Moore Business Forms Continuous Forms Planning Rule
date: label: date made
content: mid 20th century
notes: label: Description
content: This steel rule was used in the design of early computer printouts produced by dot matrix printers. The rule has a scale of 18" along one side, divided to 1/32" for the first two inches and then to 1/16". Each inch division, up to 17, is labeled with a number of punch cards, starting with 140 cards at 1" and going up to 2,380 cards. A hole 3/16" in diameter is placed at each 1/4" and 3/4" mark up to 11-1/4" (23 holes total). These were used for setting pinfeed holes down the side of the forms for continuous feeding.
label: Description
content: The center of the instrument has four holes 7/16" in diameter and four holes 5/8" in diameter. These are for designing holes to be punched in forms for filing. The front of the rule also has a scale of inches divided to 1/10", with subdivisions numbered from 1 to 130. This scale is a printer spacing chart, allowing the user to determine the space required for fields to be printed on the form, since each character required 1/10" of space. The rule is marked: MOORE BUSINESS FORMS, INC. Branches across the (/) United States & Canada. It is also marked at the right end: MADE IN U.S.A.
label: Description
content: The back of the rule has a scale of inches divided to 1/12" along one edge. Along the other edge is a scale in units of 5/32" that is numbered from 1 to 100. A scale labeled "RG" has divisions the same size and is numbered from 1 to 45. This side is also marked: MOORE BUSINESS FORMS, INC. Branches across the (/) United States & Canada.
label: Description
content: According to the donor, the 18"-size rule was considered more desirable than a 16" such as the example in the collections made by Graphic Technology (see 2006.0174.04). Fanfold paper such as that manufactured by Moore Business Forms was used from the mid-1950s into the 2000s, in association with both punched card equipment and computers.
label: Description
content: Reference: "RR Donnelley Business Forms History," http://www.rrdonnelley.com/print-solutions/forms/history.aspx.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States
topic: label: Subject
content: Mathematics
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Mathematics
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content: Computers & Business Machines
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content: Science & Mathematics
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content: Scale Rules
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Benjamin S. Mulitz
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2006.0174.03
label: catalog number
content: 2006.0174.03
label: accession number
content: 2006.0174
objectType: label: Object Name
content: scale rule
label: Object Name
content: rule
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: steel (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: .1 cm x 45.8 cm x 3.2 cm; 1/32 in x 18 1/32 in x 1 1/4 in