Keyboards suck, that’s a fact. There are so many factors that make your keyboard being really non ergonomic and not comfortable that it really makes me mad.
Qwerty (as well as Azerty and all the layouts derived from it)
The layout used in almost every country using Latin letters is based on qwerty. A few letters are swapped or changed for each country, but globally the letters are quite the same. This layout is really NOT good at all. It’s like letters have been dropped randomly, there is absolutely no intelligence in where each letter is on the keyboard, except for the fact that all the letters to type ‘typewriter’ are on the upper line, which is only useful if you are a typewriter salesman from the 19th century.
Physical keys disposition
Keys from each row are shifted left by a third of a key width. This was useful when the typewriter had actual type bars to write letters on the paper, but since it’s no longer an issue with computers, PLEASE, make the keys aligned from one row to the others so that we can move our fingers simply upwards or downwards from the home row.
Learn to type
Learn to touch type on an ergonomic layout, preferably adapted to your language. There are many out there : Dvorak, Colemak, Bépo, Workman, etc… Your hands will thank you in the end, and you will never have to watch your hands type again, eyes on the screen where things matter.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Latin-script_keyboard_layouts
Why nothing changes
Because people are lazy or clueless, because governments don’t give a damn and because manufacturers just don’t care what they sell.
Save yourself!
Choose an ergonomic layout and learn to type on it. It’s going to be really frustrating for the first few months but you won’t regret it. It is so much worth the investment.
Consider buying an ergonomic keyboard
Once you learned how to touch type on an ergonomic layout you might consider switching to an ergonomic keyboard. That keyboard will probably have orthogonal keys and have two separate halves. You might want to use mechanical switches for a better typing experience. I personally use an Ergodox I built myself and a Model 01.
Do it for the kids!
If not for you, think about future generations. We have to do something about keyboards for them, so that they stop typing on something without any intelligent design dating from 2 centuries back in time.
