Since the Abacus, mankind has been intrigued with the notion of letting a machine do the heavy lifting of thinking and storing information. Once Joseph Marie-Jacuard, a French merchant and weaver, invented the first programmable loom in 1801, we were off to the races.
In 1804, Charles Babbage, an English mathematician, "the man who invented computers," invented the first automatic digital computer. He then went on to invent three more computers between 1822-1871. Since then, we have seen scores of improvements with newer, faster, and larger computers with even more memory capacities. Names like David Packard and Bill Hewlett and Zuse are common in the computer geek world. In 1971 the floppy disk came along. In 1972, Video games were introduced. In 1975 the Micro Processor PC rolled off the production line costing #500.00. Does the name Steve Jobs ring a bell? How about Radion Shack selling a computer for $599.00 In 1977, Apple II came out. Spreadsheets in 1978. Ah, those were the days. Skipping ahead, Windows came along in 1985 and (contrary to Al Gore's claim) the World Wide Web in 1989. Google search engine came out in 1996. Where would we be without that? And Wi-Fi? It came along in 1999. Now that's ancient. If you are interested in the history of computers, you need to come to Roswell, Georgia, and visit the Computer Museum of America. But I digress…
My focus, however, isn't how we got here. Today's post is about all the cool things we have at our disposal as authors, writers, musicians, and people in general.
I can remember getting my first computer. I was thrilled and scared at the same time. I had no idea what to do with the thing, yet I was intrigued by its capabilities. After much trial and error, asking questions, and lost files, I finally master the art of writing on a computer. I found on my journey, that there is no end to the tools at our disposal. When writing a novel, I rely upon a myriad of tools. The first is my laptop, of course. Sitting in my specially designed easy chair, I open, Scrivner. It was the best $59.99 I have ever spent. And it's a one-time fee. With this program, you can organize, structure, relocate data, and much, much more.
Get it today if you don't already have it.
I also have Word, so once my manuscript is completed, I upload it as a Word doc. But wait, there's more. Using Scrivner, I found a really great tool. It's the Name Finder tool. With it, I can create the first and last names of my characters no matter what country of origin.
Another really cool tool is Google Maps. Using Google Maps I can track travel distances, find roads, bridges, railroads, cities, and towns, and yes, drop the little icon on the map and move around. That way, I can describe the exact terrain of the area. I can even go inside buildings and study their layout.
Then there are search engines for dictionaries, thesaurus, and professional sites like "Ask an Attorney," and "Ask a Doctor." The list is endless.
Next is Spell Check, and Editing Programs.
When it comes time to convert your book into a PDF or music into an MP3 I found Zamzar the best free tool around.
I would be remiss if I failed to mention the onset of Artificial intelligence. This new and uncharted avenue is not only dangerous and threatening but opens doors we may not want open. Yet, the genie is out of the bottle. I have actually used AI singers to produce some of my musical arrangements. TBA, they sound pretty good. I would caution you, however, don't let AI do the work of a real writer no matter how "intelligent" it sounds. Never forget the human element, with a heart, a soul, a conscience, and let the SciFi among us push the edges of intelligence.
Another great tool is Caliber. This tool easily converts your manuscript into any e-book format and it’s free.
I haven't even begun to discuss all the neat tools for movie-making and music production. I'll leave that for another day. I know I haven't exhausted all the tools in my toolbox, but suffice it to say, we live in a marvelous time, a time when, as the Bible says, "many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased." This leads me to one last great resource. BibleGateway. BibleGateway is a Christian website designed to allow easy reading, listening, studying, searching, and sharing of the Bible in many different versions and translations, including English, French, Spanish, and other languages.
So now that you have seen the guy behind the curtain with all his buttons and devices, what are you waiting for? Go forth and write! Please visit my online store at New Life Publications Online and order any of my books. Summer is still upon us and I would love to send you one of my books.
Yes, it's a great (and scary) time to be alive. We have so many good tools to make almost anything better or easier. Some are paid but many are free. If the freemium version works, we can spend a little more for the premium version, which has additional bells and whistles. I live by my computer for writing and many other things. I would not want to be without it.