In Mechanica Antiqua

Hermes: The Patron God of Typewriters A brief examination of the impact of the Greek Pantheon on the typewriter.      As the old adage goes, “a picture says a thousand words,” and when we have a long standing picture, we call it symbolism.   Symbolism has long played an important role in human culture.   Throughout the ages symbols have said what words could not, transmitting abstract thoughts and ideas that serve to guide our thoughts and behaviors (Udechukwu 1).   Symbolism by its very nature is vital to human communication; it serves as the pathway for us to share complex ideas that have the ability to transcend time.   In the case of the ancient Greeks a variety of symbols were attributed to their many gods.   These symbols represented specific domains that the gods had patronage of, for Poseidon it was the trident, and for Zeus it was the lightning bolt.   Though the settings and context, like the Greek Pantheon, for many ancient symbols have long since eroded away, even some of t

Nobody asked for this, yet I shall deliver nonetheless.  Lego announced their new set, the Lego Typewriter, last month.  It first became available for sale July 1st, and as a typewriter service technician by profession, it was not a set I could pass up.  I placed an order on their website early on July 1st, and patiently waited a mere 5 days until it arrived.  Honestly, I didn't have the time to be playing with Legos, but it was a procrastination temptation I couldn't resist. The set itself was much larger than I anticipated, and it included a very large instruction manual (which I will address later), plus a booklet of a letter by Thomas Kristensen, the current Lego head, printed in over 40 languages.  That was a cool touch.  The sand green colored exterior was also a lovely touch.  A unique retro-looking color that seems to harken back to a handful of actual typewriter models I feel this relates to a lot--mainly the Royal Signet of the Great Depression.   photo courtesy of Mr

Excuse my poor eyesight and camera focusing, but do admire the golden hour shot Well, I must confess I have been very excited to talk about this one.  I am somewhat a fan of typing, if you haven't been able to tell from all the typewriters I work with.  But this article marks the first I've been actually able to use a typing apparatus for a blog!  I am of course referring to the 1988 IBM Model M keyboard, made only a couple short years after my IBM Correcting Selectric II. This particular version of the Model M is perhaps the most popular, as it was the second iteration that shipped with the IBM Personal System 2, abbreviated the PS/2, the very same computer that gave birth to the standardized PS/2 mouse and keyboard cable.  In that regard, it was to my dismay that I found out the connector type was discontinued sometime post 2013.  The switch type itself, the "Catastrophically Buckling Compression Column Switch and Actuator (according to the patent) didn't originate o