<s>
The	O
Friden	B-Application
Flexowriter	I-Application
produced	O
by	O
the	O
Friden	O
Calculating	O
Machine	O
Company	O
,	O
was	O
a	O
teleprinter	O
,	O
a	O
heavy-duty	O
electric	O
typewriter	O
capable	O
of	O
being	O
driven	O
not	O
only	O
by	O
a	O
human	O
typing	O
,	O
but	O
also	O
automatically	O
by	O
several	O
methods	O
,	O
including	O
direct	O
attachment	O
to	O
a	O
computer	O
and	O
by	O
use	O
of	O
paper	O
tape	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
can	O
trace	O
its	O
roots	O
to	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
earliest	O
electric	O
typewriters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Electromatic	O
typewriter	O
patents	O
document	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
pivoted	O
spiral	O
cams	B-Data_Structure
operating	O
against	O
a	O
hard	O
rubber	O
drive	O
roller	O
to	O
drive	O
the	O
print	O
mechanism	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IBM	O
experimented	O
with	O
a	O
12-hole	O
paper	O
tape	O
compatible	O
with	O
their	O
punched-card	B-Architecture
code	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Equipping	O
an	O
electric	O
typewriter	O
with	O
both	O
a	O
paper-tape	O
reader	O
and	O
punch	O
created	O
the	O
basic	O
foundation	O
for	O
what	O
would	O
become	O
the	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
late	O
1930s	O
,	O
IBM	O
had	O
a	O
nearly	O
complete	O
monopoly	B-Application
on	O
unit	O
record	O
equipment	O
and	O
related	O
punched	B-Architecture
card	I-Architecture
machinery	O
,	O
and	O
expanding	O
the	O
product	O
line	O
into	O
automatic	O
typewriters	O
equipped	O
with	O
paper	O
tape	O
raised	O
antitrust	O
issues	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Around	O
the	O
time	O
of	O
World	O
War	O
II	O
,	O
CCC	O
developed	O
a	O
proportional	O
spacing	O
model	O
of	O
the	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
known	O
as	O
The	O
Presidential	O
(	O
or	O
sometimes	O
the	O
President	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
model	O
name	O
was	O
derived	O
from	O
the	O
fact	O
that	O
these	O
units	O
were	O
used	O
to	O
generate	O
the	O
White	B-Application
House	I-Application
letters	O
informing	O
families	O
of	O
the	O
deaths	O
of	O
service	O
personnel	O
in	O
the	O
war	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1944	O
,	O
the	O
pioneering	O
Harvard	B-Device
Mark	I-Device
I	I-Device
computer	O
was	O
constructed	O
,	O
using	O
an	O
Electromatic	O
for	O
output	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Applications	O
for	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
exploded	O
in	O
the	O
1950s	O
,	O
covering	O
territory	O
in	O
commercial	O
printing	O
,	O
machine	O
tools	O
,	O
computers	O
,	O
and	O
many	O
forms	O
of	O
office	O
automation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
was	O
a	O
major	O
redesign	O
of	O
the	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
in	O
the	O
mid	O
1960s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Model	O
2201	O
Programatic	O
,	O
introduced	O
in	O
1965	O
,	O
had	O
a	O
sleek	O
modern	O
styling	O
and	O
13	O
programmable	O
function	B-Application
keys	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
major	O
change	O
in	O
appearance	O
of	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
in	O
nearly	O
forty	O
years	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
primarily	O
sold	O
as	O
a	O
stand-alone	O
word	B-General_Concept
processor	I-General_Concept
(	O
a	O
term	O
not	O
yet	O
in	O
use	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
)	O
,	O
Friden	O
also	O
sold	O
it	O
with	O
a	O
communications	O
option	O
allowing	O
it	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
computer	B-General_Concept
terminal	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Members	O
of	O
the	O
2200	O
family	O
operated	O
at	O
135	O
words	B-Device
per	I-Device
minute	I-Device
(	O
11.3	O
characters	O
per	O
second	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
family	O
also	O
included	O
the	O
2210	O
and	O
2211	O
,	O
on	O
which	O
the	O
function	B-Application
keys	I-Application
were	O
replaced	O
with	O
a	O
numeric	B-Device
keypad	I-Device
,	O
and	O
the	O
2261	O
,	O
using	O
ASCII	B-Protocol
instead	O
of	O
the	O
proprietary	O
eight-bit	O
code	O
used	O
by	O
other	O
members	O
of	O
the	O
2200	O
family	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
2300	O
series	O
were	O
cosmetically	O
similar	O
to	O
the	O
2200	O
series	O
,	O
although	O
without	O
the	O
function	B-Application
keys	I-Application
or	O
numeric	B-Device
keypad	I-Device
,	O
with	O
a	O
simplified	O
