Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Thumb Theater


I treated myself to a mac, and it is a lovely machine, clean and easy. But I am having a terrible time without Word. Apple has many programs for writers (too many) - Pages, iA Writer, Ommwriter, Text Edit etc - but it is difficult to make the transition. I almost gave in and bought Word yesterday, and even now I wonder why didn't I, but the Apple store convinced me to come in for a Pages class. It is not hard to use, but I want to save things in Word, or send them in Word, and I have run into one obstacle after another. For example, the computer accepts my password for some applications, but not others, so I can't set up my mail account. I only have one password! Then there's the question of where the hell are my files when I save them. MUST FIGURE OUT.

I was hoping to write more, not spend the evenings feeling defeated.

So, ironically, for now I am back to writing poems exclusively on paper. Page after page of the same poem with a slight change in each new version, like those flipbooks you hold in one hand while flipping through the pages with the thumb of the other to see a horse run, a head turn, or a star explode.
Kind of defeated the purpose of the new computer.

Happy Valentine's Day. I heart Word.

More flipbooks:
Break dance
Close up
Louis Vuitton



6 comments:

ron hardy said...

I'm curious as to what you see when you flip through the different pages of the poem. What is the motion?

SarahJane said...

sometimes a comma is added then removed, then added, lending the moving poem the blinking star effect.

but basically they just get longer.

ron hardy said...

With a little string, a red laser, a couple of lenses, a few mirrors, and some holograhic film you can capture this process in 3-D. "The making of a poem." Then we could look at it from every angle.

Kathleen said...

Love the flip book, wishing you well with/without Word...

My mom has a Mac.

kenc said...

You can buy Microsoft Word for your Mac. I did.

"Best of," meet "both worlds."

toniclark said...

I use Word all the time at work (on a PC) but don't miss it at all on my Mac. I have come to use Text Edit for everything -- all my poem drafting and final versions. I copy into AppleWorks if I want to format a manuscript or save as a pdf file (e.g., for submission). Have never gotten comfortable with Pages, but haven't tried much either.

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