What is a “ditto machine?” History

What is a “ditto machine?”
A spirit duplicator (also referred to as a Ditto machine in the United States or Banda machine in the United
Kingdom) was a low-volume printing method used mainly by schools and churches. Sheets printed on such a
machine were sometimes called ditto sheets, or just dittos in the U.S. (an example of a genericized trademark).
The term “spirit duplicator” refers to the alcohols which were a major component of the solvents used as “inks”
in these machines. They are sometimes confused with the mimeograph, which is actually a different technology.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_duplicator
placeholder image from web
History
The spirit duplicator was invented in 1923 by Wilhelm Ritzerfeld. The best-known manufacturer in the United
States was Ditto Corporation of Illinois, while copiers available in the United Kingdom were commonly manufactured
by the Block & Anderson company, under their “Banda” brand. In both cases the trademark became a
generic name for both the copiers and the process in their respective markets.
The thermofax machine was introduced by 3M in the late 1960s and could make a spirit master from an ordinary
typewritten or handwritten sheet. The resulting print quality was very poor but the machines were popular
because of their convenience.
Spirit duplicator technology gradually fell into disuse starting in the 1970s after the availability of low-cost,
high-volume xerographic copiers; by the mid 1990s, the use of the technology was rare. The technology remains
useful where electrical power is unavailable or where the only remaining originals of legacy documents
requiring duplication are in “spirit master” form. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_duplicator
Making duplicate copies and computer printouts of things no one wanted even one of in the first place is giving
America a new sense of purpose.
Andy Rooney
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/duplicate.html
placeholder images from web

How does it work?
The duplicator used two-ply “spirit masters”. The first sheet could be typed, drawn, or written upon. The second
sheet was coated with a layer of wax that had been impregnated with one of a variety of colorants. The pressure
of writing or typing on the top sheet transferred colored wax to its back side, producing a mirror image of
the desired marks. (This acted like a reverse of carbon paper.) The two sheets were then separated, and the first
sheet was fastened onto the drum of the (manual or electrical) machine, with the waxed side out.
There is no ink used in spirit duplication. As the paper moves through the printer, the solvent is spread across
each sheet by an absorbent wick. When the solvent-impregnated paper comes into contact with the waxed original,
it dissolves just enough of the pigmented wax to print the image onto the sheet as it goes under the printing
drum. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_duplicator
http://vimeo.com/4106454 http://vimeo.com/4120558 placeholder image from web
Purple color
The usual wax color was aniline purple, a cheap, durable pigment that provided good contrast, but masters were
also manufactured in red, green, blue, black, and the hard-to-find orange, yellow, and brown. All except black
reproduced in pastel shades: pink, mint, sky blue, etc. Ditto had the useful ability to print multiple colors in a
single pass, which made it popular with cartoonists. Multi-colored designs could be made by swapping out the
waxed second sheets; for instance, shading in only the red portion of an illustration while the top sheet was
positioned over a red-waxed second sheet. This was possible because the pungent-smelling duplicating fluid
(typically a 50/50 mix of isopropanol and methanol) was not ink, but a clear solvent. http://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/Spirit_duplicator
placeholder image from web
http://www.spartantailgate.com/forums/msu-red-cedar-message-board/387238-ditto-machine.html
The aroma of pages fresh off the duplicator combined with the cool touch from the evaporating alcohol was
a memorable feature of school life for those who attended in the spirit duplicator era. A pop culture reference

to this is to be found in the film Fast Times At Ridgemont High. At one point a teacher hands out a duplicated
exam paper and every student in the class immediately lifts it to his or her nose and inhales. http://en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/Spirit_duplicator
Ridgemont High ditto sniff clip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9huSs0g67c&p=60619B6910FF298F&playnext=1&index=10
Thoughts on the nature of copies
dit·to noun
1 : a thing mentioned previously or above —used to avoid repeating a word —often symbolized by inverted
commas or apostrophes
2 : a ditto mark
Origin of DITTO
Italian ditto, detto, past participle of dire to say, from Latin dicere — more at diction
First Known Use: circa 1639
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ditto
dit·to vt
1 : to repeat the action or statement of
2 [from Ditto, a trademark] : to copy (as printed matter) on a duplicator
Examples of DITTO
First Known Use of DITTO 1725
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ditto
du·pli·cate noun \-kət\
1a : either of two things exactly alike and usually produced at the same time or by the same process
b : an additional copy of something (as a book or stamp) already in a collection
2: one that resembles or corresponds to another : counterpart
3: two identical copies —used in the phrase in duplicate
Examples of DUPLICATE
In case you lose your keys, keep a set of duplicates somewhere safe.
First Known Use of DUPLICATE 1532
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/duplicate
copy noun
1 : an imitation, transcript, or reproduction of an original work (as a letter, a painting, a table, or a dress)
2 : one of a series of especially mechanical reproductions of an original impression; also : an individual example
of such a reproduction

