ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Virtual keyboard

Imagine you are playing with a toy keyboard, just like the one you have in your toy set. But what if you could play a real keyboard on your computer or phone without having to buy one or carry it around? That's exactly what a virtual keyboard is!

A virtual keyboard is like a magic tool that shows up on your screen when you need to type or play music. It looks just like a real keyboard, but instead of holding physical keys, you can use your mouse, touchpad or finger to type or play music.

So, imagine you are sitting in a busy cafe and you need to respond to an email on your laptop. You don't want to clack around on a physical keyboard and disturb your fellow coffee drinkers, so you turn on the virtual keyboard. You can easily type your message without making a sound or taking up too much space.

Virtual keyboards are also used in phones and tablets, where the screen is too small to fit a real keyboard. You can summon the virtual keyboard by tapping on the typing area of your device's screen, and then simply touch the keys to type.

In addition, virtual keyboards have introduced new features such as predictive typing and swiping functions. These allow you to type more efficiently by predicting words, inserting emojis, and swiping across the keyboard to form words, rather than tapping each letter separately.

So, in summary, a virtual keyboard is a magical tool that lets you type and play music on your computer or phone without a physical keyboard. It's quiet, takes up less space, and can be customized to your liking.