For me, the flow of ideas through a keyboard is different than through a pen or pencil. There is something about the intimacy of ideas formed on paper by a pen or pencil that makes handwriting more appropriate for keeping a journal, composing a poem, or writing a heartfelt letter to a friend. The shape of the letters, cross outs, additions, and occasional spelling errors (no spellchecker in a pen!) more completely capture the personality of the author.
On the other hand a computer is more fitting for more impersonal ideas such as a school report or business correspondence. I have moderate facility at using a computer despite my mediocre typing, so using a word-processing program is an efficient way to get ideas into written form, more so than by writing with a pen or pencil. Further, in some ways I feel freer, less inhibited when I type. Perhaps it is because ease of writing through a keyboard and computer filters the intimacy out of what I type and separates the real me from the words. Or perhaps it is that words typed on a computer are less substantial than those scribbled on paper because they exist only as electrons until they are saved into a file or printed out. Even then, they appear as soul-less type rather than the particular artifact of manuscript.
I suppose that the conflict between keyboard and pen is a useful metaphor on how to approach other technologies. I try to adapt in this increasingly technological world by deliberately selecting a tool that seems appropriate to how I want to approach a particular task, while avoiding the hard-edged attitude of choosing one path and disparaging the other. I am neither a Luddite nor a technological cornucopian.
An example of my approach is photography. I like the ability to take good photos spontaneously with the camera on my cell phone. I also have a powerful digital camera that can capture high definition images, which I can edit in Photoshop. On the other hand, I often prefer to take B&W photos with a film camera, which I develop and print in a darkroom. With a digital or cell phone camera, I can take many photos quickly and see the results right away. In contrast, with a film camera, the process is much slower, and I don’t see the results for several days at least, until I develop and print them in a darkroom. This is particularly the case with a 4×5 view camera which requires care to compose the shot, focus, and set the aperture accurately—sometimes 15 minutes to set up and take a single photo. With film, I have to be more deliberate, yet, the experience is more intimate. More on this in a future post.