Digital, I love and hate. Paper, I hate and love 數碼，我又愛又恨，紙本，我又恨又愛

今天，我再一次訂購了一本LEUCHTTURM 1917的筆記本，決定重投紙本筆記本的懷抱。從2010年智能手機普及開始，我由紙本筆記轉換到數碼筆記，再轉回紙本筆記，然後重投數碼筆記。今天，我又一次轉回到紙本筆記。
Today, I order a LEUCHTTURM 1917 again and decide to go back to paper notebook. Since 2010 when Smart phone popularized, I changed from paper notebook to digital notebook and now, I come back to paper notebook.

相信今日紙本筆記本已經是過時且古舊的筆記方法：要一筆一筆的書寫，在書寫時已經要預先設想排版，不能修改，且記載量少，又不能隨身携帶。但，我還是重新發現紙本筆記的好。
Seems today paper notebook is already an old-school method: we need to write word by word, think of the layout before writing, cannot edit and cannot carry everywhere. But, I discover the good of paper notebook again.

書寫．印象

Writing．Impression

我由大約2011年開始進行「無紙化」工作：即是在工作上不再利用紙張。「無紙化」有幾個很大的好處，節省金錢、節省時間、節省樹木。我們在電腦上的筆本，可隨時修改，可隨時分享給其他人，可配合如錄音、圖畫、網站連結等各種多媒體內容，我們更可用搜尋功能尋找我們需要使用的筆記，代表著我們連整理的時間都省卻了。
I start “paperless” since 2011. It gives us great advantage: save time, save money and save trees. Our digital notes can be edited anytime any way, can be shared to everyone, can make good use of multimedia like audio notes, picture, website link etc. We can “search” the notes we need to use, which means we can save our time for tidying our notes.

幾年後，我重新回到紙本筆記，因為我發現，這幾年間，我打過的筆記，我根本記不住！雖然，我每次都可以利用搜尋功能，但，我認為這些筆記根本就不屬於我的。
A few years later, I come back to paper notebook. It’s because I find that I can’t remember the contents of my notes! Although I can “search” them, I feel like the notes I typed do not belong to me.

我相信，很多人都會發現，自從利用數碼筆記後，我們的記憶力好像弱了。其實，人的印象由多種感官組成：聽覺、視覺、嗅覺、味覺、觸覺，而我們的記憶方法亦有很多種：聯想記憶、經歷記憶、畫面記憶。以前我寫紙本筆記時，我會記得我當年用的是Moleskin黑色筆記本，在筆記本的中間位置，寫下了某資料，我當天因為比較匆忙，所以字比較差，也比較大，我完完整整記得我寫了些什麼。
I believe many people may find that our memory becomes worse since we use digital notes. Actually, our impression is composed of number of senses: hearing, vision, taste, smell, and tactile. Our memory is composed of: ociative memory, experiencing memory and image memory. When I wrote a note, I remembered I was suing a Moleskin Black notebook. I wrote some information in the middle of the notebook. My writing was bad and big as I was in a hurry. I completely remember what I had written.

但當我轉用到數碼筆記時，我發現每份筆記都是差不多，同一個字體，同一個字型，同一個介面，極其量我只記得大約是什麼時候寫的。
When I switch to digital notebooks, I find every note look the same, same fonts, same size, same layout (most people don’t wanna spend time on such kind of things when writing notes). I can only remember when I wrote it.

我失去了真實的感覺。
I lost something “real”.

數碼讓人失去創意

No paper, no creativity

我相信大家細想一想，也會發現這個問題，而其次，使用數碼筆記本後，我好像失去創意了。
I believe everyone has similar feeling like me. Secondly, I feel I lost my creativity since I use digital notebooks.

紙本筆記其中一個好處，就是排版上的自由度，當我參觀倫敦的大笨鐘，寫下旅遊筆記時，我一時興起，就在筆記上畫上我心中的大笨鐘。但數碼筆記，不論是Evernote, Word, 我們就已被規限在已有的格式中，我想，大家很少會先畫下大笨鐘，再上載到這筆記吧。當時，現在有很多數碼繪圖工具，但我們已習慣了數碼筆記的既有格式，我們不再使用不同顏色，不同墨料的筆，我們不再用彩帶，我們不再有螢光筆。結果，每一篇筆記都跟我們網上看見的文章一式一樣，沒有變化，沒有靈魂，少了一番感情，少了一份立體。
One advantage of paper notebooks, is the freedom of layout design. When I visit Big Ben and write a travel note, I want to draw the Big Ben in my mind. So I draw it! Draw beside the words or draw under the words. It’s just for you! For digital notes, no matter Evernote or word, we are limited by the setting. We won’t draw the Big Ben and upload to the notes. Although you did it, it’s already a picture but not a drawing. We don’t use different color and different ink of pens, we don’t use paper tape, we don’t use highlight pen. The result is, our notes look the same, no change, no soul, no feeling, no dimension.

我們到底需要有多快、有多忙?

How fast and how busy do we need?

