Sholes and Glidden typewriter length. The redesigned platen also introduced the modern spacing functionality (horizontal and axial movement providing letter and line spacing, respectively). The cylindrical platen became "an indispensable part of every standard [typewriter]". By the end of 1872, the appearance and function of the typewriter had assumed the form that would become standard in the industry and remain largely unchanged for the next century. Although the machine possessed a cylindrical platen and what was essentially a QWERTY keyboard, two design elements that would later become essential were lacking: the ability to write in upper and lowercase letters and "visible" print. Although the
Typewriter in the Sky by Harlan Ellison, "Typewriter in the Sky" is compared to "Purple Rose of Cairo", "I bet if L. Ron Hubbard had written "Purple Rose of Cairo" they'd have given it a Hugo ... I mean, it is sort of a hip, updated version of "Typewriter in the Sky"." Gary Westfahl quoted Hubbard's work in a book of noteworthy science fiction quotations, "Science Fiction Quotations: From the Inner Mind to the Outer Limits" (2005). Writing for "Locus Online", Gary Westfahl compared the screenplay of the 2006 film "Stranger than Fiction" to Hubbard's story, and commented, "In taking its premise into this