Writing Tablets

Get those thoughts down!

The writing tablet is the main method of recording information on Nhaie - pen and paper are looooong gone*. The idea with these tablets is to create a pen-and-paper like experience, without all the excess paper and ink being tossed, and without all the extra manufacturing involved every time someone needs a new pen/pencil or piece of paper/notebook. These devices are made to be durable, long-lasting, and easily usable.

Appearance

Writing tablets are, as the name suggests, little tablets. Each tablet comes with a thin stylus used for writing on it.
The tablet itself has the appearance of a thin, translucent, handheld whiteboard. Usually about 7" by 9.5" and about a centimeter thick in Earth measurements, the typical writing tablet is smaller than a piece of printer paper. The two faces are the same: smooth, flat, and a dark green or gray in color. The tablet is rimmed by a strip of metal. A small stadium-shaped (as in the geometrical shape, the stadium - look it up) power button can be found on one of the shorter sides of the tablet, next to a tiny circular light that indicates whether the tablet is currently on or off.
Styluses that come with writing tablets are sleek and thin; typically made of smooth, shiny metal, with a small piece of rubber on top (this piece being similar in shape and size to the eraser of a pencil, but being made of a more pliable material that does not rub apart) that functions as the eraser. A small elastic loop on the side of the tablet (by the power button) serves as storage for the stylus when it's not in use.

Usage

These tablets, as might be suggested by their simple design, are quite easy to use. All one needs to do is:

1. Click the power button
2. Write!

When the power button is pressed, the little light turns on, indicating the on-status of the tablet. The user takes the stylus and, well, writes! Anything written/drawn appears in white on the tablet. The rubber end of the stylus is used as an eraser. When the rubber end is swept across writing on the face of the tablet, said writing disappears.

On a separate computer, a compatible program, such as WriteWell or Connect&Write, can be used to download any current markings on the tablet. One tablet full of writing is converted into a page. Pages can, on the connected computer, be arranged into documents (more than one page), documents into notebooks (more than one document), notebooks into folders (more than one notebook), and folders into projects (more than one folder). Different programs work in slightly different ways, but that's the gist of it.
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*Because of this, it may seem odd that books still exist. More info coming in a new article soon (most likely after Summer Camp)!

Item type

Tool

Weight

A little under a pound

Base Price

Varies; approx. $20 in USD