However, when I'm writing, I find I sometimes need to do research. I suppose for the best writing flow I should block time for research and time for pure writing. However, if I discover I need to look something up, a hard block on internet access would be a problem. Of course it's a slippery slope from researching something on Wikipedia to navigating to related articles. Timed access per hour?
Lots of ways to skin that cat (especially if you are a linux user) but focuswriter does everything I need, very little I don't and there is a frame/mindset shift to using the same tool for a specific task.
When I'm in "writing mode", I forbid myself from doing quick lookups, because I can almost never stick to the "quick" part of the process, and end up chasing rabbits. Instead, I just put something like (verify) or (research to confirm yay/nay) while writing, and move on to what I can do in the moment. Then much later do I go through with a "editor" mindset and address all those things in one go, rather than in the moment.
I guess kind of like picking work into a queue rather than doing it immediately, and leaving it hanging until I can work through the entire queue in one go.
> The moon is TK miles from earth.
Write away, don’t get distracted by the details, and catch up afterward when you’ve shifted to editor mode.
Our minds are hard-wired to build habits via physical association. Having a single-purpose device very much fits with how our minds work. If we want to do research, then go to a research enabled device. If we want to focus on writing, then open the writing focused device.
For example…
Whether - expressing a doubt or choice between two alternatives.
Wether - a castrated ram
That one letter makes a big difference.
It would definitely take a bit more work but a tiny dedicated graphical environment that functions as a basic text editor seems like it could go further. No particular need for Wayland or X11 here, either; you could get away with a simple Qt application directly on KMS/DRM.
The screenshot provided does show a battery indicator in the top right of the UI (Usage section).
startx emacs --maximized --funcall=darkroom-modeTake your standard Linux distro…
Make a new user. Login. Uninstall the apps you don’t want. Uninstall the web browser.
You don’t really even have to set up an autostart script to turn off WiFi for this user, but you can if you want. The user not having a web browser installed should be enough.
That’s it, you’re done.
If I mentally model such a thing myself, I end up with something that looks a lot like Classic (pre-OS-X) Mac OS. It's simplified and has just enough presence to properly host graphical applications. No taskbar, no notifications (or associated drawer), no self-populated launcher menu. File manager is spatial so it doesn't need a sidebar or navigation chrome. Multitasking is technically possible, but high-friction since the only way to switch between running apps is the little app switcher menu in the top right corner and becomes more cumbersome the more apps/windows you open. Included browser does not support tabs, only windows. Shortcuts to frequently used apps must be added intentionally (to your desktop as aliases/shortcuts or to the launcher menu).
This design strongly encourages singular focus without forcing it. If you want to have music playing in the background or need to open a browser window for research you can, but gravity is constantly pulling you back towards your task since the machine isn't pleasant to use for goofing off.
Was for my kid in this case. Loaded a few education-friendly games and then disabled the wifi. Now it’s a simple, focused, and relatively safe box.
Could easily do the same for writing or any other activity.
WriterdeckOS is not meant to be an OS for general computing.
Purppose built writerdecks are quite expensive. WriterdeckOS is a practical, inexpensive and resourceful alternative to a purpose build device.
For more information on writerdecks check out:
You and me both, friend.
Crashed a lot, though.
Have you tried... WordPerfect? It still exists: https://www.wordperfect.com/en/product/wordperfect/
The first feature they list is Reveal Codes.
Personally I like Latex as it reveals all the codes and lets you type them, change them, find-and-replace them, define new ones, etc. But then, I'm a mathematician, so it's designed for my stuff.
• The final version for classic MacOS, and there's a ready-made VM to run it on a modern Mac.
• The GUI version for Linux, and there's a site dedicated to helping you install it on a modern Linux.
• And Tavis Ormandy found and resurrected the final ever terminal-mode text-only WordPerfect for Linux, relinking it for x86 Linux.
I described how to get all 3 here:
https://www.theregister.com/2022/07/20/wordperfect_for_unix_...
Counterpoints:
1) You will be blocked if/when the ancient/EOL electronics fail.
2) You want USB and a modern display.
3) If there is any network connexion, you need modern security features.
Software solution: minimal Debian running Sway or labwc. Pick favourite minimal writing tools. The labwc GUI can be very minimal.
One possible hardware solution: Raspberry Pi 400 or 500. Simple, reliable, easy to replace. Use with any external and/or portable display.
A tiling WM setup might work for some but my preference leans towards a traditional floating WM with window chrome and all, and for such a thing to become popular it should come as a pre-configured distro.
Noted, the other commenters (nevermind old Macs... TRS-80?!) are letting nostalgia override a writer's practical need for either a) a system that will never die (i.e. a unicorn), or b) a set of software tools that will make the writer's life easier and provide resilience.
Impossible to beat Linux for (b).
> A tiling WM setup might work for some but my preference leans towards a traditional floating WM
Just to clarify, Sway is a tiling WM, labwc is a floating WM. In my experience, either one works brilliantly for writing. Sway enforces a WM pattern; labwc affords the flexibility to define decorations as Openbox themes.
I actually tried using BasiliskII over RDP but it was too limited, and I need to have at least 2 things: a modern browser and a good Markdown editor. I can sort of use Obsidian for both with enough plugins (and if I squint at it), but multiple windows are also a must.
I think this is even more important with a mobile platform since for one, battery and processing power is at a premium, and two anything with notifications could take you out of your desired "mode" if you don't wrangle them properly.
