Baron

Before You Read.

Technology is something that is supposed to help humans with basically EVERYTHING.  This is something that can range from like a bottle to a television or a computer. But, if we include electronics as technology, it could be easily insisted because they mostly have the most known and noticeable actions and uses.

Summary.

Baron, in his article, "From Pencils to Pixels", talks about how technology affects our writing abilities and how much easier it is to copy somebody else's work. He also talks about how it disrupts communication because it no longer (as much) is in person. Later on in his article, he talks about the history of the pencil and how it used to be related to constructors and their work. Then again, going back to communication he states how telephones have disrupted communication between people being in person too.

Synthesis.

One person that can be related to this is Brandt. Brandt talks about how sponsors are people that help/inspire you to write. Without having technology (computers, phones etc. which are the sponsors), then people may not be writing what they are today. A second person that this can be related to is Malcolm X. Here, he was limited of what he had to write with and to expand his learning because he was stuck in prison. Although he was in prison, he was able to still read books and use pencil and paper to write down some of his thoughts. Without technology, (books, pencils) then he would not have been able to do what he did while in prison.

Q.

The Unabomber was Theodore John Kaczynski. He was a murder. He used his writing to threaten others. He was very against anything that came from a computer. He basically stuck to paper and pencil.

Response	Quotation
This was interesting to me because I feel that depending on the reader, he or she has to make the decision for him/herself that a computer will either hurt or help writing. Personally, I don't think it does at all. I think it will make it better because of the amount of sources that are available and it is much quicker to type rather than write. -You don't have to sharpen computers.	“The computer, the latest development in writing technology, promises, or threatens, to change literacy practices for better or worse, depending on your point of view” (423).
This is just saying that times have changed a lot over the years. People don't own things anymore because they aren't necessary. Technology is improving so many things in people's everyday lives.	“We don't have typewriters in our offices anymore, or pencil sharpeners, or even printers with resolutions less than 300 dpi” (423).
Basically, this is stating that even though pencils aren't used as much anymore they were still very important in our past and they won'y be forgotten. What will come after computers?.... Just like the telegraph came after the pencil. Technology will always grow.	“The pencil may be old, but like the computer today and the telegraph in 1849, it is an indisputable example of a communication technology” (426).
This is saying that a computer is used today because of its latest and best technology. But, what will come after the computer? Will computers be left behind just as pencils were?	“-the computer is simply the latest step in a long line of writing technologies. In many ways its development parallels that of the pencil-hence my title- though the computer seems more complex and is undoubtedly more expensive” (425).
Over time, communication will change the way it happens. All people in the world won't be able to experience the best and latest technology. But there will always be new ideas.	“Each new literacy technology begins with a restricted communication function and is available only to a small number of initiates” (424).
	Thoughts.

Overall, I found this pretty interesting. I learned about some new things that I didn't know before. Something that really got to me was the idea of technology improving or acting as a detriment to our form of communication has been something that I figured about.