plugboard	O
,	O
and	O
operating	O
at	O
145	O
words	B-Device
per	I-Device
minute	I-Device
(	O
12	O
characters	O
per	O
second	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
its	O
fixed	O
type	O
font	O
and	O
paper-tape	O
recording	O
medium	O
,	O
the	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
had	O
difficulty	O
competing	O
with	O
these	O
machines	O
,	O
although	O
some	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
documentation	O
emphasized	O
the	O
fact	O
that	O
,	O
unlike	O
IBM	O
's	O
MT/ST	O
tapes	O
,	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
users	O
could	O
cut	O
and	O
splice	O
paper	O
tapes	O
,	O
particularly	O
if	O
they	O
could	O
recognize	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
common	O
codes	O
such	O
as	O
carriage	O
return	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Larger	O
manufacturers	O
such	O
as	O
IBM	O
and	O
DEC	O
made	O
their	O
own	O
console	O
equipment	O
,	O
and	O
video	B-General_Concept
terminals	I-General_Concept
began	O
to	O
appear	O
,	O
displacing	O
paper-based	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
From	O
its	O
earliest	O
days	O
through	O
to	O
at	O
least	O
the	O
mid-1960s	O
,	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
were	O
used	O
as	O
automatic	O
letter	O
writers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
the	O
US	O
White	B-Application
House	I-Application
was	O
using	O
them	O
during	O
the	O
Second	O
World	O
War	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
1960s	O
,	O
United	O
States	O
Members	O
of	O
Congress	O
used	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
extensively	O
to	O
handle	O
enormous	O
volumes	O
of	O
routine	O
correspondence	O
with	O
constituents	O
;	O
an	O
advantage	O
of	O
this	O
method	O
was	O
that	O
these	O
letters	O
appeared	O
to	O
have	O
been	O
individually	O
typed	O
by	O
hand	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Auxiliary	O
paper-tape	O
readers	O
could	O
be	O
attached	O
to	O
a	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
to	O
create	O
an	O
early	O
form	O
of	O
"	O
mail	B-Application
merge	I-Application
"	O
,	O
where	O
a	O
long	O
custom-created	O
tape	O
containing	O
individual	O
addresses	O
and	O
salutations	O
was	O
merged	O
with	O
a	O
closed-loop	O
form-letter	O
and	O
printed	O
on	O
continuous-form	O
letterhead	O
;	O
both	O
tapes	O
contained	O
embedded	O
"	O
control	O
characters	O
"	O
to	O
switch	O
between	O
readers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
the	O
unit	O
record	O
equipment	O
(	O
tabulating	O
machine	O
)	O
industry	O
matured	O
and	O
became	O
the	O
computer	O
industry	O
,	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
were	O
commonly	O
used	O
as	O
console	B-General_Concept
terminals	I-General_Concept
for	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
ASCII	B-Protocol
character	I-Protocol
coding	O
had	O
not	O
yet	O
been	O
standardized	O
,	O
each	O
type	O
of	O
computer	O
tended	O
to	O
use	O
its	O
own	O
system	O
for	O
encoding	O
characters	O
;	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
were	O
capable	O
of	O
being	O
configured	O
with	O
numerous	O
encodings	O
particular	O
to	O
the	O
computer	O
system	O
the	O
machine	O
was	O
being	O
used	O
with	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computers	O
that	O
used	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
as	O
consoles	O
include	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
MIT	B-Device
Whirlwind	I-Device
I	O
computer	O
,	O
first	O
designed	O
to	O
control	O
a	O
flight	O
simulator	O
,	O
and	O
later	O
becoming	O
the	O
basis	O
of	O
the	O
SAGE	B-Device
network	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Lincoln	O
Laboratory	O
TX-0	B-Device
,	O
an	O
early	O
experimental	O
transistor-based	O
minicomputer	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
seminal	O
influence	O
on	O
hacker	O
culture	O
at	O
MIT	O
in	O
the	O
late	O
1950s	O
prior	O
to	O
the	O
introduction	O
of	O
the	O
PDP-1	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
BMEWS	B-Architecture
DIP	O
computer	O
,	O
NORAD	O
Combat	O
Operations	O
Center	O
(	O
COC	O
)	O
,	O
Colorado	O
Springs	O
,	O
Colo.	O
,	O
beginning	O
in	O
1960	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
English	B-Device
Electric	I-Device
KDF9	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Whirlwind	B-Device
I	I-Device
deployment	O
in	O
1955	O
is	O
notable	O
as	O
it	O
seems	O
to	O
have	O
been	O
the	O
first	O
time	O
that	O
a	O
typewriter-like	O
input	O
device	O
was	O
directly	O
connected	O
to	O
a	O
general-purpose	O