Something I've always wanted in a smartphone is to be able to boot into a "camera only" mode. There have been many times where all I need my phone for is as a camera, and I don't want it wasting resources/battery doing anything else. If this mode were light enough, it could boot up in the same amount of time as a normal digital camera, allowing your the phone to be truly off while you're not taking pictures. I do often take a digital camera with me, but sometimes I don't want the bulk or maybe I didn't initially plan to take a lot of pictures.
Being able to toggle a mode in your desktop environment / window manager / etc would do a lot
I’ve looked into a few options like this over the years (e.g. the Freewrite, or even an old Alphasmart), but always came to the conclusion they added more friction to my writing process, not less.
The writers should always always recall their materials.
Auto-save is an opposite of that.
You can see the full manifesto here: writermanifesto.com.
It's targeting people who want to write without distraction who might have never used Linux before.
* The choice of using shell commands for file management, and for getting files onto and off the device, seems like it could increase distraction, or make the device uninviting.
* Many writers -- whether they're bloggers/substack-like, newsletter writers, self-published books-writing, or working with a traditional publisher -- have many other writing and non-writing professional tasks that they might like to do without juggling multiple devices. So they might want a single that is designed for low-distraction, but that can run ordinary GUI apps like Web and email, when needed. The low-distraction design might include modes, in which you can set the device for writing-only mode, and then sometimes enable Web&email research functions, Web&email administrative functions, Web&email social-marketing functions, etc.
(A lot of that last function set, for social-marketing, involves accessing engagement/cesspool-oriented social media directly rather than through automation, if you're engaging genuinely, which is massive distraction, and maybe you just don't want to have possible from this device, and keep it on a phone or tablet instead. But for self-publishers, there are also some professional marketing Web sites that you are more likely to want to access directly from this professional low-distraction device, when in that mode.)
Something GUI with nice enough proportional fonts and autosave seems like a very bare minimum here.
> WARNING: This will erase everything on the laptop you install it on. Please make backups before beginning.
I ran it a few months back without reading everything. I was trying a bunch of different linux distros via bootable USB drives, when I tried this one and it wiped the underlying drive.
Luckily enough it was just a test machine, I didn't lose anything crucial.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNWx1Rn76Gg
The Linux Distro For Writers --- Mr and Mrs Linux
I picked up a couple a few years ago. Pretty clever in that, one way it transfers files. You connect the device via USB to a functional computer and ready an empty document in your text-editor of choice. Push a button on the device and it sends the internal text as though from a USB keyboard to your computer: speed-typing [1].
I quite like the approach proposed here: can re-use your own hardware, bring your own monitor (I hated the AlphaSmart's screen), even hack around a bit from bash.
If you just want to try out distraction-free writing with USB a used AS3000 is easily found <$50 (YMMV re. battery corrosion).
And FWIW, I like the machine. But I have barely used mine. But that has more to do with my procrastination at sitting down and writing in general.
but also: ooof, of COURSE it has encoding issues:
If you want the writerdeck experience I'll echo the recommendations here for an Alphasmart. The brute-force autotyping file transfer it uses is quaint but always amusing. Gave one to a screenwriter friend and it's now gotten regular use for years. PDAs are a solid choice as well that may resonate with the HN crowd.
Don't sleep on owning an actual typewriter though. I have a small collection and use one daily. There's a rabbit hole of ~150 years of makes & models (most of which continue to function fine today) that will give any mechanical keyboard enthusiast much to chew on. :)
They were fun to play with, but ultimately I don’t really write fiction, and pretty much anything I do write about would necessitate internet access to research weird math or tech stuff. I could of course use my phone for that, and I tried that for a bit, but I found that even more distracting than a regular laptop would be. This, in combination of the lack of spelling and grammar checks made made made it so that it was never more than a toy for me, and I eventually gave it away.
It made an extremely loud and satisfying “thunk” noise whenever it typed or printed and I admittedly do miss that sometimes. Maybe I should buy one of those color dotmatrix printers.
More screenshots would be appreciated. I was clicking around for a while only to realize there's only one screenshot that looks like Lotus 123...
https://krzysztofjankowski.com/floppinux/
It boots latest Linux, spawns console and have Vi for editing persisted files on that boot floppy. Runs on 486 CPU.
dingnuts•3mo ago
matthewfcarlson•3mo ago
prmoustache•3mo ago
That opinion can also apply to many distro derivatives using the same packages as the original. Releasing images for what are just minor changes of configuration seems like a waste of storage, bandwith and energy in general.
noir_lord•3mo ago
noir_lord•3mo ago
https://github.com/tinkersec/writerdeckOS/blob/main/initialC...
Also I'd be semi-wary about downloading ISO files from somewhere like this and running those on hardware on my network (in fairness always should be) but especially given this https://github.com/tinkersec/TwitterAccountTakeover/tree/mas...
No guarantee what is in the ISO is the result of applying that shell script to a fresh debian ISO and repacking (no guarantee the other way but eh not taking the time to dig into it).
forgotpwd16•3mo ago
Not sure why such over-the-top presentation, marketing, and community building, for what is basically auto-logging in to a text editor.
andoando•3mo ago
coffeebeqn•3mo ago
dvh•3mo ago
evolve2k•3mo ago
My critique as a designer is that no typographic measure has been added (eg max-width), so it’s very hard to read.
I’d suggest to them that they make a column in the middle for the text that is around 40 characters wide and Lee text flow in that.
This is used by many text editions for their distraction free mode. It’d add more typographic ‘white space’ around the outside also, contributing to the calm and focussed intentions.
robotresearcher•3mo ago
This whole site should lead with a screenshot. The product is essentially a text window. Show us the product!