Re: [emacs-humanities] E-ink tablets

[Göktuğ Kayaalp]

On 2021-02-03 21:23 +01, M. ‘quintus’ Gülker <post+emacs-humanities@guelker.eu> 
wrote:
> Am 03. Februar 2021 um 20:42 Uhr +0300 schrieb Göktuğ Kayaalp:
>> Another thing with typewriters and portability is that once you take it
>> out of the box in public they are like a parrot: loud, colourful,
>> attention grabbing. Having transported mine around after buying or for a
>> fix a couple times, I can tell you for sure even if you have the most
>> silent typewriter, you’ll never have any peace while carrying it in
>> public, let alone writing on it :)
> This community is a mystery. Will you be surprised if I tell you that
> I do own an Olivetti Lettera 32 typewriter myself and enjoy using it?
> Sadly it lacks Emacs keybindings; it can happen that I want to press
> C-x C-s by muscle memory and then I realise the device lacks a control
> key. After a moment of confusion I cannot help but smile then.
>
> I do not mind the Olivetti Lettera's weight, but I do not usually
> carry it around in public either. I normally write longer texts at
> home. I own a large Olympia SG1 typewriter as well with a weight of
> nearly 30 kg, but it is not suited for moving to the balcony and
> typing there.

No surprise at all. Computers are really helpful with writing long prose
but they also kinda kill the joy of it.  Typewriters are automated
pens.  All you need is paper and you produce something you can grab,
read, edit.  It’s distraction free as you can’t go online on it or
mindlessly constantly edit.  IDK if there’s a name for it but I’ call
that "productive restraint".  But I doubt anybody who needs to write as
much and is even slightly geeky about it can miss these devices.

My experience in public, as I implied, has been an excessive attention
from any people who see the thing uncovered.  It’s mostly been in school
or a friend’s cafe, but it still gets a lot of attention even when
there’s nobody you know around.  It’s like that one well-looked-after
glowy Beetle trotting down the road like a little pony.  Cute,
nostalgically novel, unavoidably interesting.

> If your typewriter is excessively loud, maybe you should have the
> platen serviced. But of course, it will always be loud in a way. I
> think it is fine; there are computer enthusiasts who love to use the
> IBM Model M as their keyboard, of which I heard it is not an exactly
> quiet one either (I have never seen one used, though, so I cannot
> directly compare).

My current one does definitely need some fixing, including loudness, but
sadly I don’t have access to it and won’t for a while.  I’ve an Olympia
Traveller de Luxe lying in my student’s home I can’t go to thanks to
Covid-19.

> By the way, given the astonishing intersection this mailing list
> appears to have, here is a mailing list for typewriter enthusiasts:
> https://groups.io/g/TYPEWRITERS

Thanks for the link!


       -gk.