8-Bit Graffiti

does this really need a title?, originally uploaded by Bernat_83.

Fixed-width, or monospace, fonts wouldn't exist if not for the invention of the typewriter. While many people claim to have invented the first typewriter it was first manufactured in Central New York. L.C. Smith, Corona, and Morse Chain Company were among the first to build typewriters for the general public.

Manual typewriters used these fixed-width fonts to simplify the key-to-print machinery. These fonts were adopted by early word processing programs and redrawn to for dot-matrix printers.

Nostalgic feelings run deep for these digital relics such as this Graffiti example, ASCII, and other 8-bit art.

Better than Recycling: Inverse Manufacture

This is genius - it could precipitate a revolution in manufactured goods. At its core inverse manufacturing means products whose components are interchangeable amongst various models and within the product line. For example: parts in your copier might also be used in your printer or your fax machine. And these same parts will meet specifications for future models, too. It is the opposite of obsolescence and forced replacement and the dawn of a "repair and maximize" approach.

Read more about it. (Note: I mentioned copiers because the only firm I know practicing this is Fuji Xerox.)