A few other characteristics came to mind that also help set it apart: I don't know if it was the first, or not, but something that might not be immediately obvious to some is that the Selectric had ...

As Cold War tensions increased throughout the 1970s, the Soviets pulled out all the stops when it came to digging up information from US diplomats. This NSA memo from 2012 explains how several IBM ...

Introduced in 1961 by IBM, the Selectric was the first typewriter to use a golf ball-like type element that moved across the paper, rather than moving the paper carriage past the individual character ...

IBM's Selectric began its life as a typewriter, but ended it as the first computer keyboard. In the interim, the stylish device became a favored tool of great American writers and dominated the desks ...

With all of the whiz-bang rockets and brain implants we have these days, it’s easy to forget about genius inventions from simpler times. Thankfully, in a video posted to its YouTube channel, the ...

While cleaning out the garage of an elderly friend who died recently, what did I find under a pile of 1967 Playboys but a typewriter. It wasn’t just any typewriter but a vintage IBM Selectric II. I ...

In 1956, IBM built a typewriter factory off of New Circle Road, where it would manufacture the Selectric typewriter.

Metal plating doesn't have much strength. If a plastic ball would be flattened, as I expect, a plated plastic ball would collapse just about as fast. Plus, I think you can only plate things that ...

Luckily, engineer and YouTuber, Bill Hammack, describes how the Selectric’s element works in an unrelated video (below). Hammack explains that the element has a series of typeface letters—both upper ...

While cleaning out the garage of an elderly friend who died recently, what did I find under a pile of 1967 Playboys but a typewriter. It wasn't just any typewriter but a vintage IBM Selectric II. I ...