[SIGCIS-Members] introduction, and restoring an IBM MT/ST

[Matthew Kirschenbaum]

Hello all,

Thanks to Tom Haigh for letting me know about this list.

A quick introduction: I'm working on a book under contract to Harvard UP
that is a literary history of word processing. The project had a cycle of
press attention a little while back, including this piece in the NYT:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/26/books/a-literary-history-of-word-processing.html?pagewanted=all

More info is also available at the Tumblr blog listed in my sig. On a
general note, I'd be interested in hearing from any list members with tips
or anecdotes regarding writers (popular and highbrow alike) who were early
adopters of computers and word processors.

I'm also writing with a more specific request. I've recently acquired an
IBM MT/ST (Magnetic Tape Selectric Typewriter) from eBay. This is the first
product explicitly marketed by IBM as a "word processor." It worked by
storing keystrokes from the typewriter on magnetic tape, thereby making
them available for electronic revision and automatic printing. Retail c.
1964 was $10,000! The novelist Len Deighton leased one from IBM in the late
1960s and thus could be said to be the first writer to use a "word
processor," even though the technology is not what we would today recognize
as a word processing program.

Anyway, the particular model I've acquired appears to be in reasonably good
condition and I think there's a more than fair shot of restoring it to
working order with some expert help. Ideally then I'd like to make contact
with retired IBM personnel who designed or serviced the system. Any
assistance in terms of getting the word out in relevant channels would be
much appreciated. I have a great deal of documentation (manuals, workbooks,
circuit diagrams) for it as well. This thing is a beast, ~200 lbs., so not
easily moved from my office at the University of Maryland.

Does the listserv accept attachments? If so, I'm happy to post a couple of
JPEGs.

Best, Matt


-- 
Matthew Kirschenbaum
Associate Professor of English
Associate Director, Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities
(MITH)
University of Maryland
301-405-8505 or 301-314-7111 (fax)
http://mkirschenbaum.net and @mkirschenbaum on Twitter

The Track Changes project: http://trackchangesbook.tumblr.com/

I am on leave, Aug. 2011-12; please refer to my personal leave policies:
http://mkirschenbaum.wordpress.com/2011/07/31/during-my-fellowship/
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