I don’t have a lot to say about pencils except that they are very useful for crossword puzzles, but I agree with you about the superiority of computers over typewriters. When I started at The Chronicle, we reporters had manual typewriters. (Only the editors had electrics.) We went straight from those to computers, and the superiority was obvious from the get-go, especially for writers and editors worked on deadline. No more cutting and taping bits of paper to move a paragraph. You moved it on the screen and it stayed moved. No more retyping and introducing new errors. I can’t imagine going back.
Come to think of it, I mostly do crosswords on my iPad now.
As an archivist I’ve always preferred pencils over pens not just for professional reasons (no pens allowed near archival materials) but for personal use as well. Whenever I travel I have to plan whether to resort to mechanical pencils or whether I have enough room in my bag to pack my pencil pouch.
I don’t have a lot to say about pencils except that they are very useful for crossword puzzles, but I agree with you about the superiority of computers over typewriters. When I started at The Chronicle, we reporters had manual typewriters. (Only the editors had electrics.) We went straight from those to computers, and the superiority was obvious from the get-go, especially for writers and editors worked on deadline. No more cutting and taping bits of paper to move a paragraph. You moved it on the screen and it stayed moved. No more retyping and introducing new errors. I can’t imagine going back.
Come to think of it, I mostly do crosswords on my iPad now.
As an archivist I’ve always preferred pencils over pens not just for professional reasons (no pens allowed near archival materials) but for personal use as well. Whenever I travel I have to plan whether to resort to mechanical pencils or whether I have enough room in my bag to pack my pencil pouch.