Thank you for this article, Paul. The disconnected computer plus Wordperfect is a fantastic idea. Matt Haughey has a good point too; I think most of us could improve our productivity with just the first part of the equation. Without the internet, the average computer comes with few distractions. Minesweeper doesn’t cut it for long ;-)

Zak - I’ve never tried the voice recognition part, but I did try using a voice recorder in college to record my understanding of lectures while the ideas were fresh in my head. However, I couldn’t use it to record first drafts. I’m a visual person, and if my words need to fit a formal format, e.g an essay or paper, I personally need to see them laid out on a page. Using the recorder, I tended to get stuck for words, and lose the overall structure of the piece. That said, it’s worth trying at least once.