The Market Process and the Economics of QWERTY: Two Views.

Since its publication in 1985 Paul David's "Economics of 'QWERTY"' has provided a paradigm case for the understanding and application of path-dependent processes in economics, some of which have been identified as yielding sub-optimal outcomes. The accuracy and relevance of this case, and this entire theoretical approach, has been subjected to critical scrutiny by Stan Liebowitz and Stephen Margolis in a series of articles and in a recent book. In this article I provide a wide ranging, and largely appreciative, review of the book and highlight, in some detail, the fundamental disagreements with which it deals. Copyright 2001 by Kluwer Academic Publishers