A brief history of the computer keyboard

History Of computer Keyboard

The first with a modern layout would end up being  the forerunner to one of the most popular communication tools of the 21st century because even though in 1874 typing device that assigns.

QWERTY keyboard layout and Dvorak keyboard layout

One letter to each key wasn't exactly the most brilliant idea in history, that title clearly belongs to the cinnamon bun Scholz's typewriter was notable for introducing the now-ubiquitous QWERTY layout.

The 1930s Dvorak keyboard is better others say it too is overrated whether it's the best system or not QWERTY isn't going anywhere anytime soon how you type it's more important than.

They showed up in this pattern this 1860 a typewriter looks weird too but it was the start of something the inventor did.

Christopher Latham Sholes, he looked like a typewriter Santa Claus and he kept going in 1870 he developed a pattern like this, as of 1873, he'd come up with a keyboard that looked a lot like QWERTY.

Christopher Latham Sholes

QWERTY was designed other options were even still around 1890 like the Merritt typewriter, you moved this handle to the right spot for your letter and pressed out the letters that weren't in QWERTY.

This was effective supposedly because it kept letters that were commonly used together away from each other to prevent the mechanical arms of the typewriter from hitting each other.

QWERTY along with the numbers the only weirdness is that M next to the L and the C and X are flipped compared to a contemporary keyboard the company that made Remington typewriter was soon sending out sales packets with the QWERTY.

 

In the 1870s it's almost a hundred forty years old yet it's still standard many respect the definition of overrated and it turns out that this little keyboard is the subject of intense debate and a few real explanations that might surprise you including an old-fashioned cartel.

E and R are placed together in lots of words and in fact, the original design had a period.

Where the R key is today but whatever the reason for this qwerty typewriters became very popular

This keyboard became widespread in the early 20th century so it wasn't surprising then that when an actual computer like the 30-ton ENIAC started popping onto the scene.

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In the 1940s these same teleprinters often ended up getting used for data input with that same QWERTY layout setting the stage for the now-familiar keyboard layout to be integrated into later machines.

 

Telegraph arranged the keys like a piano keyboard or look at Hanson's writing ball from 1865 people's fingers pecked.

At this thing, the letters varied perversion.

That weighed less than an entire family of elephants in the 1960s video terminals started becoming popular.

These typically included keyboards that allowed users to more quickly and easily manipulate data on a screen instead of using cards or paper tape like those earlier teleprinters that were adapted for the use of computers.

 

These terminals looked like full-fledged computers were usually just a monitor and keyboard combo that had to be plugged in to a larger size system however since it was much easier to type than operating a computer by flipping a bunch of switches on the front.

Most computers featured keyboards of some fashion by the early 1980s and we even started seeing some of the first organ ama keyboards in the late 70s with companies like a lot Ron seriously in a way that led to some very interesting designs and it was a period of great innovation.

Under the hood to many early keyboards used key switches that were pretty different from what you're probably typing on right now including ultrasonic switches that actually listened to the different vibrations of each key would make as it was pressed.

 

 This one was a bit more common once that used magnets that got close to a pair of metal pieces causing them to come into contact with each other.

 The key was pushed down these were called reed switches and while this concept is actually still in use today in applications like switching off a laptop when you close the lid they proved to be too fragile and inaccurate for keyboards so a couple of alternatives designs quickly replaced reed switches one was the familiar membrane.

 Which works by placing a metal layer under each key that directly contacts traces on the keyboard circuit board, when a key is pressed down this design is both inexpensive and resistant to debris making it very common on cheaper keyboards today another was a technology that IBM patented in 1978.

A spring-loaded key switch called a buckling spring these puppies also worked by direct contact in that pressing down caused two pieces of metal to touch but they proved to be not only extremely durable but also a pleasure to type on.

Subjectively listened to so while not the first mechanical switch buckling spring switch has gained enormous popularity thanks to its inclusion on the model s keyboard that came with the original IBM PC in 1980.

Later the model M which is still beloved by keyboard enthusiasts today for its high build quality and trademark springy sound and not to be outdone in the mechanical switch arms race German manufacturer cherry started gaining notoriety in the midnight after their switches came installed on.

 

 

Some keyboards for the Commodore Amiga and proved to be of better quality than a lot of the alternatives of course noisy heavy mechanical switches aren't always the best solution which I'm sure you the viewer can attest.

While you're trying to sleep so rubber dome keyboards were developed around the same time, these gave the user tactile feedback due to the rubber dome snapping like a suction cup but they were cheaper and quieter than their spring-loaded counterparts rubber domes have become common on chiclet-style keyboards

On laptops in the form of the lower profile scissor-switch is a variant that helps to save space this trend towards light cheap keyboards drove much of the evolution of the keyboard for the next decade.

Two with IBM having the brilliant idea to cut costs by putting stick-on letters on keycaps in 1985 rather then having a different manufacturing process for every key so fast-forward to today.

 

Basic keyboards are lightweight commodity items that can be easily found for less than 10 bucks but there's also, an enormous variety of other options out there at all price points whether you want something tricked-out with individual RGB backlighting.

Macro keys for gaming or productivity a model with optical switches for fast response times a trick we actually first saw in the early 1980s.

 The End