When one sat down at a typewriter, it was usually located on a desk in a home office or at a place of business. Although portable typewriters were invented, they still needed a solid surface in which to be placed and therefore typists were limited to where they could type. Writing by hand could take place anywhere, giving the writer freedom from a confined space of writing.
In Writing Spaces, Jay Bolter (2009 ) states,
In Writing Spaces, Jay Bolter (2009 ) states,
Each writing space is a material and visual field, whose properties
are determined by a writing technology and the uses to which that
technology is put by a culture of readers and writers. A writing space
is generated by the interaction of material properties and cultural
choices and practices.
Typewriters aided in several social and educational changes. Although legibility improved with the introduction of cursive writing (words were now one unit and could be separated more easily), the printing press and the typewriter brought on a new level of spacing within the text; therefore increased the legibility of the written word. The typewriter also changed the written piece by standardizing spacing and text placement of written business letters and documents. Correspondences in the business world were viewed as impersonal and uniform, which made the typewriter ideal to create these types of written documents. As well, typewriters gave women the "in" they needed to enter the workforce with required skills.
Educationally, typewriters were found to have several benefits. This included improvements in writing output, writing mechanics, and writing quality because typewriters allowed students the freedom of composing written pieces without the constraints of the actual act of letter writing. In addition, typewriters increased reading enjoyment, writing enjoyment, and overall student engagement. Due to a lack of substantial quantitative data, schools and school boards did not invest in obtaining typewriters for their classrooms, even with very positive qualitative findings.
The typewriter helped bring about several social and cultural changes, although it itself has become almost extinct. It is a finite technology, but what it has left behind is the legacy of typewriting which can be done on most electronic devices today. The debate of whether handwriting will be replaced by typewriting will still occur for several years to come.
Educationally, typewriters were found to have several benefits. This included improvements in writing output, writing mechanics, and writing quality because typewriters allowed students the freedom of composing written pieces without the constraints of the actual act of letter writing. In addition, typewriters increased reading enjoyment, writing enjoyment, and overall student engagement. Due to a lack of substantial quantitative data, schools and school boards did not invest in obtaining typewriters for their classrooms, even with very positive qualitative findings.
The typewriter helped bring about several social and cultural changes, although it itself has become almost extinct. It is a finite technology, but what it has left behind is the legacy of typewriting which can be done on most electronic devices today. The debate of whether handwriting will be replaced by typewriting will still occur for several years to come.