The first patent for a writing machine was awarded in Europe in 1714, but the real flurry to invent a practical typewriter occurred between 1829 and 1870. During that period, inventors in both Europe and the U.S. patented many different styles of typewriters. Key arrangement on the first typewriters was in alphabetical order. The sluggish bars attached to each key often jammed, prompting Christopher Latham Sholes to reorganize the keyboard in 1873. Sholes researched which letters were commonly used together, and placed those keys far apart on the keyboard. The two-finger typing technique used at the time allowed sufficient time for the bars to fall back in place before the next key was pressed. Although the ten-finger technique eventually dominated, the QWERTY arrangement of keys remains to this day. |
