Confessions of a Typewriter Addict

[ohjeez]

http://lithub.com/confessions-of-a-typewriter-addict/

[Overtonwindow]

I love typewriters because for me they're tangible, understandable, mechanical technology. Unlike an iPhone, or even a computer, I can wrap my bubble of a brain around how it works. I'm now the proud owner of 23 typewriters and can tell you stories, and anecdotes about each design, manufacturing, and origin.

[ripsawridge → Overtonwindow]

It's strange how much fun it can be to spend an evening with a well-built mechanical tool, long forgotten by the rest of the world. I've got a portable ("laptop," LOL) Swissa Piccola machine that I just love, and a bigger 1937 Olympia whose keys feel fantastic.

[sampl]

If you want to try a poor imitation of the real thing, I made one here:

http://typwrtr.com/

[King-Aaron → sampl]

I feel ashamed to say it took me far too many seconds of minor frustration before I realised why backspace wouldn't work.

[Isamu → King-Aaron]

Backspace should work, it just shouldn't erase what is already typed. You might use it to overstrike something.

There were electric typewriters that supported backward delete with a whiteout tape.

[hnarn → sampl]

That's really cool! It would be even cooler if you used a "typewriter-looking" font, like this one: https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Special+Elite

[deepsun → sampl]

Cool! How to turn off Shift?