On Mon, 19 Jun 2000 18:59:03 -0700, Steve Dirickson <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>> I had read that the keyboard configuration was put in the
>> current order,
>> because the original placement was very efficient and the
>> user could type
>> much quicker, and the old machines would jamm constantly, so
>> they placed the
>> keys in an awkward order to slow their typing speed down.
>
>A popular myth that (as is frequently the case), while wrong, contains
>a grain of truth. The "problem" of fast typists was, in fact, an
>issue. The design solution was not, however, to "slow down" fast
>typists to avoid jamming; it was to arrange the keys to minimize
>jamming of the arms activated by those keys. You'll notice that the
>most-used letters are split pretty evenly between the right and left
>hands, and the arrangement is such that many frequently-used words or
>word parts (the, and, for, man) are typed by alternating hands.
>
>
>Steve Dirickson   WestWin Consulting
>[log in to unmask]   (360) 598-6111
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I stand corrected.  Thank you for clarifying.  I will add your info to my
trivia file.

Randy Keefer