Why aren't the keys on a computer keyboard arranged in alphabetical order?

QWERTY isn't a random order. It was designed in the 1860s so that commonly used letters weren't too close together (of course, originally applied to typewriters). This stopped the metal rods colliding and jamming when typing fast. I suppose this can apply to computer keyboards - if it was "alphabetised", I bet your fingers would get tangled up. ***EDIT*** - Like Poor Horatio says below, although there's other layouts around but QWERTY has been used so long it's stuck - I for one won't bother learning another method (though I've seen so many people using the "hunt-and-peck" technique, I doubt there'd be much trouble in a changeover!!!) Coincidentally, one of the longest words using ONLY the top row of the keyboard is "TYPEWRITER".  more