Dot Matrix

I was watching SE7EN today and they printed out a library list on a dot matrix printer. What a startling flashback for something so simple.


It made me realize how much I miss that mechanical, steady scratching sound of the print head pacing back and forth, back and forth. Watching the paper shift incrementally, scrolling through the roller, it was less like watching something print, and more like the words were already on the page, slowly being revealed, a centimeter at a time. When I was very young I used to watch intently as the words from the computer were pressed into the paper. I had no computer and didn't know anything about how they worked, but now that I do I still get that small pang of excitement every time I hear that digital screeching sound.