Typewriters

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A community dedicated to everything related to manual, electric and electronic typewriters, their history, use, collection, service, maintenance, …

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Typewriters making a comeback, thanks in part to Taylor Swift (CBS Evening News) (www.youtube.com)

submitted 2 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I've contradictory feelings about that. On the one hand it's great to see some promotion of what I consider a great tech. On the other hand, if this does boost sales and raises prices I also doubt it will help the slightest new actual young users get their hands on affordable models...

Fashion and trends are such a pain. I would love to see more people actually write using a typewriter, and spend a lot more of their time away from their too many screens, but I'm a lot less excited having fashion-victims artificially raise prices of used typewriters so they can put a vintage piece of low-tech on display in their Instagram feed, or whatever. That's just silly.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I understand your POV, but trends come and pass. The prices will go down again, but in the meantime, a small proportion of these “fashion victims” will have discovered them and will keep using them. And that's cool!

But to be honest one of the reasons I like typewriters is because it's not trendy.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 months ago

But to be honest one of the reasons I like typewriters is because it’s not trendy.

My reason is mostly that, as a kid, I learned to touch type on my grandfather's Olympia SG1 and I grew up with that one machine that stayed with me up to the university. Back at university, I already had been using using computers for quite a few years also (it was in the late 80s) but I still preferred to type all my papers on what was back then an already 30 years old or so machine. Heck, I even published a fanzine using nothing but this machine, a pair of scissors, glue and one of... the university photocopying machine ;)

This Olympia was heavy as a tank, but it was so smooth at the same time. I loved it... still I gave it away when I got my first portable Mac computer. Always regretted it.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I have a friend that gives writing lessons to kids. When she brought a typewriter they were amazed by a machine that printed at the same time you're typing. The next day there were a bunch grandparents trying to find their typewriters in the attic.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 months ago

The next day there were a bunch grandparents trying to find their typewriters in the attic.