Why is there a ridge on the keyboard buttons "F" and "J"?

Ever wondered why is there a raised bar on the keyboard buttons F and J? Well even if you don’t know the answer, you still deserve the credit for noticing.  As for me, I am not sure whether I noticed or conveniently disregard the raised ridge on both keys altogether.

This further sparked my curiosity what is the purpose? It can’t be a coincidence that every keyboard manufacturer decided to introduce a ridge on these exact two keys.

Touch typing and muscle memory

The answer: Touch typing.  The ridges allow touch-typers to locate their fingers on the keyboard. These amazing breed of people are able to type without looking at the keyboard -a skill that can be acquired through muscle memory. In touch typing, the ridges are used to position the initial placement of the hands on the keyboard.

In fact, if you are a frequent computer user, you might have some degree of muscle memory too! Just try it! Try typing the first sentence of this paragraph without looking at the keyboard. You are able to do it right? Now try to figure out where the individual letters are on the keyboard. You might have some difficulty in identifying all the letters. This is an example of our muscle memory utilized in typing.

Now with these ridges, blind people now are able to use them as a guide to type accurately.

"F" and "J" on IPAD and Android

With new gadgets coming up, did you ever notice that these ridges appear on f and j keys on the IPAD keyboard as well? Though the ridges are useless on a flat touchscreen, I think it is no coincidence but really the result of meticulous design from Apple. Is there also such a feature on the Android keyboard? I don’t recall seeing one…