electronic	O
computer	O
,	O
becoming	O
directly	O
ancestral	O
to	O
today	O
's	O
computer	O
keyboards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Flexowriters	B-Application
could	O
also	O
be	O
used	O
as	O
offline	B-Device
punches	I-Device
and	O
printers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Programmers	O
would	O
type	O
their	O
programs	O
on	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
,	O
which	O
would	O
punch	O
the	O
program	O
onto	O
paper	O
tape	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computers	O
could	O
then	O
use	O
their	O
own	O
punches	O
to	O
make	O
paper	O
tapes	O
that	O
could	O
be	O
used	O
by	O
the	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
to	O
print	O
output	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Among	O
the	O
computers	O
which	O
commonly	O
used	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
for	O
this	O
task	O
was	O
the	O
DEC	B-Device
PDP-1	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ability	O
to	O
support	O
diverse	O
encodings	O
meant	O
that	O
adapting	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
to	O
generate	O
the	O
paper	O
tapes	O
used	O
to	O
drive	O
CNC	O
machine	O
tool	O
equipment	O
was	O
a	O
relatively	O
simple	O
affair	O
,	O
and	O
many	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
found	O
homes	O
in	O
machine	O
shops	O
into	O
the	O
1970s	O
,	O
when	O
magnetic	O
media	O
displaced	O
paper	O
tape	O
in	O
the	O
industry	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Friden	O
manufactured	O
equipment	O
which	O
could	O
connect	O
their	O
calculators	O
to	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
,	O
printing	O
output	O
and	O
performing	O
unit	O
record	O
tasks	O
such	O
as	O
form	O
letters	O
for	O
bills	O
,	O
and	O
eventually	O
manufactured	O
their	O
own	O
computers	O
to	O
further	O
enhance	O
these	O
capabilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
tape	O
was	O
placed	O
into	O
a	O
second	O
specially	O
adapted	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
which	O
had	O
two	O
paper	O
tape	O
reading	O
heads	O
;	O
one	O
would	O
read	O
the	O
text	O
while	O
the	O
other	O
controlled	O
the	O
spacing	O
of	O
the	O
print	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
than	O
did	O
a	O
standard	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
American	O
Type	O
Founders	O
produced	O
a	O
phototypesetter	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
Justowriter/Flexowriter	O
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
cutting	O
edge	O
device	O
of	O
their	O
time	O
,	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
,	O
especially	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
specialized	O
types	O
like	O
typesetters	O
,	O
were	O
quite	O
costly	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
used	O
only	O
as	O
manual	O
typewriters	O
,	O
and	O
properly	O
maintained	O
,	O
Flexowriters	B-Application
might	O
last	O
a	O
century	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Referring	O
to	O
the	O
photo	O
of	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
assembly	O
(	O
often	O
simply	O
called	O
a	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
;	O
it	O
was	O
not	O
meant	O
to	O
be	O
disassembled	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
holes	O
in	O
the	O
side	O
plates	O
at	O
the	O
lower	O
left	O
were	O
for	O
the	O
assembly	O
's	O
pivot	O
rod	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
fixed	O
to	O
the	O
frame	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Referring	O
again	O
to	O
the	O
part	O
at	O
the	O
upper	O
left	O
,	O
the	O
mating	O
part	O
had	O
a	O
threaded	O
mounting	O
for	O
adjusting	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
clearance	O
from	O
the	O
power	O
roll	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
irregular	O
"	O
roundish	O
"	O
part	O
,	O
lower	O
right	O
center	O
,	O
was	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
surface	O
of	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
in	O
contact	O
with	O
the	O
power	O
roll	O
had	O
grooves	O
for	O
better	O
grip	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
particular	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
assembly	O
had	O
a	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
that	O
rotated	O
a	O
full	O
turn	O
for	O
each	O
operation	O
;	O
it	O
might	O
operate	O
the	O
backspace	O
,	O
basket	O
shift	O
,	O
or	O
carriage-return	O
clutch	O
disengage	O
mechanism	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cams	B-Data_Structure
for	O
