Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing

Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing is an application software program designed to teach touch typing. Released in late 1987 by The Software Toolworks, the program aimed to enhance users' typing skills through a series of interactive lessons and games.

Mavis Beacon is an entirely fictional character, created for marketing purposes.

Background
Founded by Les Crane, Walt Bilofsky, and Mike Duffy, The Software Toolworks was known for its Chessmaster 2000, a chess simulator. Norm Worthington and Mike Duffy also played a role in the program's development.

The original photograph used to depict Mavis Beacon was that of Haitian-born model Renee L'Esperance. The name "Mavis" was derived from Mavis Staples, the lead vocalist for the Staple Singers, and the surname "Beacon" was chosen for its association with a guiding light. Les Crane, the former talk-show host who was a partner in The Software Toolworks during its early years, played a role in creating the persona of Mavis Beacon.

Development
The program's early versions supported both the traditional QWERTY keyboard layout and the alternative Dvorak Simplified Keyboard layout. Since its initial release in 1987, Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing has undergone numerous iterations. The 2011 Ultimate Mac Edition by Software MacKiev introduced two-player competitive typing network games, integration with iTunes, Dvorak keyboard support, practice typing song lyrics, RSS news feeds, and classic novels. In 2021, Encore, Inc. released Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing 2020.

Sales
In 1999, the series had sold over six million copies. In 2000, two products from the franchise were on the Top Selling Educational Software list. Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing 10.0 is in the fourth position, while Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing 5.0 is ranked eighth.

Distributions of the software include MS-DOS, Apple II, Commodore 64, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, Mac OS, Microsoft Windows, Palm OS, and Amiga.

Documentary
In 2024, a documentary premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, which investigates who is Mavis Beacon. Turns out that the image of a corporately attired Black woman on the software packaging, was not of someone named Mavis Beacon, but rather a Haitian model named Renee L'Esperance. She was paid $500 for posing for the marketing photo, wasn't involved in the development or the sales of the software and did not share in any of the presumably significant profits generated by the product. Ms. L'Esperance herself neither appears in nor is directly quoted in the documentary.

Gameplay
Users can find themselves racing a virtual car by accurately typing words that appear on the screen. The program also includes typing drills that present users with passages of text to type out, which provides a comprehensive overview of their progress. Successful completion of lessons and tests can result in the achievement of certificates.

Reception
The New York Times technology writer Peter Lewis notes its potential to improve typing skills. Compute! magazine's review in 1989 supports the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard.

Sequels
Amiga Format's Paul Tyrrell praised its user-friendly design. Nick Veitch of CU Amiga noted that the program was more interesting than traditional educational packages. Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Version 5 was described as a "well-polished program" by Superkids.