TypewriterKing wrote:

With a proportional spacing typewriter, the carriage does snap with each letter--only sometimes, like with the letter I, it snaps two units. With the letter M or W, it snaps five units. On average, it snaps three units. It may seem erratic, but it moves with the measured space of each individual letter instead of one space for all letters. Believe me, it is doing the right thing.

Yup! I understand that. I am just speculating why it seems to me to be moving at its own maddening pace, like an annoying person who always manages to arrive just in time though they cannot be rushed."I got here, didn't I"? To complicate matters of course some typewriters do ooze along because they need cleaning so I am not 100% sure this one doesn't, though it does not bunch the letters anymore than it is supposed to at my typing speed.

Regarding touch typing, yes, I just think you might be right.  I guess one should not underestimate the top speed of hunt and peck - it works for xylophonists - though I did mention seeing a manual for the Smith Premier 2 which included recommended fingering, which implies something like touch typing. And I did not know QWERTY was designed to slow people down! 

Regarding typewriter prices, I guess I was fortunate to acquire a small hoard of wonderful machines at moderate prices - already a year later I can see a permanent upward price trend though still occasional bargains to be had with underappreciated standards. At least 30% wonderful machines, now the problem is how to get those other 70% out of my house 

I combined my remarks on all your remarks in one place to limit to one thread the perpetual embarrassment of always having made the last remark. You keep those super-powerful thought waves under control sir, and don't let them leak out of your house where they may cause thoughtomagetic pulse damage to unprotected brains!!!

A Mechanical Engineer, I am not. But, after thirty years in the business of machining parts and fixin' stuff I can tell you how to accurately measure something. Still, you are going to have to decide how to weight your numbers to make them mean anything in terms of 'Do I like this ?'/ 'Do I dislike this?' and an explanation of why it is that way must accompany all weighting. Typewriter development and marketing were big, big business and in the early developmental days nothing was left to chance. I don't mean in the very early experimental days but, rather the time when the best ideas were being refined for the market and for usability.

It seems that, like sewing machines, typewriters plateaued in their designs and features early. To be sure there were still innovations yet to be had but, all the new developments past the basic writing machine seem to be mostly market driven, until the only thing left to do to stay competitive was to make them cheaper and cheaper witch has brought us to where we are today.
I don't see too many forums devoted to the latest and greatest in digital typing today.
I have a Brother EM 501 and a EM 611 that both work fine. I used them for typing on a roll of paper because of the stationary carriage but, as it has been noted, the same continuous typing could be done on a computer and printed off without interruption. However, most of us here agree, those kind of machines just have no soul, and I am not worshiping my machines but, I do like to be inspired by them when I use them. I think many of us feel a certain connection to some kinds of machines because as we use them, we understand how they work, "I push down here and that do-dad flies up and slams into that bit over there, simple." With the fully electronic device we just don't know for sure what will happen next, we can really only assume we know. Even though we may get the desired response in a rapid and somewhat continuous manner, aren't we all just a little bit surprised and relieved in the end when that electronic thing gives us what we expected and hoped for ?
I'm not afraid of electronics, I just don't like things that I can't fix myself.
I understand all the sensors and encoders and logic chips that make the things work, it's just another c n c machine to me.
I just don't feel any kinship to the digital typewriter. There is nothing in it that moves in the same manor that I do.
"Hey, it is heavy, and as a matter of fact, it ain't my Brother....."
We, as a species, have abandoned what was a great machine and a great industry for what is cheap and easy.   
 

There can be a big difference between "basic" design and "refined" design, and I much prefer the latter. While we did have the QWERTY keyboard, a metal frame resting on four feet, segment shift, and an indexed platen by the early 1900s, I very much appreciate interchangeable keyslugs, spring-loaded keytops, enclosed housings (thoughI miss the machinery, I like the dust protection and noise reduction), quick-change ribbons, quick-change margins (when they work), etc.

I would argue for a higher plateau in the 1950s and '60s for 'most everything mechanical, including cars and typewriters. 1918 didn't even have electric starters for cars nor synchromesh transmissions. Camera lenses didn't have anti-reflection coatings until mid-20th century yet could you say the basic design plateaued in the 1840s and just enjoyed frills ever since? You could just as well say the basic design of the automobile was set by 1257 (say) with four wheels on a rigid frame with a power source in front and controlled by an operator for acceleration, steering, and stopping.

I suppose the key here is to find a time when an industry has developed all the features that you personally find indispensable and then call that the Golden Age.

I have this challenge that I put out at slow dinner parties: "What inventions made after 1800 would you absolutely not want to live without?" I, personally, can think of only three. The typewriter is not one of them, but I have heard some people include television. (I'm not calling 1800 my golden age, though!) Clearly, communication was well handled by the quill pen and the typewriter was just a refinement.

Ehhhh, it's all too personal to be argued seriously, but to argue in fun is great fun.

I know this thread has already answered it, but  two words:
1. Ugly
2. Electric

Repartee, I think that the title of 'typist' has just been traded for 'data entry associate ' and it would seem to be a much worse place to work, in great part, because so much more is expected from the same number of hours under the guise of greater efficiency through advanced technology.
I just don't see a real honest reason for the complete demise of the manual typewriter.
I'm talking about a good one here not this TSO (Typewriter Shaped Object ) that is seen for sale for some organization called the memory keepers (?) I wonder what it would cost to build the favorite typewriter of anyone's choice, in low production numbers today ?
$ 1500. (US) for an Underwood 5  would be a steal if I could be assured it would give good service and be serviceable for the next 100 years.
Who buys a new car for $ 30-$50k and expects to have it for more than 3-5 years?
Who pays $50k for a car believing they will keep it for the rest of their life? 
Andy Rooney is probably only one of very many that made their living on the same Underwood 5 all his working life.  (so I read some where.)
The high quality typewriter is just like the high quality home sewing machine in respect to its demise.
They didn't outlive their usefulness, they where forced out.....