Twittertape: Old-Timey Steampunk Twitter Machine That Prints Tweets

There have been a lot of innovative builds and apps created over the years that decipher or print tweets. One of the most popular ones was that app that launched a few years ago that prints tweets on rolls of toilet paper. The inspiring little build I’d like to share with you today is a Twitter machine that prints tweets old-timey style. It’s a steampunk design called the Twittertape Machine, and it will make Twitter look old fashioned in a beautifully designed way.

This Twitter machine prints a feed of your tweets and mentions. According to Vimeo, “The design is inspired by the ticker tape machines of the late 1800s that kept the rich and famous up to date with the movement of their stocks and shares.”

What makes this so interesting is that it’s a standalone device. You don’t need to connect it to a computer to make it work. All it needs is power and an Ethernet connection connected to the Internet. This little Twitter machine will check your Twitter every 30 seconds, and if you’ve sent out any tweets or received any mentions, it will print them on the tape and spit them out.

The Twittertape Machine was created by Adam Vaughan. He paid close attention to every detail, and even the video he created below looks like an old movie. You can click over to his website for more details. He is currently working on a version 2, which will have wi-fi instead of the Ethernet connection. He also wants to include a control panel so his machine will be able to print not only tweets, but updates from Facebook and other RSS feeds. It would be fun to just set this on a table at home and watch it print. Great job, Adam!