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-processin... 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/