Computer keyboard

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A computer keyboard is a peripheral partially modeled after the typewriter keyboard. Keyboards are designed for the input of text and characters and also to control the operation of a computer.

A 104-key PC US English QWERTY keyboard layout
A 104-key PC US English QWERTY keyboard layout
The Dvorak Simplified Keyboard layout
The Dvorak Simplified Keyboard layout


Physically, computer keyboards are an arrangement of rectangular or near-rectangular buttons, or "keys". Keyboards typically have characters engraved or printed on the keys; in most cases, each press of a key corresponds to a single written symbol. However, to produce some symbols requires pressing and holding several keys simultaneously or in sequence; other keys do not produce any symbol, but instead affect the operation of the computer or the keyboard itself. See input method editor.

Roughly 50% of all keyboard keys produce letters, numbers or signs (characters). Other keys can produce actions when pressed, and other actions are available by the simultaneous pressing of more than one action key.

Some keyboards have a built-in smart card reader.

Contents

[edit] Designs

A foldable keyboard
A foldable keyboard

There exist a large number of different arrangements of symbols on keys. These different keyboard layouts arise mainly because different people need easy access to different symbols; typically, this is because they are writing in different languages, but specialized keyboard layouts for mathematics, accounting, and computer programming also exist.

Most of the more common keyboard layouts (QWERTY-based and similar) were designed in the era of the mechanical typewriters, so their ergonomics had to be slightly compromised in order to tackle some of the technical limitations of the typewriters. With the advent of modern electronics, this is no longer necessary. The letters were attached to levers that needed to move freely; jamming would result if commonly-used letters were placed too close to one another. QWERTY layouts and their brethren had been a de facto standard for decades prior to the introduction of the very first computer keyboard, and were primarily adopted for electronic keyboards for this reason. Alternative layouts do exist, such as the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard; however, these layouts are not in widespread use.

The number of keys on a keyboard varies from the original standard of 101 keys to the 104-key windows keyboards and all the way up to 130 keys or more, with many of the additional keys being symbol-less programmable keys that can simulate multiple such as starting a web browser or e-mail client. There also were "Internet keyboards," sold in America in the late 1990s, that replaced the function keys with pre-programmed internet shortcuts. Pressing the shortcut keys would launch a browser to go to that website.

[edit] Connection types

There are several different ways of connecting a keyboard which have evolved over the years. These include the standard AT (DIN-5) connector commonly found on pre-80486 motherboards, which was eventually replaced by the PS/2 and now USB connection. Prior to the iMac line of systems, Apple Computer used ADB, a proprietary system, for its keyboard connector.

[edit] Wireless keyboards

Wireless computer keyboards have become popular for their increased user freedom. However, wireless keyboards need batteries to work, and may pose a security problem due to the risk of eavesdropping.[1]

[edit] Alternatives

A standard keyboard is physically quite large, as each key must remain large enough to be easily pressed by fingers. Other types of keyboards have been proposed for small portable equipment where a standard keyboard is too large. One way to reduce the number of keys is to use chording, i.e. pressing several keys simultaneously. For example, the GKOS keyboard has been designed for small wireless devices. Other two-handed alternatives more akin to a game controller, such as the AlphaGrip, are also used as a way to input data and text. A relatively new type of keyboard, the I-Tech Virtual Laser Keyboard, works by projecting an image of a full size keyboard onto a surface. Sensors in the projection unit identify which key is being "pressed" and relay the signals to a computer or PDA.

[edit] Standards

In principle, computer keyboard designs are governed by the ISO/IEC 9995 international standard.

[edit] Usage

Microsoft's On-Screen Keyboard is software designed for users with limited mobility.
Microsoft's On-Screen Keyboard is software designed for users with limited mobility.

In normal usage, the keyboard is used to type text into a word processor, text editor, or any other textbox.

