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Is Handwriting History?

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Re: Is Handwriting History?

#21

Post by toomanybeersies »

I find that the more time I spend around computers, the more I actually want to hand write things. I've recently gotten into the habit of keeping notebooks for various things, I even wrote a letter by hand to someone (something I haven't done since I was a child).

There's something so permanent about handwriting, compared to an ephemeral computer file. There's also the fact that notebooks don't run out of battery, or need signal.

As far as actual penmanship goes though, I have pretty terrible handwriting, it's getting better. For some reason, buying a fountain pen has markedly improved my handwriting.

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#22

Post by kurtisc »

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #15
jrimbault wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Aside: Teaching kids cursive also still has value in teaching fine motor skills. IMO, it's the most important thing, we have to teach fine motor skills very early to little humans if we want them to be full humans.

> if we want them to be full humans This is a circular argument. You just punted the discussion to "what does it mean to be a full human and why is handwriting a necessary part of that." I ride horses, as people have for millennia; I would never claim nonriders are less than human.

It's not a circular argument because it wasn't an argument at all. It was a fairly conservative opinion.

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#23

Post by qrbLPHiKpiux »

I carry a pen, and a neatly, uniformed folded piece of paper in my wallet. Folded to open like a book, accordion like. When I'm done with it, I open it up and file that sheet of paper for a while just In case I need it. My pen is a G2 0.7 in a machined brass body.

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#24

Post by trentmb »

cooper12 wrote: post #16
TeMPOraL wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You must be a very slow typist :). I can write on a keyboard much faster than on paper, and I'll bet I can outpace any regular person in this way. One could try and compete by employing some stenography shenanigans, but at that point I'll just enable abbrev mode in my Emacs and beat them again. Where typing fails me, though, is anything other than writing regular, linear text. The moment I expect needing to write a l…

> Writing by hand is amazingly flexible Once, as an exercise I attempted to transcribe my Statistics notes into LaTeX. I was perfectly capable of inserting the proper math notation, but I never realized how versatile layouts can be so easily made on paper. Things like alternating writing sizes (doable in digital, but usually ends up looking horrible), varying levels of indentation and line height, margin notes, aside…

> but I never realized how versatile layouts can be so easily made on paper.

Until you need to change them.

It's significantly easier to change formatting on a typed document than handwritten.

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#25

Post by nr152522 »

I'd say it's as much history as cooking food over a fire. Modern cooking appliances make it easier/more practical but there's nothing quite like a good BBQ...

:)

Have you got a BBQ? My answer to such a question, following some clumsy digging in my kitchen and backyard, is increasingly no. Sometimes, embarrassment giving way to defensiveness, I wonder why anyone bothers to ask. For years a “fire” has sufficed for my cooking of food; it’s months since I chargrilled some meat. Presented with a gas hob, more and more super markets point me to ready meals to cook with my microwave. (I worry that the content of my burger bears no resemblance to real ingredients, but on the flip side—ha! flip!—I’ve begun losing all sense of what that indication of my insides might look like.)

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#26

Post by arkitaip »

qrbLPHiKpiux wrote: post #23

I carry a pen, and a neatly, uniformed folded piece of paper in my wallet. Folded to open like a book, accordion like. When I'm done with it, I open it up and file that sheet of paper for a while just In case I need it. My pen is a G2 0.7 in a machined brass body.

The G2 is absolutely amazing as a product in that it's far superior to the competition (for my needs at least) and still reasonably priced.

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#27

Post by arkitaip »

sametmax wrote: post #19
TeMPOraL wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You must be a very slow typist :). I can write on a keyboard much faster than on paper, and I'll bet I can outpace any regular person in this way. One could try and compete by employing some stenography shenanigans, but at that point I'll just enable abbrev mode in my Emacs and beat them again. Where typing fails me, though, is anything other than writing regular, linear text. The moment I expect needing to write a l…

You must have a very limited way of expressing your self :) I can express with a pen using symbols, drawing, spacing, diagrams, flow... Too many people confuse taking notes with transcription, or forget to take in consideration the cost of context switching.

I've tried many UI sketching/prototyping apps over the years and keep coming back to pen and paper. It's not just the speed but the ephemeral nature of paper that invites to exploration and mistakes. Using Balsamiq or any other app seems much heavier in some way...

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#28

Post by tnecniv »

LyndsySimon wrote: post #9
tnecniv wrote: post #5

I always carry a pen. I prefer handwriting to taking electronic notes and have never found a touch device I'd rather write on than paper. Aside: Teaching kids cursive also still has value in teaching fine motor skills.

> Aside: Teaching kids cursive also still has value in teaching fine motor skills. It's also been shown to be helpful for students with dyslexia.

It's also arguably faster since you aren't lifting the pen from the paper. I don't write in "formal" cursive, but there's definitely cursive elements in my (cruddy) penmanship, and I know a lot of people who write similarly.

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#29

Post by Pulcinella »

arkitaip wrote: post #27
sametmax wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You must have a very limited way of expressing your self :) I can express with a pen using symbols, drawing, spacing, diagrams, flow... Too many people confuse taking notes with transcription, or forget to take in consideration the cost of context switching.

I've tried many UI sketching/prototyping apps over the years and keep coming back to pen and paper. It's not just the speed but the ephemeral nature of paper that invites to exploration and mistakes. Using Balsamiq or any other app seems much heavier in some way...

To me handwriting and sketching feels more responsive. Yes with a software tool you might be able to construct a perfect triangle in a few clicks and then it instantly appears, but my brain interprets all those clicks as lag. The goal is to use my hands to make something appear. All those clicks are moving my hands but nothing is appearing! When I sketch it, the instant my hand moves the pen a line appears. It takes longer to construct the whole triangle, but the process itself is zero latency.

I admit it is not rational but it's just how I feel.

Re: Is Handwriting History?

#30

Post by Pulcinella »

trentmb wrote: post #24
cooper12 wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Writing by hand is amazingly flexible Once, as an exercise I attempted to transcribe my Statistics notes into LaTeX. I was perfectly capable of inserting the proper math notation, but I never realized how versatile layouts can be so easily made on paper. Things like alternating writing sizes (doable in digital, but usually ends up looking horrible), varying levels of indentation and line height, margin notes, aside…

> but I never realized how versatile layouts can be so easily made on paper. Until you need to change them. It's significantly easier to change formatting on a typed document than handwritten.

Yes but I feel that changes when you have something like a diagram. For example, drawing Organic Chemistry mechanisms. Yes you can do them on the computer with ChemDraw and if you need to change something you can, but in practice it feels so slow it's just quicker to cross out your mistake on paper and try again.
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