By QQ Staff
 
“The Qwertyverse” is a new project collaboration that we are excited for and proud of. A Collaboration between University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee College of Letters and Science, UWM Libraries, and QWERTYFEST MKE, this project is directed by UWM Professor of English Jason Puskar and consists of mapping, archiving, and collecting oral history related to the rich legacy of the QWERTY keyboard, from the earliest days to the present, from the original inventors to modern users, and from Kenosha to Calcutta.

From The Qwertyverse site:

"This site gathers, commemorates and shares the history of how modern people write, which is to say, by typing on a certain kind of keyboard invented in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1873. The history of the QWERTY keyboard is well known to a modest number of historians, curators and collectors, but too little known by the billions of people world-wide who still depend on it to this day. There are few other artifacts of the Victorian era still in use in something close their original form, and none used so widely.

But every history starts with the recognition that it didn't have to be this way. Things could have come out differently, and if they had, we might be writing on entirely different kinds of machines. There was nothing natural or inevitable about QWERTY, no single reason why it took the form it did, or and no easy explanation for why it has flourished for so long. This archive of QWERTY materials includes a wide range of historical artifacts and contemporary reflections, ranging from digitized documents from the original inventors to oral histories with modern typists. It also maps locations in Milwaukee where the inventors lived and worked, and one day we hope it will map the spread of QWERTY around the globe. 

This archive began as a collaborative project in a graduate seminar in the Department of English of the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, English 885: Humanities for the Public Good. The students and the instructor worked together to shape the project, create and gather materials, interpret some of them, and pass it on to others in the future. This is a living archive that we hope will grow and develop over the years ahead. We welcome your suggestions, items for inclusion, or ideas for improvement."

You can enter The Qwertyverse here: web.uwm.edu/ls-omeka/s/qwerty
 
Visit us at QWERTYFEST MKE Sunday, June 23, 3-4:30pm, in the Rare Books Room on the second floor of Central Library, where project collaborators will show archived items, locations mapped so far, and answer questions about the project. Free event- no registration required.

​This article originally appeared in QWERTY Quarterly #5

See the full QWERTYFEST schedule here: QWERTYFEST 2024 SCHEDULE - QWERTYFEST

By Tea Krulos
 
Computers were an exciting developing technology in the 1980s and 90s, and before the visualization of sharing funny cat photos or arguing with strangers became common, educators saw a way to share lessons with amusing computer games. Students would take a trip to the school computer lab and get a floppy disk with a game that they would navigate using arrow keys and letters as commands.
 
Since these games were played using a QWERTY keyboard, we thought a fun tribute to this era would be to set up a gaming lounge at this year’s QWERTYFEST MKE, so people can try these digital adventures. DarkFusion Systems (read more about them HERE) have partnered with us to set up this experience. We’re still working on the details, but here’s two well-known classics you’ll have a chance to play.
 
The Oregon Trail (1985)
The Oregon Trail was designed to teach a bit of American History, but perhaps the better lesson is how to be prepared in life, because if you go all in on food and not enough medicine or ammo in this game, you will die. The game was first developed in 1971 by Minnesota teachers and evolved into the widely known version of the game released in 1985 for the Apple II computer, with other versions that have followed since, including a more recent version by Gameloft..

​

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? (1985)
This game, designed to help children learn geography, has continued to have an influence on pop culture– the computer game spawned several sequels, a children’s game show (with a very catchy theme song) on PBS, books, board games, and most recently, an animated show on Netflix. The game’s namesake is a dashing, crimson clad, globetrotting thief that leads a network of criminals. You, gumshoe, use geography knowledge to capture them!

On June 7, 1924, a crowd gathered at Milwaukee's Forest Home Cemetery for the unveiling of a new memorial at the gravesite of Christopher Latham Sholes, inventor of the typewriter and the QWERTY keyboard, An early form of crowdsourcing gathered donations to create the memorial. 

Forest Home Cemetery historian Brian Fette notes that Mayor Daniel Hoan presided over the dedication ceremony, which was also attended by Christopher's daughter, Lillian Sholes. 

This history is something that we're proud to celebrate at QWERTYFEST MKE, and part of our activities line-up for Sunday, June 23 (which is National Typewriter Day!) is a "QWERTY Journey" tour at Forest Home Cemetery, which we're offering at 11am and again at 2pm. The tour, led by Fette, not only visits the Sholes Memorial, but talks about other key figures in the invention of the typewriter and the publishing industry so you can learn about the enduring legacy of Milwaukee inventors and purveyors of the written word.