typing	O
characters	O
rotated	O
only	O
half	O
a	O
turn	O
,	O
the	O
halves	O
being	O
identical	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Below	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
in	O
this	O
photo	O
(	O
hidden	O
)	O
was	O
a	O
spring-loaded	O
lever	O
that	O
pushed	O
against	O
a	O
pin	O
on	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
upper	O
edge	O
of	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
,	O
as	O
shown	O
,	O
was	O
a	O
little	O
projection	O
that	O
engaged	O
the	O
release	O
lever	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
at	O
the	O
lowest	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
image	O
;	O
this	O
was	O
an	O
irregular	O
shape	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
a	O
key	O
was	O
pressed	O
down	O
,	O
it	O
moved	O
the	O
release	O
lever	O
and	O
unlatched	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
for	O
that	O
letter	O
;	O
the	O
spring-loaded	O
lever	O
pressing	O
on	O
the	O
pin	O
rotated	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
until	O
it	O
engaged	O
the	O
power	O
roll	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
continued	O
to	O
turn	O
,	O
increasing	O
radius	O
rotated	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
's	O
frame	O
slightly	O
(	O
clockwise	O
in	O
the	O
photo	O
)	O
to	O
operate	O
the	O
typing	O
linkage	O
for	O
that	O
character	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
continued	O
to	O
rotate	O
,	O
the	O
spring-loaded	O
lever	O
pushed	O
on	O
the	O
pin	O
to	O
move	O
it	O
toward	O
home	O
position	O
,	O
but	O
if	O
the	O
key	O
were	O
still	O
down	O
,	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
(	O
now	O
out	O
of	O
contact	O
with	O
the	O
power	O
roll	O
)	O
stalled	O
because	O
the	O
projection	O
on	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
would	O
catch	O
on	O
another	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
release	O
lever	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
stalled	O
until	O
the	O
key	O
was	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
released	O
,	O
the	O
lever	O
would	O
catch	O
the	O
projection	O
so	O
the	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
was	O
now	O
in	O
home	O
position	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
engaged	O
the	O
clutch	O
;	O
it	O
was	O
disengaged	O
by	O
the	O
left	O
margin	O
stop	O
,	O
perhaps	O
directly	O
,	O
perhaps	O
via	O
another	O
cam	B-Data_Structure
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
fact	O
,	O
some	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
parts	O
were	O
identical	O
in	O
fit	O
and	O
function	O
to	O
the	O
early	O
IBM	O
electric	O
typewriters	O
(	O
those	O
with	O
rotary	O
carriage	O
escapements	O
,	O
a	O
gear-driven	O
power	O
roll	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
governor-controlled	O
variable	O
speed	O
"	O
universal	O
"	O
(	O
wound-rotor/commutator	O
)	O
motor	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
were	O
operated	O
by	O
the	O
cams	B-Data_Structure
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
the	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
's	O
mechanical	O
encoder	O
was	O
a	O
very	O
different	O
and	O
far	O
more	O
rugged	O
design	O
,	O
although	O
still	O
operated	O
by	O
the	O
cams	B-Data_Structure
.	O
</s>
<s>
Flexowriters	B-Application
(	O
at	O
least	O
those	O
prior	O
to	O
1969	O
)	O
do	O
not	O
have	O
transistors	B-Application
;	O
electrical	O
control	O
operations	O
were	O
done	O
with	O
telephone-style	O
(	O
E-Class	O
)	O
relays	O
,	O
and	O
troubleshooting	O
often	O
involved	O
problems	O
with	O
the	O
timing	O
on	O
the	O
relays	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
screws	O
used	O
in	O
the	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
were	O
unique	O
,	O
having	O
large	O
flat	O
heads	O
with	O
a	O
very	O
narrow	O
screwdriver	O
slot	O
and	O
a	O
unique	O
thread	O
size	O
and	O
pitch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
right	O
side	O
of	O
a	O
Flexowriter	B-Application
had	O
a	O
large	O
(	O
~	O
1	O
"	O
)	O
connector	O
for	O
hooking	O
the	O
unit	O
up	O
to	O
computers	O
and	O
other	O
equipment	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
various	O
times	O
and	O
in	O
various	O
configurations	O
,	O
"	O
Flexos	O
"	O
came	O
with	O
5-	O
,	O
6-	O
,	O
7-	O
,	O
or	O
8-channel	O
paper	O
tape	O
reader/punches	O
,	O
could	O
have	O
several	O
auxiliary	O
paper	O
tape	O
units	O
attached	O
,	O
and	O
could	O
also	O
attach	O
to	O
IBM	O
punched	B-Architecture
card	I-Architecture
equipment	O
.	O
</s>
