Wednesday, April 29, 2009

A New Take on Moveable Type

What is this contraption to which I have entrusted my literary fortunes?

First, what it is not. It is not this:

That would be Lord (3rd Earl) Stanhope’s invention, the iron press, from 1800.

Nor is it this roll-type from the Vienna Technical Museum:
(Photo by Mirko Tobias Schaefer)

The Espresso Book Machine has apparently been a big hit at the London Book Fair. (You can read about its reception here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/apr/24/espresso-book-machine-launches.) Meanwhile, I’ll be heading up to the Northshire tomorrow so that I can get up close and personal with the machine. Actually, perhaps “personal” is not the best word...
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2 comments:

  1. UnknownMay 1, 2009 at 5:04 AM

    Hi Judith,
    I saw the Espresso Book Machine at a publishing technology conference in NYC a few months ago. Impressive little unit, except for the fact it doesn't make coffee. Will be interesting to see if/when these begin to make their way into point of sale retail outlets like B&N.

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  2. Judith D. SchwartzMay 4, 2009 at 5:53 PM

    Thanks for the note, John. I'd be curious to know which conference this was. (And perhaps coffee will come next!)

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