Often, while I'm working at the drawing-board, my 8 year-old is on my computer writing stories (I can't type. She can type 30 wpm or so). Since I eventually require use of my computer, I have to cut her time short, which naturally frustrates her. So my wife picked up a used typewriter for four-bucks at a thrift-store, and my daughter's been on it at every opportunity. It's electric, and not the kind of type-writer on which I grew up -- the one with the carriage that moves to the left, dings, and has to be shifted back to the right. Nevertheless, it's giving her an experience that most kids her age will never have, i.e., typing on a real typewriter and not having a backspace, and undo button, or a spell-check function to get things right. This will definitely force her to pay attention to getting things right the first time. Although it may seem a bit archaic, there's something to be said for low-tech.