Reading Topics 2/9

February 9th

Pencils to Pixels

2. People still distrust computers for personal information. It is difficult for people to put their personal information such as addresses, phone numbers or credit card information online because they fear that it will be stolen. People also fear the reliability of computers. Despite the computers ability to save things we still back up all of our files via other methods and external sources incase it crashes. Computer based writing will be taken seriously when blogs and all other forms of writing on the internet are legitimized. If all bloggers were to be taken seriously then maybe so would online writing.

4. The purpose of the discussion on pencils is to show how only the elite used them at first to become legitimized and considered well-educated. As the costs of writing and gaining the materials went down then the usage expanded accordingly. I think that as laptops become available to all parts of the world that technology will be more understood even by the lower classes who do not currently have the abilities.

The Art and Science of Handwriting

3. Yes, I remember being taught penmanship from kindergarten on. I remember being taught a more italicized form of lettering that was a little bit different. At my school we learned this form that the lettering was more italicized in regards to the "i" and the "l". These letters were curved. I also remember learning how to write in cursive in third grade. We were taught how to write in cursive and did exercises with it but never really had to write anything long in cursive. When learning how to write we had to do exercise drills where we had to make every letter look exactly the same. Yes, I think that penmanship should always be emphasized over computer writing in schools. We should not loose the ability to write because of technology.

The First Writing Machines

1. I do remember my first experiences with technology. I remember having "computer" as a special or elective in elementary school and learning skills there. I also remember having to pass a computer typing proficency exam in 6th grade. We were not only required to type but to learn spreadsheets and other technologies as well. I think since I have always known computers that my experience was very different than Twain's. I never rejected computers because it was something that I always was acustom to rather than something I had to learn when I was older.