qwerty v dvorak

Dvorak keyboardI haven’t completely pondered all the implications of this, but I’m sure it means something.

I’ve previously sung the praises of my favourite online store REMO, purevyors of many nifty and beautiful things.

In a recent newsletter, REMO advised that they were offering a new t shirt featuring the Dvorak keyboard.

They even provided an excellent explanation of how the QWERTY keyboard was developed, why it isn’t particularly top notch any more and how Dr August Dvorak invented a better layout in 1936.

Despite the better functionality, the Dvorak keyboard never caught on.

But that didn’t stop REMO championing it – at least in the form of a t shirt.

The latest REMO newsletter now advises that they have managed to sell not a single Dvorak t shirt.

Not even being adopted by one of the coolest shops on Earth can overcome the inertia of market dominance. Or something.

Thus, the world of t shirt fandom reinforces a cruel world’s rejection of a demonstrably better product.

VHS v Beta leapt to my mind, PC v Mac, IE v Mozilla, even the current HDTV and disk shenanigans. I’m sure you have your own examples.

Among other things, it does make me wonder if standards-compliant, accessible web design has a hope in hell of catching on.

Best not put it on a t shirt …

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