<P> The shift key is a modifier key on a keyboard, used to type capital letters and other alternate "upper" characters . There are typically two shift keys, on the left and right sides of the row below the home row . The shift key's name originated from the typewriter, where one had to press and hold the button to shift up the case stamp to change to capital letters; the shift key was first used in the Remington No. 2 Type - Writer of 1878; the No. 1 model was capital - only . </P> <P> On the US layout and similar keyboard layouts, characters that typically require the use of the shift key include the parentheses, the question mark, the exclamation point, and the colon . </P>

What is the function of the shift key