User Interface design for numeric keypads

I have just read Raymond’s User interface design for interior door locks which reminded me of a curiousity.

Take a look at your telephone’s numeric keypad. The top row of buttons on mine is 1,2,3. Now look at your computer keyboard numeric keypad or a calculator keypad. For mine, the top row is 7,8,9.

A mnemonic to remember a phone number is to visualize the physical path traveled as your finger pushes consecutive digits. It’s inverted when dialing from the keyboard.

Go figure

 

 

48662

Comments

• Anonymous
  January 19, 2005
  Bell Labs did extensive usability testing to determin the keyboard layout that resulted in the lowest error rate and the highest memory recall rate (I think the second-place candidate was two columns of five numbers, but I'm not positive).
  
  http://www.vcalc.net/Keyboard.htm has copies of a couple short popular articles on touch-tone keyboard layout, but the original usability study doesn't appear to be online anywhere.
  
  -Don
  
  
  
  

• Anonymous
  January 19, 2005
  You can blame that on the phone company. The keypad on the keyboard is designed to resemble ten-key calculators. Those calculators came along before the push-button phone.

• Anonymous
  January 23, 2005
  And there is even a name for those who are able to use the numeric keypad with proficiency: "10-key typist" -- even though there are more than 10 keys, even on the calculator keyboard which Craig mentions. A 10-key typist can plow through a stack of checks faster than we software designers can imagine; keeping all their keystrokes on the numeric keypad is an important consideration in design.

• Anonymous
  May 16, 2005
  The comment has been removed

• Anonymous
  September 01, 2005
  Your blog is very interesint

• Anonymous
  March 21, 2006
  Your site is very informational for me. Nice work.

• Anonymous
  June 03, 2006
  i like your website very much but please do get us more information about it

• Anonymous
  December 14, 2006
  thoughts from a professional developer I do not agree. Go to http://www.hotelssale.info/schooner_Italy/lost_Emilia-Romagna/venereal_Rimini_1.html

• Anonymous
  January 03, 2007
  Hello, This site is simply very superb! http://opepit.ohost.de/silver-springs/ Thanks!

• Anonymous
  January 11, 2007
  Hello, Very good site with nice info's   http://iwqyr.tripod.com/  http://qateq.275mb.com/ Thanks!

• Anonymous
  January 29, 2007
  thoughts from a professional developer I do not agree. Go to http://www.businesszs.info/unbraid_Spain/ore_Galicia/stink_Vigo_1.html

• Anonymous
  January 31, 2007
  The comment has been removed

• Anonymous
  August 14, 2007
  thoughts from a professional developer I do not agree. Go to http://apartments.waw.pl/

• Anonymous
  May 30, 2009
  PingBack from http://outdoorceilingfansite.info/story.php?id=20796

• Anonymous
  May 31, 2009
  PingBack from http://outdoorceilingfansite.info/story.php?id=3160

• Anonymous
  June 18, 2009
  PingBack from http://outdoordecoration.info/story.php?id=3207

• Anonymous
  June 19, 2009
  PingBack from http://mydebtconsolidator.info/story.php?id=6430