Mobile analogue or hybrid organisational and time-management system

Posted by Hugh
Apr 3, 2018 at 08:11 AM

Dr Andus wrote:
Pierre Paul Landry wrote:
>Dr Andus wrote:
>>> It wasn’t entirely clear to me though whether these are handwritten
>>notes or the pen makes changes digitally as if one
>>>was using a keyboard (crossing out a word deletes it):
>>
>>Word has had pen support for comments since v2002 and within the
>>document since v2007:
> >Well, it’s one thing to have support for pen and handwriting, and
>another for the hardware and software and the OS to provide a
>satisfactory experience. I have experimented with a Windows tablet back
>in 2011, and it just wasn’t up to par with the iPad back then, even just
>as a touchscreen device.
> >There have been many touchscreen devices and apps supporting various
>styluses, but whenever I tried them, they failed in real-life
>situations, such as needing to take handwritten notes quickly at a
>meeting. Either there was a lag, or it was too awkward to get to the app
>quickly, or something else.
> >There must be a reason why even in 2018 in a rich country like the UK,
>in academic, government, and corporate contexts, I virtually never see
>anyone using a stylus to work with their devices (other than the
>occasional Samsung smartphone or tablet user).
> >I am an early adopter of stylus technology. I was a big Palm fan, but
>even the Palm hardware just wasn’t up to the job. I’m glad that there
>are more devices now that appear to be useable, but it seems a
>relatively recent phenomenon where people are suddenly talking more
>about taking handwritten notes on their devices.
> >I am mostly hearing about the Chromebook devices, such as Samsung
>Chromebook Plus and Pro, and the Pixelbook, where taking handwritten
>notes in a meeting context actually seems to work now (people tell me).

I am happy with the handwriting performance of the iPad Pro and the Apple Pencil. Over the weekend, I took the opportunity to try out handwriting on a relative’s Microsoft Surface Book 2, and that was pretty good too - expensive, and early days for the technology, but pretty good. Of course, handwriting recognition is another matter.