[GreenKeys] Bell vs apostrophe - Baudot/ITA2 on Model 14 machines

[Jim Haynes]

All I know is that Western Union machines use J bell and Bell System and
U.S. government machines use S bell.  As does Associated Press and most
other non-WU machines.

The origin of this is that at one time Associated Press wanted two bell
signals, one to ring at the machine and the other to ring remotely in
the editor's office.  Figs S and Figs J were assigned to these two bells,
one operating the local bell mechanically and the other operating a
contact to ring the remote bell.  I don't know when this requirement went
away and how it came to be that one company went in one direction and the
rest went in the other.

I don't think you can judge the age of a machine by its keytops.  W.U.
seems to have preferred the celluloid keytops.  The spring-cushion green
keytops date back to at least the Model 11, and seem to have been made
by a company in New York for retrofit to typewriters.  Apparently Teletype
decided to make them standard on all the products.  Or rather a "standard
option", what they would furnish if the customer didn't specify the
celluloid keytops.  I've seen a Model 15 with celluloid keytops.  There
was also something called pneumatic keytops that I have never seen.

Figs-H is one of the more variable characters - sometimes the # sign,
sometimes the British Pound sign, sometimes the word STOP for motor
stop.  Other characters have to be made non-printing for such purposes
as form feed, horizontal tab, vertical tab, and reperforator control.


jhhaynes at earthlink dot net