In modern computers the interpretation of keypresses is generally left to the software. Modern keyboards distinguish each physical key from every other and report all keypresses to the controlling software. This flexibility is not often taken advantage of and it usually does not matter, for example, whether the left or right shift key is held down in conjunction with another character, even though they are coded as completely separate keys.

[edit] Commands

A keyboard is also used to type commands in a computer. One famous example on the PC is the Ctrl+Alt+Del combination. With current versions of Windows, this brings up a menu-window including options for handling currently-running applications and shutting down the computer, amongst other things. Under Linux, MS-DOS and some older versions of Windows, Ctrl+Alt+Del performs either a 'cold' or 'warm' reboot. On mac operating systems, pressing cmd+option+esc brings up a force quit dialog.

[edit] Games

A keyboard is one of the primary methods of control in computer games. For instance, the arrow keys or a group of letters resembling the pattern of the arrow keys, like WASD, can be used for movement of a game character. In many games, keys can be configured to the user's preferences. Alphabet keys are also sometimes used to perform actions starting with that letter. (e.g. pressing e to eat in NetHack). Keyboards are less than ideal when many keys are to be pressed at once, as the simple keyboard circuitry means that only a certain number of keys will register at one time. A common side effect of this is called "phantom key blocking". Due to the circuit design on older keyboards, pressing three keys simultaneously sometimes resulted in a 4th keypress being registered. Modern keyboards prevent this from happening by blocking the 3rd key in certain key combinations, but while this prevents phantom input, it also means that when two keys are depressed simultaneously, many of the other keys on the keyboard will not respond until one of the two depressed keys is lifted. Better keyboards are designed so that this happens infrequently in office programs, but it remains a problem in games even on expensive keyboards, due to wildly different and/or configurable key/command layouts in different games.

[edit] How it works

The following briefly describes a "dome-switch" keyboard (sometimes incorrectly referred to as a membrane keyboard), the most common type in use today:

  1. When a key is pressed, it pushes down on a rubber dome sitting beneath the key. A conductive contact on the underside of the dome touches (and hence connects) a pair of conductive lines on the circuit below.
  2. This bridges the gap between them and allows current to flow (i.e. the circuit goes from open to closed), changing the signal strength.
  3. A scanning signal is emitted by the chip along the pairs of lines to all the keys. When the signal in one pair becomes different, the chip generates a "make code" corresponding to the key connected to that pair of lines.
  4. The code generated is sent to the computer either via a keyboard cable (using on-off electrical pulses to represent bits) or over a wireless connection.
  5. A chip inside the computer receives the signal bits and decodes them into the appropriate keypress. The computer then decides what to do on the basis of the key pressed (e.g. display a character on the screen, or perform some action).

Other types of keyboards function in a similar manner, the main differences being how the individual key-switches work. For more on this subject refer to the article on keyboard technology.

[edit] Customization of keyboard

Sometimes, it is desired to customize the layout of a keyboard or remap the keys.

Under Linux this can be done with xmodmap, under Windows there are several software for this purpose:

[edit] Keys on a computer keyboard

[edit] See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Brandt, Andrew. "Privacy Watch: Wireless Keyboards That Blab", PC World, 2003-01-29.
Game controller styles
v • d • e
Dance pad - Gamepad - Joystick - Keyboard - Light gun - Mouse - Paddle - Racing wheel - Touchscreen - Trackball - Remote - Flight yoke
v • d • e
Computer Keyboard Keys
Dead keys Compose
Modifier keys Control · Shift · Alt/Option (Apple) · AltGr · Command/Meta (MIT keyboards) · Windows · Fn (compact keyboards)
Lock keys Scroll lock · Num lock · Caps lock · Shift key
Navigation Arrow · Page scrolling (Page up/Page down) · Home/End
Editing Return/Enter · Backspace · Insert · Delete · Tab · Space bar
Misc. SysRq/Print screen · Break/Pause · Escape · Menu · Numeric keypad · Function · Power management (Power, Sleep, Wake) · Language input
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