Paradigm Shift

The discussion on hypertext really got me thinking about the mediums we use, the ones we think we need to write and understand writing, and the mediums of the future. While I’m in an open-minded mood, I’ll explore.

Many of us say that we like or need to read things in hardcopy to really understand it; I know I prefer it. But a couple of weeks ago, I found myself reviewing pdfs on screen and inserting digital notes into the document. My efficiency in reading and taking notes, in retrospect, was not hindered in anyway by the “screen” effect. Nor was my note taking ability; in fact, the opposite was true. I had room and space to write as much as I wanted about whatever was prompting the response. I also ended up copying some of these comments into my reading response for the week. I can efficiently access and copy those notes at anytime.

Kirsten’s lack of capital letter use also got me thinking. The absence of capital letters did not diminish the meaning or readability of her prose in any way, only I wasn’t used to it. Why not increase our efficiency in writing in some cases? Of course we don’t want to abandon linguistic traditions that are critical to clarity and meaning, but aren’t there several aspects of the English language that have no purpose other than “because that’s the way it’s always been done”? Why not improve this imperfect language system of ours?

Right now I’m writing in a word processor that offers a visual interface mimicking the look of an actual page. This page look…does it help me write better? I’m just going to be posting this response on a blog anyway, so how does writing on a digital page contribute to my writing process?

I tend to agree that hypertext is going to change the way we read and write. Why cite a source why you can just hyperlink to it? Wouldn’t that make establishing ethos even more efficient for the researcher and audience? Instead of communication being linear, with hypertext, won’t it become more like, ironically, a web?

I wonder if we should just accept that fact that almost all communication is going to be purveyed through digital mediums. While working at INL as an editor, my efficiency was actually slowed down significantly by those who insisted on doing hardcopy edits. Can we prove in any way that hardcopy facilitates readability better than digital mediums? I hope that we can; otherwise, we’ll all need to start preparing for a massive shift in our pedagogical paradigm.