home' keys - but with practice and regular usage, my own way of typing works well and rarely do I have to reorient my fingers. Practice is key (no pun intended) 😛
 
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synful,

Keyboards in general are interesting in the way a set configuration can quite quickly generate a strong spatial conditioning- a mind / body memory. Brains- not only Humans- are very pattern- oriented as the result of the evolution of fundamental pattern recognition, probably derived from threat assessment- comparing sensory input of current events with memories of earlier sequences that hurt! For this to be protective, it has to happen as almost instantaneous reaction.

Thinking of a piano keyboard, many people can play from memory, music with thousands of notes, and with eyes closed. Sight reading is even more amazing as the person has not previously developed the sequence / pattern of that piece- it's that instant pattern recognition and mind / body spatial coordination at work.

It seems a bit odd, as the idea of pushing a button to make something more complex or a larger scale to happen elsewhere seems so modern, but keyboards are very old, the first control devices, traceable to the first organ the Hydraulis of the 3rd Century.

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/278257/hydraulis

Pipe organs were the most complex machines in the World (along with ships) until the 19th Century and there were 11th-12th Century organs with 10,000 pipes. I think people didn't wear underwear until the late 18th or early 19th C, so the keyboard was invented before underwear!

So, keyboards are old, old things, and Humans seem to be pre-wired to use them.

Cheers,

BambiBoom

My motto: "Why use one word when twenty will do just as well?"

PS: I'm particular about computer keyboards and from my 2006 Dell Precision to 2014 HP z420, I use a Dell SK-8135. Does anyone else have a strong predilection for a particular keyboard?


 
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I typically just use budget keyboards like the logitech k200 I think it is or right now I'm using a microsoft 600. Nothing fancy. I don't care for low profile laptop type keys and my all time favorite was probably an old ibm mechanical. Not really fond of the newer membrane keyboards only because they tend to wear out quickly and keys become loose and 'rattle' some. Not to mention I must type a lot since the so called 'laser' etched keys still seem to lose their numbers and letters after awhile.

To give an idea, my keys came with a sort of textured plastic. Most are worn smooth and the spacebar where I tend to hit it all the time not only has a smooth worn spot there's actually an indentation from wear to the plastic lol. I just replace them every couple of years with another $20-30 kb and I'm good to go. The wear issues are why I don't bother investing in expensive kb's (anything over $50).
 
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That's what I find, somewhat, though I think I glance down a bit. Not only that, but I notice that I type about science much quicker than anything else.

But I'm sure it would all be better on an alphabetical keyboard.
 
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If you learned on a particular key layout, that is what you will know and prefer.
Most people (in western countries) learned on a QWERTY.

It's not any easier or harder. That is what you learned from the beginning.

Visualize a blank keyboard
Now imagine A2Z layout on that keyboard
Quick....which one is the "G" key ?
 
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Actually that was pretty easy to visualise.

 
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