Why writing is better than typing... but can't we have both?
Just watched the movie Swan Song (Apple+) and was really taken by the fictional futuristic Augmented Reality UI. It has a tactile, paper-like texture that I really haven't seen from other sci fi or recent-future visions.
Why is is that we've departed so far from tactile tools, when seeing this ideation of future UI is so appealing and approachable??
Myth: The Stylus is Too Analog
Looking at the evolution of work management tools, or even communication devices - there's been an avoidance of writing and embracing typing -- and now auditory dictation.
"Who wants a stylus? You have to get 'em, put 'em away, you lose 'em. Yuck! Nobody wants a stylus. So let's not use a stylus. "
- Steve Jobs
There's even a chart tracking the instances that Steve Jobs spoke ill of using a writing implement marked against when styluses were released by Apple (later on, of course). But what studies have increasingly been finding, is that writing is more beneficial - which may be the reason that Apple caved and finally released a stylus : )
Writing Activates Different Parts of the Brain
When it comes to memory and connections - writing, typing, and auditory functions all are triggering different parts of the brain. What we'd like to do is focus on how to have deeper memory and retention of what we're learning -- and typing falls short of hitting that spot.
Researchers at the Norwegian Center for Learning Environment and Behavioural Research in Education found that reading handwritten text activates different parts of the brain than reading typed text.
Maximizing memory is a process, one that can’t be rushed. Although typing notes is convenient and quick, handwriting allows learners to activate parts of the brain that typing does not.
"Actually, paper is more advanced and useful compared to electronic documents because paper contains more one-of-a-kind information for stronger memory recall... Digital tools have uniform scrolling up and down and standardized arrangement of text and picture size, like on a webpage. But if you remember a physical textbook printed on paper, you can close your eyes and visualize the photo one-third of the way down on the left-side page, as well as the notes you added in the bottom margin."
-Kuniyoshi Sakai.
An amazing point that Kuniyoshi Sakai brings up is the benefit of complex spatial information on paper, which is lost due to constraints of digital paper. In a study, he found that those who used paper completed note-taking tasks about 25% faster than those on digital tablets or smartphones.
Offloading Before Bed Can Improve Sleep
Another way to add retention to information is to write down all those things before you go to sleep. Speaking from my personal perspective, it not only relieves anxiety so I'm not spinning thinking of what I have to do the next day etc. Technically, it also shifts your brain to transition to a more restful state prior to sleep.
SO - What Tools Enable This Now?
There's a foray into more paperlike tools coming onto the market. We saw the paperwhite by Kindle about a decade ago - but not much since then. There have also been studies that show that less is retained from reading digital copy than physical. I do tend to agree to that because I can power through a kindle version book quickly, but loose a lot of the details. However, it's nice to be able to highlight quotes - as I'm the type to enjoy citing noteworthy mentions.
Remarkable has now come about -- as being that straight bridge from notebook to cloud.
The image above is from their site and shows a host of features. However, I'm reserved because like the studies mentioned above -- it still has constraints:
Limited spacial information
It's only in black and white (massive advocate here for all kinds of colored labels).
Can only see one "page" at a time
My Recommendation: Best for note-taking, sketching, general writing with digital.
An Alternative "hack" for having a digital notebook is the following recipe:
Apple Ipad Pro (has to be Pro to use the Pencil 2)
Apple Pencil 2 - This is your trusty stylus. Has more gesture control, and because of the iPad Pro - it won't pick up your wrist if you rest your hand on the tablet.
Paperlike screen protector - makes the screen matte like paper.
I keep my ipad pro exclusively for notes and planning purposes. I don't use any social or shopping etc -- and this is focused on being my "digital notebook." By using iCloud - I can also connect notes etc to other devices, so I have access across my phone and desktop. The top three apps I would recommend are:
Notability - Invented for university students - but helpful for corporate adults. Allows for annotations on pdfs, note taking, handwriting to text, etc. Can drag and drop images into a document -- it's perfect to use on set for tracking the shot list, references, image selects. I actually picked this up from another producer : )
Procreate - This is your go-to drawing app. If you're not a drawer, that's okay, maybe it's not for you! But it's fantastic and even better when using a matte screen protector.
iScanner - This allows you to scan paper documents and save as PDFs. This is ideal to digitize those pesky mailed documents for storage. Or even scanning a contract to e-sign and email a PDF directly, or save it first.
Coming back to where we started with Swan Song's UI... How can we get there? This is a beautiful and tactile paper-like aesthetic, and based on research around the retention and memory benefits of writing on paper ---
