The Ultimate Fight for Art of Writing.

At first glance, the smartphone keyboard and the typewriter keyboard may seem surprisingly similar. Both use the QWERTY layout, a 19th-century invention designed not for user convenience but to prevent the typewriter’s mechanical mechanism from jamming. However, if we delve into the ways these two devices influence our interaction with text, we find they represent entirely different worlds - not only technologically, but culturally as well.

In the era of typewriters - those iconic machines whose keys clattered away in offices, newsrooms, and homes - writing was almost a ritual. Sitting down at a typewriter required a certain level of precision and discipline. Learning to type was a kind of initiation, demanding the memorization of the keyboard layout and developing the skill of "blind" typing, without looking at the keys. At the time, looking at the keyboard was considered inefficient, even unprofessional. Typing on a typewriter was mechanical, requiring a strong press on the keys, and the unmistakable “click” sound signified that the letter had been imprinted on the paper.

There was a physicality to this act - bells chimed to indicate when the carriage needed to be shifted, ribbons needed to be changed, and after a long day of typing, your hands felt the strain. Most importantly, the typist's attention was entirely focused on the text appearing on the paper. Rarely did one's eyes drift toward the keys. All the energy was devoted to the content. The keyboard itself was a transparent tool - it didn’t divert attention, didn’t offer suggestions, didn’t correct errors. Instead, everything depended on the user’s skill and focus.

The modern smartphone keyboard tells a different story. Though it may resemble the QWERTY layout on the surface, its functionality in the digital world is quite different. The smartphone, along with its keyboard, is more like an assistant than a mechanical device. Our finger gently taps the screen, while hidden algorithms predict what word we intend to type. In some cases, before we even press a key, the phone offers up a preemptive suggestion.

The critical difference lies in how these two devices engage our attention. The typewriter, as a physical tool, demanded full concentration on the task. The keyboard was merely a means, with the text as the end. In the digital world, the keyboard becomes just one of many elements of interaction. When typing on a smartphone, we rarely focus solely on writing. We often switch between apps, get notifications, browse messages, watch videos. Our attention is constantly scattered. The smartphone keyboard, unlike the typewriter, doesn’t require full focus, yet it also doesn’t offer the moments of pause that once came from the physical act of typing.

The history of the QWERTY keyboard is itself a fascinating example of technological evolution. Invented in the 1870s by Christopher Sholes, it was designed to slow typists down, preventing the machine’s mechanism from jamming. Paradoxically, this layout became the standard that persists to this day, even in a world where mechanical limitations no longer exist.

Today, the smartphone keyboard is not a tool we need to master in the same way as the typewriter. On the contrary - it adapts to us. Autocorrect, word suggestions, even features that predict what we’re about to say, all change how we think about writing. We are no longer just authors of content, but also co-creators with a machine that whispers what we might want to say. This partnership with technology both speeds up the writing process and, in a sense, reduces our control over it.

In the 1960s, when typewriters reigned in offices, it was unimaginable that a time would come when our devices would predict our thoughts. Back then, the challenge was mastering technique - now, the challenge is managing our attention in a world that constantly demands it. In offices decades ago, you could picture rows of typewriters clicking away, with people bent over their work in full concentration. Today, the smartphone follows us everywhere - at home, at work, on the tram, on vacation. And it always wants more: more of our attention, more of our time.

The typewriter was a symbol of an era of focus - a tool that, despite its limitations, allowed full immersion in the process of creation. The smartphone is a symbol of the multitasking age, where writing is just one of many streams of information flowing through our daily lives.

These differences in how the two devices function reveal how technology shapes not only our work but also our way of thinking about it. The typewriter forced us to reflect on every word, every letter, every keypress. The smartphone, in its ubiquity and convenience, makes our writing faster but also more superficial.