然而，我認為數碼普及化後，對我們最大的影響，就是專注和集中。我們能很快的摘下筆記、日程，省卻不少時間，我們也能在網上隨意搜尋文章，學習自己所要的知識，我們能很快的完成很多事情，這意味著，我們不再花時間在一些需要很長時間才能完成的事情。
However, I think that the biggest influence of digital is our concentration. We can drop notes and schedule quickly. We can search articles we need through the web, we can finish a lot of things in a short time. It means we don’t want to spend time on something that need a lot of times.

以前的我，在巴士上，在地鐵上，會拿起一本書，細心閱讀。今日的我，會拿起手機，翻開Instagram、Facebook、或微博，隨意翻閱別人的動態，偶然會發現一兩篇有意思的文章，但太長了，我讀不完，還是下次再看吧。當然，下車後我已忘記這篇文章了，而就算我從手機看了這篇文章，我很快就忘記了。
In the past, I liked to read books in the bus. Today, I open Instagram, Facebook, or weibo. Sometime I find a good article, oh! It’s too long. I will read it late. Of course, I completely forget it after I got off the bus.

又或當我打算認真坐下來，寫一篇文章時，當想好開頭，突然一個WhatsApp傳來，好吧，我先花時間處理一下，再回到電腦前，噢！我剛才想到哪裡了？好了，我想回來了，重新動筆，突然叮噹一聲，原來有新的郵件。OK，我關掉我的網絡，專心寫作！15分鐘後，我就開始想: “不知道這段時間有沒有重要的訊息呢”。我又忍不住打開網絡。結果，1個小時過去了，500字都寫不到。
OK, now I sit down and decide to write an article. Just finish brainstorming the opening, suddenly a WhatsApp notification. Ok, reply first. When I come back to the computer, oh! I forget when I have done! Fine, I spend some time to remember. Suddenly come a new email again. I decide to switch off my Wi-Fi. After 15 minutes, I start to think, “do I miss any important messages?” 1 hour passes, and I can’t write 500 words.

今日，我們好像已習慣了快和忙的生活，因數碼而興起的快和忙。數碼化好像給我們很大的便利，最重要莫過於簡化了我們很多的工作和程序，但我們好像比以前更忙，更少時間能專心做一件事。現在，我仍會隨身帶著一本書，但我基本上幾天才有一次能拿起書本閱讀，而讀了可能不夠一個小時，就忍不住上上網，或看看社交平台。
Today, seems we get used to the life of fast and busy because of digital. Digital seems to provides us great convenience like simplifying our works and procedure. But at the same time, we feel like much busier than in the past and we can’t concentrate on one thing. Now, I still carry a book with me all the time, but I only have time to read a while every few days. And I can’t stand for browsing the web after reading books not enough to 1 hour.

我的筆記，是我的回憶，我的情懷

I find my memory in my paper notebooks

數碼化帶給我們極大的便利，當我們在做一份計劃，我們不用再到圖書館翻查資料，捧著一本又一本大而重的書。我們也不用隨身帶著數十份文件，所以資料我們只需要一部電腦或手機就能得到。
Digital brings us great convenience. We don’t need to go to the library and borrow a number of big and heavy books. We don’t need to bring a lot of paper and documents with us. All information can be accessed from a computer or a phone.

但同時，我們好像失去了一些東西，一些回憶，一些情懷。當我重看兒時日記，我不禁暗笑自己小時候的字原來是這樣的。當我看一本舊書，見到書中的一點污跡，不禁想起當年和女友進餐時不小心的醬汁晒在書上，還被女友說我跟她吃飯還顧著看書。當我翻查舊筆記時，看到頁低一幅醜化了當時老闆的畫像，我不禁想起當年我到底有多恨我的老闆呀。當我看著書架上形形式式的筆記本，我不禁想起當年我到文具店選購筆記本時是多麼雀躍。
At the same time, we seem to lose something, some memory. When I read my child diary, I find my words were so ugly. When I read an old book, and find some smudge, I remember that I carelessly got some sauce on the book when I was dining with my girlfriend. And my girlfriend blamed that I only cared my books and ignored her. When I read my old notes, I find my drawing of my vilified boss. Hah how much did I hate my boss at that time? When I look at the notebooks on my shelf, I can still remember how excited when I went to the stationery shops in the old days.

數碼化帶給我們便利的同時，也奪去了我們的一些回憶。我不會像老人家般，指責數碼化如何不好，因為數碼化是一種進步，但我們也不能忘記紙本帶給我們的好。我認為，紙本永不會消失，而是會和數碼融合在一起，如世界筆記本龍頭Moleskine早已推出了智能筆記本，可極速將你的筆記上傳到雲端，在保留紙本的同時，實現了數碼的便利。
Digital provides us great convenience and at the same time steals our memory. I will not say something about how bad digital is like an old guy. It’s because digital is a progression. But we can’t forget the goodness of paper notebooks. I believe that paper notes will not vanish, but to mixed with digital notebooks. For example, Moleskin had already published a smart paper notebook that allow us to upload our paper notes to the cloud in a very convenient way.

不過，我想我在短時間內，還是會使用紙本筆記，因為，再好的工具，也及不上一支筆及一張紙，我的筆記本，才是我的模式，我的記憶，我的回憶。
But, I believe I will still use paper notebooks. Because, no matter how good an app is, it can’t be better than a pen and a paper. Only my notebook is my style, my memory.

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All picture from Pixabay and Bullet Journal