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| Not just a new way to write. It redefined what 'writing' means. Cheap ballpoint pens. (Page 1/1) |
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rinselberg
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OCT 29, 02:38 AM
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Literally a 'child' of the 1950s, the advent of cheap, disposable ballpoint pens didn't just change how people write by hand. It changed what people wrote by hand.
| quote | | “The ballpoint pen was the equivalent of today’s smartphone. Before then, writing was a stationary act that had to be done in a certain environment, on a certain kind of desk, with all these other things to hand that allowed you to write. What the ballpoint pen did was to make writing something that could happen anywhere." |
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The "Bic" has become so deeply embedded in our cultural DNA that we hardly ever think about it.
Fortunately, Stephen Dowling's new article in the BBC's "Future" section has our back.
"The cheap pen that changed writing forever"
https://www.bbc.com/future/...of-the-ballpoint-pen
Genius, hiding in plain sight.
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Patrick
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OCT 29, 02:55 AM
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| quote | Originally posted by rinselberg:
The "Bic" has become so deeply embedded in our cultural DNA that we hardly ever think about it.
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Good article... but no mention how well the Bic's body worked for shooting chewed up paper spitballs in class.  (That was a long time ago.)
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cliffw
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OCT 29, 05:34 AM
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| quote | Originally posted by rinselberg:
ballpoint pen
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Interesting fluff story. I liked it.
Does this mean I can throw away my pencil which wrote anywhere, even in no gravity "space" ? Speaking of which, today's pencils suck.
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williegoat
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OCT 29, 10:15 AM
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INKcredible! The PENnacle of success. A thread with no BICkering. An idea to aSCRIBE to. Something to write home about.
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maryjane
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OCT 29, 06:40 PM
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| quote | Originally posted by williegoat:
INKcredible! The PENnacle of success. A thread with no BICkering. An idea to aSCRIBE to. Something to write home about. |
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You had to go deep in the well to come up with that many fountains of association.
(oops.. wrong era)[This message has been edited by maryjane (edited 10-29-2020).]
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williegoat
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OCT 29, 08:29 PM
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Most people gave up on fountain pens while I was just a little Sheaffer.
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williegoat
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OCT 29, 08:38 PM
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Apparently, Marcel Bich was into yacht racing. If he was competitive, it could be said that he had a good pen man ship.
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