Why do we still use qwerty keyboards?

[SamuelT]

'Cause replacing it with an APC-keyboard would mean that every single keyboard would need replacement. So first you have to create massive amounts of Keyboards to supply the demand, which is very expensive, and where there are alot of keyboards (Think: High-Schools, Major Corperations) those institutions would have to pay major valuta to get all new ones.

Just stick with the QWERTY. It's o-so easy.

 

[Wintermoot]

this lay out was born out of necesity and just stuck

 

[Samurai Goomba]

Qwerty rules. I can type about as fast as I can think with this thing.

 

[Skarvig]

The typewriter story is true. This layout was used to minimize stucking. And it doesn't actually make you write faster if you have a ABC keyboard.

 

[Monocle Man]

QWERTY? Bah, we all know AZERTY is the superior lay-out. How dare anyone belittle us!
Developers that only allow movements in their games with WASD should burn for all eternity.
Why no ZQSD?

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

Today I saw my little cousin typing on the keyboard in frustration. She does know her alphabet but still hasn't learned how to properly type. In frustration she asked me why do we still have QWERTY keyboards, and to that I had no real response.

After researching it I realized it was because typewriters would jam a lot with a ABC layout so QWERTY was designed to minimize this. Now escapist, I for one can say I have never used a typewriter and am pretty sure they aren't a common occurrence at this point.

While it would be a hard change I feel that it would help in the long run. Gaming might have some troubles since we all are used to WASD to move but I think we can adjust. You do see ABC layouts on many devices nowadays but many keyboards still stick with this confusing system.

Does the escapist have an answer for this?

EDIT: I have noticed most of you are saying stuff that had to do with typewriters. Let us not forget that another thing QWERTY was famous for is slowing us down when we type. Is that a good thing? This is the 21st century using a 19th century technique on a obviously obsolete system. I believe we need a change to take advantage of computers and not typewriters.

I know what you're saying about typewriters but it is because of that that we use qwerty keyboards because it has become standard and everyone uses it.

Yes it is awkward for new people but everyone else in the world has become used to it.

 

[Gmano]

It's an entrenched system, same reason we don't all conver to RNP, we're just not used to it

the italian political party?

 

[Lemon Of Life]

I use AZERTY, I have a french keyboard. We use it because it's just so awesome. You can't understand how amazing it feels unless you use it. It's like crack with sex put together.

 

[Soxafloppin]

Nah im used to it now!

 

[Lucifron]

Nah im used to it now!

This is exactly why we still use it. Why do some countries still use miles, pounds, feet etc...? Because everyone is too used to them for any new system to be implemented.

 

[r0qu3]

Pah QWERTY....

....i use the good old QWERTZ, way better..;P

 

[-Orgasmatron-]

Don't fix what isn't broken.

 

[I Framed OJ]

Isn't QWERTY also easier to get vowels in the layout, so more common letters fit to our fongers or something? I have no source and am only guessing, but it seems to maybe make sense?
Please correct me if I am wrong.

 

[Cyberjester]

Today I saw my little cousin typing on the keyboard in frustration. She does know her alphabet but still hasn't learned how to properly type. In frustration she asked me why do we still have QWERTY keyboards, and to that I had no real response.

After researching it I realized it was because typewriters would jam a lot with a ABC layout so QWERTY was designed to minimize this. Now escapist, I for one can say I have never used a typewriter and am pretty sure they aren't a common occurrence at this point.

While it would be a hard change I feel that it would help in the long run. Gaming might have some troubles since we all are used to WASD to move but I think we can adjust. You do see ABC layouts on many devices nowadays but many keyboards still stick with this confusing system.

Does the escapist have an answer for this?

EDIT: I have noticed most of you are saying stuff that had to do with typewriters. Let us not forget that another thing QWERTY was famous for is slowing us down when we type. Is that a good thing? This is the 21st century using a 19th century technique on a obviously obsolete system. I believe we need a change to take advantage of computers and not typewriters.

A few experiments haven't shown a difference between typing speeds on keyboards that aren't QWERTY. But it's the way things are, if it weren't the way things are it wouldn't be the way things are. ... lol. Factories are set up to make QWERTY keyboards, they aren't going to change any time soon. It is possible you could type faster on a keyboard that had a different system, but if you've grown up on a QWERTY, you aren't going to want to switch if your job involves typing.


'Sides, WASD will always have a special place, anything else would just suck. =P

I vote that we leave keyboards the way they are and work on mental manipulation or virtual reality instead.

 

[Fudgo]

I remember my IT teacher giving a lecture on this once.

On the original typewriters, the keyboard layout was different, and that layout allowed people to naturally type pretty fast. However, the fast typing often caused the keys to jam, so the keys were rearranged to the QWERTY position so people would type slower to minimalise jamming (I can't remember exactly why QWERTY slows people down, something to do with how the fingers worked or something I think). But since we're all so used to the QWERTY keyboard now it doesn't really matter anymore.

Thats pretty much the history. But now that we are using keyboards and not typewriters. Can you not argue that typing faster is what we want? QWERTY slows us down, that is bad. Slowing down typists is not a good thing in my opinion.

That's what my teacher said as well, so he uses a keyboard with a different layout.

Also, if we changed layouts now, it would be hell trying to make everyone get used to the new layout.

1. Wrong. QWERTY was not designed to slow people down. It was designed to reduce jams whilst typing at speed. Read the wiki page. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QWERTY]

That pretty much brings down your entire argument, doesn't it? Still, even if QWERTY is not the most efficient layout, it is the standard. People are very fast with it. I myself can type quite fast, about 90 words per minute if I recall correctly. It would cause chaos if you were to attempt to change it, and it wouldn't bring any real benefit besides increasing the maximum typing speed from whatever it is now to whatever it might be with the new system.

It probably won't be much higher, because most people type comparatively slowly.

I said it slowed people down in order to reduce jamming, so I'm still half-right at least.

I still blame my teacher.

 

[Diplodocus462]

The world typing speed record was achieved with Dvorak (not all capitals, you can't find dvorak written on a dvorak keyboard). It is a keyboard layout that is designed for maximum efficiency, minimal strain. The middle row has the most common letters, where they are easiest to reach, and the bottom row has the least common letters. You can in fact choose your keyboard layout in windows to dvorak, (of course you would hae to touch type since the keys would still say QWERTY).

The QWERTY keyboard, on the other hand was designed to put commonly used letter pairs far apart, in order to prevent those mallet things that hit the page on a typewriter from being next to each other when they hit. It was designed with no efficiency in mind. The primary reason that it is in such wide use is the same reason that America still uses metric, that people still use Windows: The changeover is too hard for most people to bother.

Let's be clear here: QWERTY was absolutely NOT optimised for the typist. Who wants to press 'e' with their left middle finger? And we really need 'j' as the easiest to reach letter... just loving the easy-reach semicolon too; what the hell?

Anecdotally, everyone I know who has switched to Dvorak has said that it improved their typing speed and reduced RSI.

And guys, WASD would still be in the same place, it would just be different letters...

 

[NuclearPenguin]

Don't fix what isn't broken.

I dont even fix what is broken..

 

[quiet_samurai]

Oh god, I would be totally non functioning if they changed it. I still have to look at my fingers sometimes, and I have been typing since I was about 15.

 

[jthm]

Because changing at this point would be a tremendous waste of effort, given that most adults who use computers already know how to type on a QWERTY board