A mechanical device invented around 1400 in Germany by Johannes Gutenburg that uses pressure to transfer ink onto a surface such as paper.

Gutenburg Printing Press

This covers the time period from the invention of the Gutenburg printing press to the beginning of World War II; characterized by rapid growth of mass media and the spread of information.

New York University

There are three distinct information revolutions:
- Print-based revolution
- Pre-digital revolution
- Digital revolution

History of Information Technology

Rayward, W. Boyd (2014). “Information Revolutions, the Information Society, and the Future of the History of Information Science.” Library Trends, Vol. 62(3), pp. 681-713.

Information Revolutions, the Information Society, and the Future of the History of Information Science

Print-based Revolution

This covers the time period from the end of World War II to the invention of the Internet; characterized by the need to sort and organize the influx of documents from the war. Subject specialists were born during this time.

Pre-digital Revolution

This covers the time period from the invention of the Internet to present day; characterized by the use of electronic technology to organize and disseminate information.

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Related

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