So to start off as I don’t mean to go on, here I am updating week one activities as week 4 is about to start. Unfortunately I have had a terrible run of pain with my arm & as a result I have fallen behind on the update side of things. I have managed to read the articles we have on our reading lists but the taking of notes is something I struggle with a little as I am effectively writing with the wrong hand. I can do it, but the terrible handwriting and incipient RSI suggest that it might be better for me to input my notes and reflections directly onto this e-portfolio; connectivity around the uni campus is good enough that if I need to access my notes while in class I can pop online on my notebook.
I have Dragon Naturally Speaking for dictation and when it’s not struggling with my terrible elocution, it’s a better way for me to get my notes done quickly. Writing with the wrong hand is so much slower, not only due to the correction of mistakes but also because of fatigue from performing an unfamiliar function. The only thing I dislike about dictating is that I am much more a writer than a talker (despite what people who know me might think). When I was doing my undergraduate degree in archaeology at UCL I found it surprisingly difficult to ‘write’ essays straight into Dragon, because I couldn’t frame my ideas verbally. I was much happier writing them down and then dictating them into Word. Somewhat predictably however, my sole working hand/wrist is now experiencing the warning signs of carpal tunnel, which isn’t surprising given that for 4 years I’ve used one hand to do everything computer related.
Still, life goes on, and I will transfer all my notes across now, so mass update time.