The iPad: What is a Gutenberg moment, anyway?

[Dennis Baron]

On Apr 6, 2010, at 10:24 AM, Joel S. Berson wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
> Subject:      Re: The iPad: What is a Gutenberg moment, anyway?
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>
> Dennis, a few questions/comments:
>
> 1)  Are *all* copies of the First Folio and of
> the Gutenberg bible different from each other?

Not sure about the FF but there are (sometimes significant)
differences for most, if not all; certainly for Gutenberg, since
illustrations were added by hand, each is different.

>
> 2)  Even before the steam press, printing runs
> had expanded from "hundreds" into
> "thousands".  Was there a technological change in
> printing presses between Gutenberg and the 18th century?

So far as I know, not much essential difference: no rotary press yet,
which really increased productivity; the flat press design changed
little till the 19th c, with some improvements in the pressing levers
that sped things up a little.

>
> 3)  Typesetting technology changed between
> Gutenberg and computerized type setting (the Linotype).
>

yes, of course. but machine-set type is also relatively recent. later
19th c? or later?

Dennis


> Joel

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