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typewriter, purchased around the end of the 19th century, was found abandoned in the Bodie Ghost Town . This early example had separate keys for upper- and lower-case letters.]] A typewriter is a Mechanical , Electromechanical , or Electronic device with a set of "keys" that, when pressed, cause characters to be printed on a Document , usually Paper . In the late 19th century and at the start of the 20th century, a person who operated such a device was sometimes called a ''typewriter'' but it then became more common to call the person a typist. For much of the 20th century, typewriters were indispensable tools in business offices and for many (if not all) professional writers. By the 1980s, however, Word Processor applications on Personal Computer s largely overtook the tasks previously accomplished with typewriters. However, typewriters are still popular in the developing world and among some Niche Market s. As of 2006, the following companies manufacture typewriters and accessories: Smith-Corona , Olivetti , Adler-Royal , Olympia , Brother , and Nakajima . Olivetti is the only western company still manufacturing manual typewriters. All other current models are electronic. HISTORY Early innovations No single person can be credited with the invention of the typewriter. As with the '', April 9 , 2007 , a review of ''The Iron Whim: A Fragmented History of Typewriting'' (Cornell) 2007, by Darren Wershler-Henry In 1714, Henry Mill obtained a patent in Britain for a machine that, from the patent, appears similar to a typewriter, but nothing further is known.1 Other early developers of typewriting machines include Pellegrino Turri , who also invented Carbon Paper . Many of these early machines, including Turri's, were developed to enable the blind to write. In 1829, William Austin Burt patented a machine called the " Typographer ." Like many other early machines, it is sometimes listed as the "first typewriter"; the Science Museum (London) describes it merely as "the first writing mechanism whose invention was documented," but even that claim may be excessive, since Turri's machine is well known.2 Even in the hands of its inventor, it was slower than handwriting. Burt and his promoter John D. Sheldon never found a buyer for the patent, and it was never commercially produced. Because it used a dial to select each character rather than keys, it was called an "index typewriter" rather than a "keyboard typewriter," if it is to be considered a typewriter at all. From 1829 to 1870, many printing or typing machines were patented by inventors in Europe and America, but none went into commercial production. Charles Thurber developed multiple patents; his first, in 1843, was developed as an aid to the blind. See Charles Thurber 's 1845 Chirographer , as an example. In 1855, the Italian Giuseppe Ravizza created a prototype typewriter called "Cembalo scrivano o macchina da scrivere a tasti." It was an advanced machine that let the user see the writing as it was typed. In 1861, Father Francisco João De Azevedo , a Brazilian priest, made his own typewriter with basic materials and tools, such as wood and knives. D. Pedro I , the Brazilian emperor, in that same year, presented a gold medal to Father Azevedo for this invention. Many Brazilian people as well as the Brazilian federal government recognize Fr. Azevedo as the real inventor of the typewriter, a claim that has been the subject of some controversy.3 In 1864, the Austria n Peter Mitterhofer created a typewriter, but it was never produced commercially. Mitterhofer continued to improve his original model and created five different enhanced typewriters until 1868. |
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