This unique tour was created specifically for QWERTYFEST MKE. Tickets for the tour are $15 and can be purchased here: QWERTYFEST MKE 2024 | Buy Tickets | Ticketbud

You can see a full QF schedule here: QWERTYFEST 2024 SCHEDULE - QWERTYFEST

SEE ALSO: Our roving reporter Ed Makowski talked to Brian Fette in advance of QWERTYFEST last year: "When Milwaukee was the Silicon Valley for Typewriters and more."

Molly Snyder wrote about women's typewriter history in "Women's complicated relationship with the typewriter is not black-and-white." 

Both articles published in QWERTY Quarterly #1 and OnMilwaukee.com.

Illustration by Nick Berg

Tom Hanks is an avid typewriter enthusiast who, since the 1970s, has been a passionate collector. Currently, he owns roughly 250 machines and continues to use them regularly.

Earlier today, QWERTYFEST MKE named Tom Hanks the official spokesperson of the three-day, Milwaukee-based event that celebrates the invention of the typewriter in Milwaukee 150 years ago.

Hanks has no clue of his new title or his prominent role in the world’s only typewriter festival.

“We’ve invited him multiple times through typewritten and digital letters and have not heard back, so it was pretty easy to name him spokesperson because he has no idea this is happening,” says co-organizer Molly Snyder.

As the unknowing spokesperson of QWERTYFEST, happening June 21-23 in Milwaukee, Hanks will be attributed with all sorts of quips he didn’t say. For example:

“QWERTYFEST MKE is the greatest festival of our times and everyone on the planet should consider attending.”

“QWERTYFEST MKE is more than a typewriter festival. It is a revolution of contemporary practices.”

“QWERTYFEST is poised to be the next New York World’s Fair – only based in Milwaukee.”

Tea Krulos, co-organizer of the event, agrees that Hanks is the perfect person to be the spokesperson for QWERTYFEST MKE.

“Hanks has played some really important roles in his life, but the one as spokesperson for QWERTYFEST is undoubtedly going to be his finest yet,” says Krulos. “Too bad he’ll never know about it.” 

If he knew about it, Hanks would probably tell you to check out the full QWERTYFEST MKE schedule and tickets here: QWERTYFEST 2024 SCHEDULE - QWERTYFEST

 By Lisa Floading
 
Spring will soon be sprung, and it’s a great time to spruce up your typers. Think of this like a recipe for happy typing!
 
You Will Need:

• Simple Green (or gentle dishwashing detergent)
• Canned air
• Soft paint brushes
• Soft cloth (old t-shirt) or microfiber towel
• Dental pick
• Rubber Renue and paper towel
• Cotton buds/swabs

 
Areas to Focus On
Type Slugs – the “e” and “a” often need some cleaning. Use the dental pick to gently lift out the debris. Don’t have a dental pick? An open safety pin will work, but consider getting yourself a pick (under $8 on Amazon). You’ll really appreciate the clear type! Type a few pangrams – sentences that use every letter of the alphabet – to see if any other letters need cleaning.
 
Foxes and dogs are great, but here are a few more pangrams: 
The job requires extra pluck and zeal from every young wage earner.
A quart jar of oil mixed with zinc oxide makes a very bright paint.
The public was amazed to view the quickness and dexterity of the juggler.
 
Platen – while some may be blessed with new platens (courtesy of JJ Short or their own ingenuity) most of us have granite-hard platens. Rubber Renue can be used to clean the rubber, and while it will not take off decades, it will give it just a little more “tooth” to grip the paper. It’s not cheap, but it does last forever. Be sure to use it in a well-ventilated area with a mask. Apply the Rubber Renue to a paper towel and turn the platen knob to wipe down the entire surface.
 
Knobs – because of the texture on many carriage knobs (especially lighter colored ones) they can get grimy. Use cotton buds/swabs and a little simple green (or gentle dishwashing liquid mixed 1 part to 4 parts water) to clean them up.
 
Dusty Areas – a can of compressed air here is usually all you need, with a few soft paint brushes, to clean off any areas that have gotten a little dusty. If you do leave your typewriter out, a hand towel makes a great dust cover when not in use.
 
Keytops – lastly, don’t forget to clean off your key tops. Pieces of an old t-shirt work well (as do microfiber towels) combined with some Simple Green or your dishwashing detergent from before. 

This article originally appeared in QWERTY Quarterly #4. Lisa will be leading a "Typewriter 101" workshop at QWERTYFEST MKE on June 22. See a full schedule and ticket links here: QWERTYFEST 2024 SCHEDULE - QWERTYFEST