In this series as well as examining keys which typewriters have and computers do not we also look at the opposite. We have already established that many typewriters, usually small portable ones, did not have a key for the number 1. Therefore, as it is common for the exclamation mark to share the number 1 on computer keyboards, it should be no surprise that many typewriters also did not have a way to type !
So, how could angry letter writers of their day make their points without liberal use of the exclamation mark? Well there was a clever way to cheat. Unlike on computer screens, on a typewriter multiple characters can be printed in the same location. So to create a ! you simply type a full stop . then backspace then type a dash '.
