We brought the Buchstabengewitter-framework to the next level: Using it as a live typewriting tool, which marries the old mechanical printing technology with the digital age. With the installation Infi nite Typetrooper we are bridging the gap from static metal type to movable lettershapes. Our latest installation enables you to experience the Buchstabengewitter-Typeface with a haptic tactile interface – an old Rheinmetall Typewriter from the 1920s, generates animated glyphs on the screen.

It works as a personal type kit, within a generative framework, which can be changed by any designer who is able to tweak vectors. We used the Arduino based USB Typewriter Kit by Jack Zylkin to convert this machine into an USB keyboard and give it a long deserved upgrade after almost a century. Th e keys are send to a PC that is running the Buchstabengewitter vvvv-patch that animates the glyphs. The device can be used for different applications: to generate your own typeanimations in realtime, as a live commenting tool for talks and events via projections or to use the typewriter as a gaming interface.