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Handwriting no. Waste of time.

Drawing the beginnings of a layout by hand, that makes sense and it's faster than trying to draw something with a mouse.

Honestly, depends. I find both non-hand writing, and hand-writing to be important.

Generally, I prefer to write.. with keyboard. And, plaintext org via org-roam files with git are really pleasant to use, and organize.

But math? Or some uni stuff? Writing is a bit more.. fitting. Buut, plain paper won't work for me.

Here, e-ink devices come into the play. E.g Onyx Tab Ultra. Really comfy to make notes on. And then later, I can export to pdf, and sync them across devices via syncthing.

It's simply untenable if I expect anyone else to read it. When I was in school I even had a 504 plan to avoid handwriting assignments and used an alphasmart for a while.

I hate the feel of writing on paper

Handwriting on screens also too slippery , unless you put matte screen protector , but that brings another issue : wearing pen nib down

Definitely typing but whenever I have to take notes for a class I need to hand write it since typing equations is awful in comparison

I prefer to journal by hand, mainly because journaling on the computer feels unnatural somehow. But I can't write more than 1-2 pages before my hand cramps up.

I like writing things by hand. I don't do it because of the supposed brain activation, but I genuinely like the feeling of writing. That's most of it, honestly.

On a more practical note, I find that I'd rather have more organized information in electronic format, but writing by hand is much simpler for quick notes - so I'll usually jot down stuff I need to last a few days, meeting notes and such, and I might type those things out in a tidier manner if I feel like the information warrants it, if it's something I might need to come back to in a few months or years.

While yes, I technically do type faster than I write by hand, when I'm taking notes of something, I usually mix sentences with quick sketches and diagrams - and I can do that much faster by hand than using some sketching software.

https://youtu.be/u6qxixgQJ4M?t=12

For me it's mostly the ease of it. I'm the type to get very bogged down by (perceived) steps, hurdles, and visual overstimulation. An illustration:

Notebook

• Find pen or pencil
• Find the page you need
• Go

Tablet/Etc

• Is it charged
• Specific pen only
• Keyboard needs pairing
• Is keyboard charged
• It wants to update now, awesome
• Turn it on, see ten unrelated apps --> forget what I'm doing
• App randomly decides it needs internet access
• Probably have to deal with syncing now
• etc etc
• (another 'me' problem: I get really hung up on trying to format things digitally, which takes time way from what I'm supposed to be doing)

Now, there are certainly benefits to writing things out digitally, especially when searchability is key. Any important info in any of my booklets that I might need to find later on gets typed up or entered into a spreadsheet where applicable. Not the most efficient way to do things, I suppose. 😅

In general though: I just like being able to look down and see a thing I've written, rather than needing to wake up a device, open a program, or otherwise fiddle with a screen, especially while multitasking.

I like doing math problems written out by hand, it's just much nicer to have the freedom to make whatever marks you want and put things wherever you want/need, I really see the appeal in that regard. I could get good at using some of the math typing tools out there but they just don't allow the same kind of flow.

Otherwise, it really just makes my hand hurt and being left handed adds an extra level of inconvenience to it.

I'm learning another language, and writing by hand feels like the fastest way things get remembered in my mind. It makes the learning more...visceral, I am more engaged in things that happen instead of an audience passively absorbing and experiencing. And i think that that translates to other experiences because i love handwriting, i love the act of putting words onto paper and other medium.

Someone who engages the world another way - when your information is tied to the flow of characters instead of shaping the characters themselves, of course sees it differently. A visual artist who rarely types and puts down thought in sketches instead of words - will struggle to type their vision too when they would rather put down a series of images and just a minimum of words .

I'm 100% a "both" person.

I take notes on my phone, especially if it's something I'll need on-the-go (like a grocery list). But I also write a lot of physical notes with pen and paper.

Especially for things like a remodeling project on the house - I can scribble out my thought process as I go, small ammendments with measurements or whatever as needed, etc. I prefer writing notes by hand, but there's no one right answer. For me, anyway.

it's great. i like fountain pens and write a lot by hand.

This year I started keeping a shitty little notebook I don't care about losing or damaging in my pocket with a cheap fountain pen. I use it whenever the need or desire takes me, which might be every day for a week, or not at all for a month. I use it to stabilize tables sometimes, or just to flip through if I want to do something with my hands. I've used to to keep score in boardgames, or to write down my thoughts and feelings. I really love it.

I'm a software engineer of about 8 years and I think the longer time goes on the more I want to be disconnected from a screen in my free time. I love coding and gaming and scrolling Kbin on my phone, but sometimes it's so nice to just put all that down, take a walk, and write stuff on real paper. Doesn't need to be anything more than that. Not for me, anyways

I journal and take notes regularly by hand and have written novel-length manuscripts in the last couple of years by hand. I prefer using fountain pens or else my hand cramps up (and using anything else for that amount of writing can get a bit wasteful). I don't know if it's better for my memory, but I prefer it for other reasons.

My process is to write a first draft by hand to minimize digital distractions. I take my notebook and pen somewhere without internet, and leave my laptop and phone behind. Then, I type it up, and this is a sort of "natural" 2nd draft process, as I obviously make smaller or larger edits as I'm re-reading my own work.

My mom still has notebooks from when she was in high school. Digital amnesia means I don't have any of my high school and college homework anymore. I developed this system because realized I was putting a lot of effort into managing digital backups of all of my drafts and shit when simple folders and stacks of paper would do fine. But really, I mostly do it because I have ADHD, and using computers to write longform drafts is difficult because they are highly distracting devices. Typewriters and notebooks that only do one thing make things more straightforward for me. So, I get why most people don't approach things this way in 2023.

On one hand (heh) there's apparently evidence to suggest that handwriting activates parts of the brain which aren't typically activated by just typing something out.

I agree, parts of my brain do get activated. The parts where I am annoyed and aggravated by how slow and ugly my handwriting is XD

While I still hold a great appreciation for writing with pen and paper, I find I rarely ever do so anymore. I used to always carry a notepad and pen for writing self reminders, notes, or whatever came to mind. Writing by hand most definitely helps me to remember the content.

As time went on though, after numerous different schools putting me in typing classes (due to telling counselors my interest in computers, moving schools yearly, and a lack of CS curriculum), typing became the quickest means of writing for me.

I have taken to using a middle ground of sorts in that I use a stylus with my Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 for my note taking. It still helps me somewhat to better remember the contents, and the unfolded dimensions (5.04 x 6.23 in.) are not dissimilar to using a small notepad.

I think its nice to handwrite things in some contexts. For notes i need to be searchable or to find again easily, I usually type them out in Obsidian. It's nice and organized and can link stuff together.

But for like, more emotional stuff or like, trying to organize my brain, its nicer to handwrite things. It feels more... permanent in a way? Like I've made this tangible thing, rather than just stored bits on a piece of silicon. I tend to remember handwritten stuff slightly better than digital stuff. There's something nice about writing out your problems in a notebook, closing it, and then just never really going over them again.