BLANK BEAUTY

July 23, 2008 | Filed Under god bless the internet 

I came across this post on Salon’s Machinist blog about WriteRoom - a super simplified word processor app that essentially hides everything except the text you’re typing.  You type in full-screen on a completely blank background.  Absolutely no distractions.  Just the “paper” and the text.  

When I fired up the demo version, I immediately “got it”… it’s the same feeling you get when you load a blank sheet into a typewriter.  It just asks to be typed into.  I’m not totally sure exactly why this strikes such a chord with me; it’s one of those things that’s hard to put your finger on…  It just feels completely different than typing in any of the “normal” computer ways we’re used to.  The tools, (at least the important ones), are all there, they’re just hidden until you want them.  You can also change the background color, the font, and even the cursor (you can use retro blinking boxes, a non-blinking line, etc).  Right now, I have mine set to a white background with the “american typewriter” font just to amplify the illusion, (but I’m not settled on it yet).  The point is, this program is all about creating the perfect “space” to write in - which is something that most word processors seem to have pretty low on the priority list, and which most creative writers would probably appreciate.  It’s 25 bucks, which seems a little crazy high, but I think it’s definitely worth checking out if you happen to be the type-writin’ writin’ type.

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