Capital letter "i" looks like a lower case "L" on keyboards and type, why?

Upper case I and lower case l are the same to the normal eye except when magnified. Or are they?

Hi rdeanr,

Without going into my collection of "maybe someday" computer, phone, and other electronic parts, I couldn't find a single hardware-based keyboard or phone that even showed lower case letters.  All of mine show only upper case.  May I ask you for the manufacturer, make, and model of the one you're looking at (and presumably using) that shows both on the hardware keys for any such device?

Looking at your post (switching to the type" aspect noted in the title) ... even without my reading glasses ... I can quite easily see the difference between I and l (looking at the small vertical lines at the top of the I). I have a harder time with the difference between l and | (though I can see that the symbol | extends below the otherwise evenly aligned bottom of the sentence) or between O and 0 - or 2 and Z.

Obviously, as the font size of print drops, my difficulties get worse. Even with my reading glasses, I cannot read the Microsoft Product Key Labels without adding a magnifying glass - but certainly wouldn't read anything much longer than that.  In any case, I surely wouldn't learn a language or read a novel using anything printed in such a small font.  That's why fonts can usually be changed, why zoom exists, why display resolution/DPI/color can typically be adjusted, why many operating systems and/or programs include a wide variety of other "Ease of Access" features (check Control Panel for Personalization or Ease of Access or Display or Graphics).  Additional help can come from Region and Language settings.  All of these will vary (names, locations, options) based on the hardware, language, and various software versions (Operating System, Program or App, Add-ons,...).

For hard copy novels and such, many now can be purchased in Large Print.

For learning English (or any language for that matter), I'd probably use a name-brand paid product to start.   

The Reading Teachers Book of Lists (by Jacqueline Kress and Edward Fry) claims the first 25 words are used in 33% of everyday writing, the first 100 words appear in 50% of adult and student writing, and the first 1,000 words are used in 89% of every day writing. 

From experience, for verbal interactions, assuming you minimize lengthy conversations and stick to basics, all I ever needed to learn was about 200-300 words in most languages to function and avoid "standing out" wherever I might need to "blend in" - and I'm including local dialects and accents.  The longer I stayed in that environment and listened/interactive with the locals, the more I learned and the better I got.  Some were much harder and took longer to even do that (e.g., in Arabic, there are about 50 different words for what English speakers would just use "camel").  Languages that use a lot of idioms (like English) are also harder and take longer (even to English language speakers {e.g., imagine someone from the Scottish highlands trying to converse with someone from the American deep south).  Then there are weight/measure conversions (meter vs. yard...), time communication methods (AM/PM, Daylight savings, Zulu...), acceptable native dress/conduct (especially in complex multi-level caste locations), and so forth...

Unfortunately, I also discovered that "speed learning" like this extinguished quickly (i.e., only a week or so after leaving the environment).

I hope this helps.

Kosh

Thank you Kosh. Could not differentiate between wether you were using l or I for the word pronounced "eye". The first "l" used in the last sentence was pronounced "el" and the second "I" used in the sentence was pronounced "eye". Maybe i need to analyze the length of the characters each time to differentiate between the difference.  Thanks.

Upper case I and lower case l are the same to the normal eye except when magnified. Or are they?

I feel like we're starting over.  No they aren't (to me or to most people). 

If you have tried or don't want to try the numerous options presented in my initial post (or need more detailed help with one you think might work after checking it out) and continue to "see" this as a problem (sorry for the pun - I couldn't help it <grin>), perhaps you should consider consulting an ophthalmologist to have your "normal" vision checked.

Kosh