The first computer we owned was an Apple IIe. The question naturally was, and often still is, what can the machine do? I was quite surprised to find that I could write better, more legibly and faster using a keyboard than I could with a pen. Then, for Father's Day in 1984 (Yikes, that year that Orwell said was the beginning of Big Brother spying on us!), I got Appleworks. It was a word processor (typing, spell checking, rapid change, revision and storage), a spreadsheet and a database. My friend said "Yes, it is a marvel and an improvement and a gift, but wait until you are connected to this thing called the internet."
He was right. It is a marvel and a convenience. But you know what happens. Robocalls, scams, ads, ads, ads. I thought I was pretty good at concentrating and not being distracted from what I wanted to do. Then, I started paying attention to ads, persuasive talk and politics. Let's say you mention how opposed you are to closing down all roads and pathways. You have some good arguments and some deep fears. A common tactic these days is to ask what about vitamins? I mean some vitamins are very expensive and many are not supported by evidence. If that doesn't draw you off the topic of closing roads, let me try something else, something scandalous and scary. What about men being paraded in bathing suits in the "beauty" contests? Do you want your husband up there to be gawked at? I will jump from topic to topic, keeping an eye on your apparent level of excitement to see if I can divert your energy temporarily, maybe permanently, off the issue of roads or the inferiority of the candidate I like, etc.
So, I got the idea of disconnecting my computer from the internet so that I can't receive messages that try to deflect, dissipate and weaken my focus. I was surprised to find that my normal composition procedure doesn't work if my machine is not connected. The Apple IIe worked but this machine isn't an Apple IIe. I am just starting on the idea of closing the door figuratively speaking and seeing what I can do. Apple, Google and Microsoft like their distant storage options: iCloud, Drive and OneDrive. It has become more and more common to write composition software, whether writing, calculating or drawing, so that it is instantly saved. That way, the user can't forget to save but the saving can't go on if the machine isn't connected.
Appleworks of 1984 changed to Microsoft Works which changed to Open Office which changed to (free) Apache Open Office. I found Apache Open Office and downloaded it today. I'll see what I think.
