LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Typewriter: Letters
built 288 days ago
In 1865, Rev. Rasmus Malling-Hansen of Denmark invented the Hansen Writing Ball, which went into commercial production in 1870 and was the first commercially sold typewriter. It was a success in Europe and was reported as being used in offices in London as late as 1909.[6] In addition, Malling-Hansen used a solenoid escapement to return the carriage on some of his models and was a responsible candidate for the first "electric" typewriter. From the book Hvem er Skrivekuglens Opfinder?, written by Malling-Hansen's daughter, Johanne Agerskov, we know that, in 1865, Malling-Hansen made a porcelain model of the keyboard of his writing ball and experimented with different placements of the letters to achieve the fastest writing speed. Malling-Hansen placed the letters on short pistons that went directly through the ball and down to the paper. This, together with placement of the letters so that the fastest writing fingers struck the most frequently used letters, made the Hansen Writing Ball the first typewriter to produce text substantially faster than a person could write by hand.
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An animated typewriter with arms and mobile wheels appeared on Sesame Street beginning in the 1970s. The Typewriter would demonstrate letters by typing out the letter, and a word beginning with it, on himself. He often fumbled, which frustrated him. The Typewriter's most notable dialogue, apart from announcing the letter and the word, was his trademark "Noo-nee-noo-nee-noo" sounds. 26 Typewriter shorts were produced, one for each letter of the alphabet, and continued to appear on Sesame Street as late as Season 35.
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The traditional method involved the use of a special typewriter eraser made of hard rubber that contained an abrasive material. It was in the shape of a thin, flat, disk, approximately 2-in (50-mm) in diameter by 1/8-in (3-mm) thick, allowing for erasure of individual typed letters. Business letters were typed on heavyweight, high-rag-content bond paper, not merely to provide a luxurious appearance, but ... to stand up to erasure. Typewriter erasers were often equipped with a brush for clearing eraser crumbs and paper dust, and using the brush properly was an important element of typewriting skill (if erasure detritus fell into the typewriter, a small buildup could cause the typebars to jam in their narrow supporting grooves).
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