3 archaic : something to be imitated : model
4 a : matter to be set especially for printing
b : something considered printable or newsworthy —used without an article
c : text especially of an advertisement
5 : duplicate 1a
Examples of COPY
The novel has sold more than a million copies.
She got a job writing advertising copy.
All copy must be submitted by 5 p.m.
Origin of COPY
Middle English copie, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin copia, from Latin, abundance — more at copious
First Known Use: 14th century
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/copy
Duplicates, true form
Plato’s Cave
Plato imagines a group of people who have lived chained in a cave all of their lives, facing a blank wall. The
people watch shadows projected on the wall by things passing in front of a fire behind them, and begin to ascribe
forms to these shadows. According to Plato, the shadows are as close as the prisoners get to seeing reality.
He then explains how the philosopher is like a prisoner who is freed from the cave and comes to understand that
the shadows on the wall are not constitutive of reality at all, as he can perceive the true form of reality rather
than the mere shadows seen by the prisoners. Link to allegory text: http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/platoscave.
html
Cave video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69F7GhASOdM
“I don’t need a friend who changes when I change and who nods when I nod; my shadow does that much better.”
Plutarch
http://www.quotesdaddy.com/tag/Ditto
Captain Caveman and Son: The Ditto Master
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSDJpmQwDVA

Cloning
A man’s desire for a son is usually nothing but the wish to duplicate himself in order that such a remarkable pattern
may not be lost to the world.
Helen Rowland
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/duplicate.html
Success is dangerous. One begins to copy oneself, and to copy oneself is more dangerous than to copy others. It
leads to sterility.
Pablo Picasso
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/copy_4.html
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs
in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology
refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments (molecular cloning), cells (cell cloning), or organisms.
The term also refers to the production of multiple copies of a product such as digital media or software.
The term clone is derived from κλῶνος, the Greek word for “trunk, branch”, referring to the process whereby a
new plant can be created from a twig. In horticulture, the spelling clon was used until the twentieth century; the
final e came into use to indicate the vowel is a “long o” instead of a “short o”.[1][2] Since the term entered the
popular lexicon in a more general context, the spelling clone has been used exclusively.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloning
Pokemon Ditto
http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Ditto_(Pokémon)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTSR6bu0Nq0
Bad artists copy. Good artists steal.
Pablo Picasso
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/copy.html
I’m starting to see players copy what I do. I’m flattered.
Dennis Rodman
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/copy_2.html

Improv Everywhere: Human Mirror Subway
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MBBr-a2KnM&feature=channel
Ditto testimonials
Kenny Chan said...
Cool, Im really glad someone is trying trying to make use of a spirit duplicator still. I’ve loved working with
these machines since helping my teachers ‘run off’ exams on them. Many online articles mention how poor the
quality of the copies could be. MANY people who used them didn’t know how. Usually the more expensive
versions had pressure controls- the bottom rubber wheel would press tighter against the drum (large cylinder)
and the right manipulation/amount of ‘ink’ on the wick would wet the paper enough to get great copies. My
teacher didn’t even care she’d given me the test master to copy for my own class, because I made really clear
prints. Anyway, that was a bit nostalgic. Have fun! lol
AUGUST 9, 2010 10:35 PM
http://peteglover.blogspot.com/2009/07/ditto.html
Demi Moore said:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qs-SZQ7sSA
The best images arrived when I really soaked the paper in fluid. I made a pretty big mess, wasted a lot of paper,
screamed curses more than once, came out with a few great images (I’ll post them soon) and probably shortened
my life span by a year or two. I probably have just enough newsprint and duplicating fluid for one more try.
Pete Glover
http://peteglover.blogspot.com/2009/07/ditto.html
I love the smell of Ditto in the morning! Smells like... grammar school.
http://theyalwayscomeback.blogspot.com/2008/02/ditto-machine.html
In grade school we used to get handouts made with the ditto machine. If they were freshly run copies, most of
us kids would gleefully put the sheet to our face and inhale deeply...
http://theyalwayscomeback.blogspot.com/2008/02/ditto-machine.html
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t
know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Lucy
http://theyalwayscomeback.blogspot.com/2008/02/ditto-machine.html