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Why is there a raised bump on the F key and the J keys?

I just thought it was interesting... AND... in case you've ever wondered...

As the keyboard developed, there have been several inventions intended to improve the accuracy and speed of typing.

The F and J keys (used as "home keys") often have small raised bumps on their tops or bottoms. These are tactile aids for the typist. The locations of all the other keys on the keyboard are learned in relation to these "home keys" so the touch-typist must be able to find the home keys by touch.

The inventor of the small raised bumps on the F and J keys, as well as other enhancements to other keys, is JUNE E. BOTICH (United States Patent 6667697). The abstract of her invention reads as follows:
"The invention is directed to an improvement or enhancement of a keyboard. Particularly, the keys of a keyboard are enhanced or modified, to improve or instill a tactile sensation to a person doing the typing. In this respect, certain of the keys are modified by adding tactile edges to the keys, typing school and instructors and instructions for the beginners instruct the learners to place their fingers in the middle row of the lettered keyboard. Instructions further advise to divide this middle row into two groups, one for the left hand and one for the right hand. Both groups involve the four fingers of each group excluding the thumb. The four fingers of the left hand will be placed over the letters A through F and the fingers of the right hand are placed over the letters J, K, L including the semi colon. The outside edges of the key letter A of the left hand and on the semicolon key of the right hand have outside raised edges placed thereon. This way the four fingers of the left hand and the four fingers of the right are sort of cradled between the raised edges and gives the typist a tactile sensation indicating where exactly the fingers are placed on the keyboard which enhances the speed and the accuracy of the person doing the typing."

For a much more detailed description of her invention, please see:
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/6667697…

For a practical description of the use of raised bumps on the F and J "home keys" on the keyboard to help users correctly position their left and right hand on the keyboard without having to look at it, and advances to that system, please see:
http://www.typeonline.co.uk/lesson1.html
http://www.faqs.org/patents/app/20090236…

For background on the historical development of the keyboard, please see:
http://inventors.about.com/library/inven…

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