Cihan University of Duhok

College of Science
Department of Computer Science
First Semester

Computer Skills
(Report)

Subject: Keyboard

Student: Maher Nazir Mousa

Supervisor: Mr.Haitham Alhaji

2023-2024

|Page1
 What is a Keyboard?
A computer keyboard is an input device used to enter characters and
functions into the computer system by pressing buttons, or keys. It is the
primary device used to enter text. A keyboard typically contains keys for
individual letters, numbers and special characters, as well as keys for
specific functions. A keyboard is connected to a computer system using
a cable or a wireless connection

History of the Keyboard:

Hunt… and peck. Hunt… and peck. No, it’s not the first robin of spring out
looking for worms. It’s what most of us do when we have to type. Whether
it’s a devar Torah, a project for school or an invitation to a special event,
hardly anyone can get by without typing. And unless you put in a lot of time
learning, you’re probably like most people — hunting for the keys you need.

|Page2
Why isn’t the keyboard just in alphabetical order? Or some other order that
makes sense? Why put common letters like E and A around the edges and
less-common letters like K right in the center?

You might have heard rumors that old typewriters used to get jammed, so
they scrambled the letters on purpose to slow people down. But that’s not
the whole story….

From Handwriting to Print:

Up until the 1800s, if you needed something written, you did it by hand.
That’s how the Rambam wrote the Mishneh Torah in the 1100s, and for
most of history, there was no other way. But that changed in the 1400s
when Johannes Gutenberg invented his printing press.

The printing press used movable type. That meant you could arrange
individual letters to create whole pages. Before that, if you wanted to
print a page many times, you had to carve out all the letters (in reverse)
from wood. It’s easy to see why it was usually easier to copy the pages
out by hand!

Movable type made it fast and easy to arrange letters into sturdy metal
blocks of text that could be used over and over, making it possible to
print hundreds, or even thousands, of books, posters, and newspapers.

It’s hard to imagine how incredible this was. Before this, most homes
didn’t have a siddur or Chumash. The first Hebrew book ever printed, in
1483, was an edition of Maseches Berachos, and many printed seforim
followed soon after, including a Shulchan Aruch published in 1574
during Rav Yosef Karo’s lifetime. Soon after came printed editions with
the Rema’s commentary, suddenly making learning far more accessible.

But still, for people writing books, articles, or letters, the only way to do it
was to write them by hand.

|Page3
The QWERTY Layout:

So who chose the keyboard layout we all love to hate — and why?

The most common English keyboard layout is known as QWERTY from the
first six letters on the top row. But why didn’t Sholes just put the letters into
alphabetical order?

One legend says he created the QWERTY layout to slow typists down. To
prove it, people point to the fact that some common letter combinations are at
opposite ends of the keyboard. But if that’s true, why are ER and ED,
commonly used together, right next to each other?

Those first typewriters definitely did get jammed. Obviously, Sholes wanted to
prevent jamming if he could. But the main way he did that was not by
scrambling the keys but by having telegraph operators test typewriters and find
ways to improve the design.

One early Sholes design actually did lay the letters out in alphabetical order. But
to attract customers, he shifted the design around to be similar to layouts used
by similar machines. For instance, Morse code operators needed to be able to
easily reach the E, Z, and S keys — so those keys were placed conveniently
together.

A simpler reason was that Sholes and Remington weren’t legally allowed to use
keyboard layouts that had been patented by other companies. So they made
small changes to previous keyboards to come up with QWERTY.

Does that mean we’re stuck with QWERTY? A few people have tried to do
better. The most famous is Dvorak, patented in 1936, which places all the
vowels on the home row (the middle row). Some say it makes typing faster, but
this has never been proven. And if you learn another layout, you’ll have trouble
switching if you ever need to use a standard keyboard.

|Page4
Typewriter Evolution… and Extinction

Along with the awkward QWERTY layout, many features from those first
typewriters became universal: the round cylinder to hold the paper in place, the
carriage return to bring the writer down to the next line, and the inked ribbon
that moved along as a person typed.

But there were also continuous improvements. In 1878, Remington introduced

the Shift key; earlier models could only type in upper case.

Soon, every office, factory, school, and even many homes had typewriters.
Thomas Edison actually had invented an electric typing machine in 1872, but
the first successful electric typewriter was IBM’s Selectric in 1961, which sold
until 1986, when it became clear that typewriters didn’t have much of a future.

Today’s Keyboards:

At first, computers used heavy, mechanical keyboards (some even included a

bell that would ring if there was a problem). In contrast, today’s keyboards are
light, easy to plug in or move around, and quite standardized.

