Abstract: Automatic writing systems and methods of word processing therefor are provided in accordance with the teachings of the present invention wherein a central processor and a plurality of peripherals including at least keyboard means, printer means, buffer means and means for recording data on a record media are each connected to a common data bus, a common status bus and a common instruction word bus and a printer data storage peripheral means is connected to said common data bus and said common instruction word bus. Alphameric character data, format data, and function data may be entered from the keyboard and the presence of such data is indicated to the central processor on the common status bus. Upon receipt of a data presence condition, program control is initiated by the central processor calculated to achieve the designated function or functions with the alphameric or format data presented.

Abstract: This invention is directed to language translating apparatus and methods therefor which act, under program control, to enable automatic writing systems of the type disclosed herein, to be simply and easily adapted to operate with keyboard input peripherals which are standard outside the United States. The language translator apparatus herein permits the automatic writing system to be modified to accept the standard keyboard and print wheel arrangement employed in a plurality of countries merely by its inclusion as a peripheral and adapting the keys on the keyboard for a given country. When data is entered into the system at the keyboard, the language translator peripheral, which includes a plurality of translator ROM's, is active to translate the resulting input codes into recordable system codes to which the automatic writing system as a whole may respond.