The keyboard is the most common input device. It has keys for letters, numbers, symbols, and commands. You use it to type documents, enter commands, and control software. The layout most people use is QWERTY, designed in the 1870s for mechanical typewriters. It persists not because it is efficient but because it is familiar.

Keyboards come in many forms. Mechanical keyboards use individual switches with a satisfying click. Membrane keyboards are quieter and cheaper. Laptop keyboards are thin and compact. Virtual keyboards appear on touchscreens. Ergonomic keyboards split and angle to reduce strain.

Key types

• Alphanumeric: letters and numbers
• Function: F1 through F12, program-specific
• Modifier: Shift, Ctrl, Alt, Command
• Navigation: arrows, Home, End, Page Up/Down
• Numeric keypad: for data entry

Keyboards are not going away. Voice input is growing, but typing remains faster and more private for most tasks. The keyboard is a simple tool that has survived over a century of technological change.