Computer keyboards borrowed some keys from typewriters, including Shift,

Caps Lock, and the Space bar and added special keys like the Control key (Ctrl
or ⌘ on Apple computers), that provide convenient access to common
functions.

Not every development has been positive. In the 1980s, trying to make a
childproof keyboard, Atari created a completely flat “membrane keyboard.”
Without the feel and sound of pressing keys, they were nearly impossible to use
and caused lots of mistakes.

Today, most computer keyboards actually are membrane keyboards — with

keys on top to make typing easier (full-sized keys on a desktop or “chiclet”
keys on a laptop). However, people who type a lot prefer keyboards with
mechanical switches to customize the keys’ pressure, feel, and sound — in
some cases making them more like typewriter keyboards!

|Page5
Four Types of Keys Chart:

1-Function Keys.

2-Numeric Keyboard.

3-Navigation Keys.

4-Control Keys.

1-Function Keys:
When it comes to function keys on a keyboard (F1 to F12), many of us
rarely use them. But there is a valid reason for them being there.

In fact, once you get to grips with them, they can become ’second
nature’ and save you heaps of time on a daily basis!

So check out our quick overview below and try a few of your own today.

F1 – Opens the Help screen for almost every program.

F2 – Allows you to rename a selected file or folder.
F3 – Opens a search feature for an application that is active at the
moment.
F4 – Alt + F4 closes the active window.
F5 – Allows you to refresh or reload the page or document window.
F6 – Moves the cursor to the address bar in most Internet browsers.
F7 – Used to spell check and grammar check a document in Microsoft
Apps (e.g. Word).
F8 – Used to access the boot menu in Windows when turning on the
computer.

|Page6
 F9 – Refreshes a document in Microsoft Word and sends and receives
emails in Outlook.
F10 – Activates the menu bar of an open application. Shift + F10 is the
same as right clicking.
F11 – Enters and exits full screen mode in Internet browsers.
F12 – Opens the Save As dialog box in Microsoft Word.

2-Numeric Keyboard:
A numeric keypad is a separate set of keys on some keyboards
that contain the numbers 0 through 9 and a decimal point
arranged as on an adding machine. Numeric keypads make it
easier to enter large amounts of numeric data.

Frequently, the keys on the numeric keyboard also serve

as cursor control keys. Their meanings, therefore, depend on
what mode the numeric keypad is in. In numeric mode, they
represent numbers; in cursor control mode , they are like arrow
keys. Keyboards that support these dual functions contain an
additional key that enables you to switch modes. The name of
this key varies — on many keyboards it is labeled Num Lock.

3-Navigation keys:

These keys are used for moving around in documents or webpages and
editing text. They include the arrow keys, Home, End, Page Up, Page
Down, Delete, and Insert.

Press this To do this

Left Arrow, Right Move the cursor or selection one space or line in the direction of the
Arrow, Up Arrow, or arrow, or scroll a webpage in the direction of the arrow.
Down Arrow

Home Move the cursor to the end of a line or move to the top of a webpage.

End Move the cursor to the end of a line or move to the bottom of a
webpage.

|Page7
Press this To do this

Ctrl + Home Move to the top of a document.

Ctrl + End Move to the bottom of a document.

Page Up Move the cursor or page up one screen.

Page Down Move the cursor or page down one screen.

Delete Delete the character after the cursor, or the selected text; in Windows,
delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin.

Insert Turn Insert mode off or on. When Insert mode is on, text that you
type is inserted at the cursor. When Insert mode is off, text that you
type replaces existing characters.

4-Control keys:

These keys are used alone or in combination with other keys to perform
certain actions. The most frequently used control keys are Ctrl, Alt, the
Windows logo key , and Esc.

Useful shortcuts

The following table lists some of the most useful keyboard shortcuts. For
a more detailed list, see Keyboard shortcuts.

Windows logo Open the Start menu

key

Alt + Tab Switch between open programs or windows.

|Page8
Alt + F4 Close the active item, or exit the active program.
Ctrl + S Save the current file or document (works in most programs).
Ctrl + C Copy the selected item.
Ctrl + X Cut the selected item.
Ctrl + V Paste the selected item.
Ctrl + Z Undo an action.
Ctrl + A Select all items in a document or window.
F1 Display Help for a program or Windows.
Windows logo Display Windows Help and Support.

key + F1

Esc Cancel the current task.

Application key Open a menu of commands related to a selection in a program.
Equivalent to right-clicking the selection.

REFERENE:

• www.support.microsoft.com

• Originally featured in Mishpacha Jr., Issue 893

• www.cloudplusit.com
• www.pcmac.com
• www.homework.study.com

|Page9