🚀 go-pugleaf

On 3/17/2018 4:13 PM, Andreas Kohlbach wrote:
> On Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:56:32 -0700 (PDT), hanc...@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:
>>
>> I think almost every programmer prepared some documentation on
>> punched cards and printed it out.
> 
> This you can do with any text editor. I do not use LibreOffice here when
> when coding (using vi or Emacs).
> 
>>> Apparently the IBM MT/ST (Magnetic Tape/Selectric Typewriter) from 1964
>>> would match that description which was used only with an IBM
>>> Selectric. But there should had been applications which would not depend
>>> on an external type writer rather than using a dedicated printer, no?
>>
>> Not sure of your question.  The IBM MT/ST and MC/ST was integrated
>> with a Selectric typewriter which provided the keyboard and 'printer'.
>> As others mentioned, they were word processors.
> 
> I think I understand a word processor is something you edit a text. It
> assists you by wrapping text and allow modification of characters, like
> bold. Only *after* you are done editing you would print it out or save it
> to a file. You could move paragraphs around and often do mail
> merge. Things a Selectric could not do.

WP existed with hard-copy IO. There were people who did WP using 
teletypes. Yes, CRTs were much nicer, but that's a later development.

And with an MC/ST you could in fact move paragraphs around, by saving 
them separately (the magnetic cards could hold units of text smaller 
than a page. But note that such gear was not normally used by writers, 
but by secretaries or typists. Authors didn't type their own stuff. 
And even if they were capable of it (believe me, most weren't), the 
gear was far too expensive to give them their own, and they wouldn't 
want to devote the time to training in on it.


> The Selectric did not (for my knowledge) had a display. 

Correct.

Even if it might
> had "write ahead" you could not see what you wrote until it was printed
> on paper. If you made a mistake it was too late.

Sorta. But the Correcting Selectric had a lift-off tape so you could 
backspace an error out. If you're a typist, you probably know without 
looking (you're looking at the copy stand, not the typewriter) as soon 
as you press the wrong key. So many mistakes could be immediately 
corrected without even losing much rhythm.

  Because of that
> typewriters soon vanished after word processors were available in the
> late 70s to early 80s.
> 
> Which again raises the question: if word processors were around before
> the 70s, why didn't they supersede typewriters in offices already?

The IBM Displaywriter was IBM's CRT word processor, and came out in 
1982. According to an IBM website, "A system of three displays sharing 
a single higher speed printer and a paper handler sold for $26,185 and 
leased for $845 a month." (That's $67,555 and $2180 in 2018 dollars. 
Granted, it's for 3 workstations sharing a printer.)