The Underappreciated Keyboard

Seraphic Single, who is about to make a blog move now that she is single no more, posted some trivia about the letters worn off her computer keyboard. My list is fairly similar to hers as to affected letters, although not quite to the same degree:

  • Completely worn off: N, unless you count a tiny sliver. It's also the only one with scratches, almost like a swipe of tiny kitten claws. I'm not sure what happened there.
  • Half worn off: H
  • Partially worn off: E, O, D, B, and M.
  • Slightly nicked: U and F

That's what two and a half years of grad school and nearly a year and a half of blogging will do to a laptop, I guess.

Which ones, if any, are missing from yours?

Comments

Cullen said…
None of my keyboards seem to last long enough to get any worn keys. My space bar looks like it has a good amount of wear.
Unknown said…
The only key on my keyboard that shows any wear at ALL is the 'N'. I wonder why that is?!

My spacebar is shiny where my thumbs sit. And the whole thing is embarrassingly filthy, so there is that.
athena said…
Funny, I was just thinking about this the other day.

Okay.

Completely worn off:

A,S,D,F,E,C,V,B,N,M

Partially worn off:

G,K,L

Why does N get worn off??
Kate P said…
Cullen--I hadn't thought to look at the space bar until you mention it.

Maggie--I'm guessing letter usage frequency for the N, but why isn't T, H, or E worn the same way? My keyboard's space bar is very shiny in spots, too, especially on the right side. Do I always space with my right thumb? Maybe more often than with the left? Never thought about that before.

Tracey--That many letters worn!? You must be some sort of mega-typist! How many wpm? And must we ask Pat and Vanna about the letter N?
nightfly said…
Also - T and E are up top, more likely to be struck with the ball of a finger than the N, which is on the bottom and therefore more likely to be hit with the nail of the index finger.

Just a guess, anyway. Considering the typing I do, I'm surprised my keyboards don't show more wear. My E and A are a little scuffed, and my C for who knows why. And, like you Kate, my spacebar is only shiny under the right thumb. Could that be a right-handed/left-handed thing, where I'm only using my dominant hand to space? It actually feels WIERD to hit the thing with my left thumb. It slows me down incredibly, I have to think about what I'm doing after every word.
Kate P said…
I think we need to hear from some lefties to see if the spacebar is worn differently on their keyboards. I'll check my mom's computer when I'm at the parents', but the keyboard might be a little too new to show a lot of wear.

I think 'Fly and Tracey have the C worn off because they type Cullen's name so much. :)
nightfly said…
I shouldn't have mae my last lead character so fond of chicken cacciatore. :)
Kate P said…
With a nicely chilled Chianti!
Lindsay said…
Completely worn off: N, M, L
Half worn off: H, K
Dave E. said…
The letters are fine, it's my index fingers that are worn down.
Kate P said…
Lindsay--I can't imagine why the letter L is worn off your keyboard!

Dave--are you a hunt-and-peck kind of typist? And do your index fingers still have fingerprints? ;)
Dave E. said…
Yeah, sort of hunt-and-peck. I do use more than just the index fingers, but not in a way any typing teacher would recognize. I prefer to think of it as jazz typing. ;)

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