subject: The Evolution of Printing [print this page] Since the earliest days of civilization, printing has been used - in various forms - as a method of communication. Today, most homes and just about every office have a printer, but things haven't always been so simple.
Naturally, one of the single most important events in the history of printing was the creation of the printing press. This was created in 1439 by a goldsmith named Johann Gutenberg. The introduction of the press revolutionized the printing industry, increasing the speed at which books could be printed. Naturally by today's standards Gutenberg's revolutionary machine would be incredibly slow, but for the time it was a revolution and one that sped up both the speed of printing and also the speed at which print could be used as a more widespread communication tool.
However, despite the kick-start Gutenberg's creation brought to the printing industry, the printing press and the printing revolution remained largely unchanged until the 1800s. At this time a new type of printing press was introduced. Unlike its predecessors, which were typically made of wood, the new steam press was made of cast iron. This new press required less force to print and although not as fast as printers today, managed to produce around 250 prints per hour.
In 1814 another new kind of printing press was introduced, known as the stop cylinder press. This press was powered by a steam engine and was first put into use at the Times of London. The press worked off two cylinders, revolving one after the other in a to-and-fro motion. The addition of the extra cylinder meant that The Times were able to double the number of impressions and able to print at 1,100 sheets per hour.
By 1844, Richard Hoe, an American businessman had patented a type of revolving press which enabled a press to print more than 8,000 sheets every hour. Within two decades, thanks to the roll-fed rotary press invented by William Bullock, printing machines were able to print 12,000 complete newspapers per hour.
Today printing has become a much more mainstream affair. Printing is no longer limited to newspapers and publishing corporations, but is widely used for marketing purposes in just about every industry thanks to a reduction in the cost of equipment and printer ink.
From small beginnings with a wooden press, to today's newspaper printers which can produce close to 90,000 newspapers per hour, printing has come from an activity that was limited solely to newspapers into the mainstream.
