知識社｜冷知識 03｜為什麼鍵盤是 QWERTY 排列？ Why Is the Keyboard Arranged in QWERTY?
每天使用電腦、手機或平板打字時，都會接觸到 QWERTY 鍵盤，但你有沒有想過，英文字母為什麼不是依照 ABCDEF 順序排列？原來這種設計已有超過一百五十年的歷史。
Almost everyone types on a QWERTY keyboard every day, yet few stop to wonder why the letters aren’t arranged alphabetically. The answer dates back to the earliest typewriters and remains part of modern technology today.
中文版本
如果第一次接觸英文鍵盤，相信不少人都會疑惑，為什麼鍵盤上的字母排列如此混亂，既不是 ABCDE，也找不到明顯規律。其實，QWERTY 這個名稱正是來自鍵盤最上排左邊六個英文字母 Q、W、E、R、T、Y，因此這種排列方式被稱為 QWERTY 鍵盤。它的歷史可以追溯到十九世紀，當時美國發明家克里斯托弗．拉森．肖爾斯（Christopher Latham Sholes）設計早期打字機。最初的打字機採用接近字母順序排列，但在實際使用時發現了一個嚴重問題。當打字員快速輸入時，相鄰的金屬打字桿經常同時升起，容易互相碰撞並卡住，導致需要停下來重新整理，不但降低效率，也影響使用體驗。為了解決這個問題，肖爾斯不斷調整字母的位置，把經常一起出現的字母盡量分開，例如 TH、ER、ED 等常見組合，使金屬打字桿不容易同時碰撞，從而減少卡鍵情況。1873年，這種改良設計獲得雷明頓公司採用，推出商業化打字機後迅速流行，QWERTY 排列亦逐漸成為業界標準。隨著打字課程普及，大量秘書、文員及打字員都接受 QWERTY 訓練，形成龐大的使用群體。即使後來機械打字機被電子鍵盤及電腦取代，新的設備仍然沿用相同排列，因為改變布局意味著全球數以億計的使用者需要重新學習，成本極高。其實，後來亦曾出現效率更高的鍵盤，例如 Dvorak Keyboard 及 Colemak，它們透過分析英文使用頻率，把常用字母放在最容易按到的位置，希望減少手指移動，提高打字速度與舒適度。雖然不少研究指出它們具有一定優勢，但由於 QWERTY 已成為全球標準，無論學校教育、企業設備、軟件設計還是使用者習慣，都圍繞著這套排列建立，因此始終未能全面取代。今天，不論是桌上電腦、手提電腦、提款機、收銀系統，甚至智能手機的虛擬鍵盤，大多仍然採用 QWERTY 排列。這個誕生於一百五十多年前、原本只是為了解決機械卡鍵問題的設計，竟然一直沿用至人工智能與智慧裝置時代，成為科技史上一個最成功、最具影響力的設計之一。
English Version
If you’ve ever looked at a keyboard and wondered why the letters seem to be scattered randomly instead of following the alphabet, you’re not alone. The familiar QWERTY layout gets its name from the first six letters on the top row and has been the standard keyboard arrangement for well over a century. Its story begins in the late nineteenth century with inventor Christopher Latham Sholes, one of the pioneers behind the modern typewriter. Early typewriters relied on mechanical arms that swung upward to strike paper. When typists pressed two nearby keys in quick succession, those metal arms could collide and jam, forcing the user to stop and untangle the machine. To reduce these interruptions, Sholes experimented with different layouts, separating letter combinations that frequently appeared together in English. This reduced the chance of neighboring type bars striking simultaneously and improved the reliability of the machine. In 1873, the Remington Company adopted the design for its commercial typewriters, helping QWERTY spread across offices, schools, and businesses around the world. As generations of typists learned the layout, it became deeply embedded in education and professional training. Even after mechanical typewriters disappeared, computers inherited the same arrangement because millions of people already knew how to use it. Replacing the layout would have required enormous retraining and changes to hardware, software, and educational systems. Over the years, engineers introduced alternatives such as the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard and Colemak, both designed to improve typing efficiency by placing frequently used letters under the strongest fingers and minimizing hand movement. While these layouts have loyal supporters and offer measurable benefits for some users, they have never displaced QWERTY because the existing ecosystem is simply too widespread. Today, the QWERTY layout appears on desktop computers, laptops, smartphones, tablets, payment terminals, and countless digital devices. What began as a practical solution to a mechanical engineering problem has evolved into one of the world’s most enduring technological standards. Every time we type an email, send a message, or search the web, we are still using a keyboard arrangement created to solve a problem from the age of mechanical typewriters.
總評
QWERTY 並非最快、最完美的鍵盤排列，而是歷史、技術與使用習慣共同塑造出的標準，它見證了科技如何從機械時代一路延續到數位時代。
Summary
The QWERTY keyboard survives not because it is perfect, but because history, technology, and human habits made it the global standard. It remains one of the longest-lasting designs in modern computing.
