Morse code enthusiasts can be picky about their paddles. After all, they are the interface between the man and the machine, and experienced telegraphers can recognize each other by their “hands”. So ...

The first message sent by Morse code's dots and dashes across a long distance traveled from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore on Friday, May 24, 1844-175 years ago. It signaled the first time in human ...

In case you’re not a former sailor or ham radio operator, the above is not a typesetting snafu. Those are the dashes and dots (or “dits” and “dahs,” as telegraph operators often vocalize them) that ...

Morse code is a method of encoding words that was invented in the 19th Century as a way of transmitting messages over long distances. This was before the era of telephones and way before smartphones!

Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. is a former senior reviewer who worked at The Verge from 2011 until May 2025. His coverage areas included audio, ...

Larry Kahaner - Larry Kahaner is an American journalist and author who resides in Bethesda, Maryland. Steve Galchutt shows off the custom-made low-wattage transmitter he uses on his treks. Chase Brush ...

WILMINGTON, N.C. - Dots and dashes darted through the airwaves long before text or instant messages, even before e-mail, cell phones or telephone lines. While these new forms of communication ...

Morse code is a communication system developed by Samuel Morse, an American inventor, in the late 1830s. The code uses a combination of short and long pulses – dots and dashes, respectively – that ...

[Jason Allemann] built a Mindstorms Telegraph Machine that packs so many cool details that HaD is about to have a fit. First off, It’s a drawbot able to write letters, a difficult feat given a lack of ...

Morse Code Day, observed on April 27, honors Samuel Morse, the inventor of Morse code, and celebrates this groundbreaking method of communication. Before modern technology, messages took weeks to ...