3 ms·

It is not plausible that, but for the limitations of technology, you could substitute a picture for the argument presented in your post.

scroot 6y ago
Walter Ong said something like (paraphrasing): "If the phrase 'a picture is worth a thousand words' is true, then why does it need to be a phrase at all?"
- iamcurious 6y ago
  Cause that phrase is just 7 words. A picture would have 993 other unnecessary words.
  - CRConrad 6y ago
    Never mind the 993, show us a picture that conveys those seven -- and any 993 other unnecessary ones you want. If the seven were true, that should be easy. Heck, I won't hold it against you if there are as many as 1,042 extra words, or as few as 763. But I betcha you can't find one that clearly says what seven little words of text do. Which goes to show that those seven little words are a lie.
robenkleene 6y ago
I don't disagree, I think some ideas are better expressed as text others by other forms of media. E.g., that's why we use graphs, diagrams, storyboards, flowcharts, etc... in addition to text to communicate. For the record, I came up with this thought, about computers and software being optimized for text, by realizing I learned the best by reading information presented as a combination of text and media (e.g., a textbook with diagrams), but when I communicate with a computer, I always just use text, why? Well, making media with a computer is a huge PITA, I'm assuming because you program the computer itself with text, so its entire interface seems optimized for that. (This is particularly interesting looking in contrast to smartphones and tablets, which are entirely not optimized for text.)
- mannykannot 6y ago
  I take your point, as I often sketch things myself to help me think, but only pencil-on-paper. I would guess there are tools for sketching with a stylus on a tablet, but I have never felt a pressing-enough need to push me into checking them out.

scroot 6y ago

Walter Ong said something like (paraphrasing): "If the phrase 'a picture is worth a thousand words' is true, then why does it need to be a phrase at all?"

iamcurious 6y ago
Cause that phrase is just 7 words. A picture would have 993 other unnecessary words.
- CRConrad 6y ago
  Never mind the 993, show us a picture that conveys those seven -- and any 993 other unnecessary ones you want. If the seven were true, that should be easy. Heck, I won't hold it against you if there are as many as 1,042 extra words, or as few as 763. But I betcha you can't find one that clearly says what seven little words of text do. Which goes to show that those seven little words are a lie.

robenkleene 6y ago

I don't disagree, I think some ideas are better expressed as text others by other forms of media. E.g., that's why we use graphs, diagrams, storyboards, flowcharts, etc... in addition to text to communicate. For the record, I came up with this thought, about computers and software being optimized for text, by realizing I learned the best by reading information presented as a combination of text and media (e.g., a textbook with diagrams), but when I communicate with a computer, I always just use text, why? Well, making media with a computer is a huge PITA, I'm assuming because you program the computer itself with text, so its entire interface seems optimized for that. (This is particularly interesting looking in contrast to smartphones and tablets, which are entirely not optimized for text.)

mannykannot 6y ago
I take your point, as I often sketch things myself to help me think, but only pencil-on-paper. I would guess there are tools for sketching with a stylus on a tablet, but I have never felt a pressing-enough need to push me into checking them out.