The personal computer has become technology’s most delightful miracles. Nowadays, practically everything is just a mouse click away; however the keyboard still remains the main input device between you and your computer. At the dawn of 64-bit computing and digital imaging where computer speeds are measured in gigahertz, people have also become “Keyboard Krazy”!
A computer keyboard is the main input device in most PCs, modeled after the typewriter’s keyboard. A keyboard as the name suggests, is a board with many buttons or keys on it, with letters from A-Z, numbers from 0-9 and keys like the up and down arrow engraved on them. Keyboards are essentially designed for input of characters, numbers, text, and to control the operation of the computer.
So what actually happens when you press a key? Here is brief note on how most keyboards work:
The key matrix is a grid of circuits underneath the keyboard; each circuit is broken or open at a point below each key.
When you press a key, it presses a switch or a rubber dome sitting beneath the key, completing or closing the circuit, hence allowing a small amount of current to flow through.
A signal is now emitted and sent to the processing unit of the computer via ports, cables et al or via wireless connections that is by infrared beams, radio frequencies et al. This signal is sent through the cable using electric pulses.
A chip inside the computer receives such signals and decodes them into the appropriate key press. The computer then decides what to do on the basis of the key pressed (for example, display a character on the screen, or perform some action like opening the file menu).
Please note: When you press and hold a key, the processor recognizes it as the equivalent of pressing a key repeatedly.
The layout of a keyboard is the way the keys are arranged on the keyboard or the way they are connected to the computer.
Here are some standard layouts that you might come across:
2.1 - QWERTY Keyboard
They are also known as the Sholes keyboard, the QWERTY keyboard was invented by Christopher Sholes who invented the
typewriter. The QWERTY keyboard is named after the five letters Q, W, E, R, T and Y keys which are located at the top left
side of the keyboard. At present, the QWERTY keyboard is the most commonly found and used computer keyboards.
2.2 - Dvorak Keyboard
This keyboard was developed by Dr. August Dvorak as a solution to the outdated QWERTY keyboard. Because this keyboard
has all the vowels and punctuation marks on the left side and consonants on the right side, the layout of the keys on
this keyboard, makes it easier and faster to type as compared to other keyboards. However, this keyboard didn’t become
popular since people where already used to typing on the QWERTY keyboards.
2.3 - AZERTY Keyboard
This keyboard layout is mostly used in France and neighboring countries. A, Z, E, R, T and Y are the letters on
the top left, alphabetic row. AZERTY is similar to the QWERTY layout, except that Q and A is swapped, Z and W are
swapped and M is in the middle row instead of the bottom one.
2.4 - Chiclet Keyboard
This keyboard has small, flat rectangular or lozenge-shaped rubber or plastic keys that look like pieces of chewing gum
(Chiclets). They were originally introduced with IBM PC jr. Vendors unanimously liked these keyboards because they were
cheap, and a lot of early portable and laptop products got launched using them. Customers, however, rejected this idea
with almost equal unanimity, and Chiclets is now not often seen on anything larger than a digital watch.
2.5 - Ergonomic Keyboard
Ergonomically designed keyboards often, have unusually sculpted or contoured shapes and a space age look (because they
are not in proper geometric shape like a rectangle). These keyboards are designed in such a way that by accommodating the
natural position of the hands, they help to avoid repetitive stress injury to the wrists, for example carpal tunnel
syndrome. Some of these keyboards come with foot pedals to spread the work to other limbs; some are designed to take
advantage of the strength in the thumbs. Most ergonomically designed keyboards have a "split" keyboard design, which
looks like the keyboard is broken in two. Many of these keyboards can slide apart or even tilt at angles. Anyone who
uses the computer a lot and/or has any hand and wrist strain will benefit from an ergonomic keyboard. Simple ergonomic
keyboards can be found costing not much more than a standard keyboard.
2.6 - Membrane Keyboard
This keyboard has a transparent, plastic shell that covers all the keys. Hence, the keys have very little movement, but
are sensitive to pressure applied on them. The advantage of membrane keyboards is that the covering protects the components
inside the keyboard from dirt; however, it is difficult to type accurately and quickly.
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