[danfang]

> have you tried using pen and paper for things?

Yes.

If I can express something through writing (as with the cases you mention), there is no faster, more convenient tool than a note taking app + keyboard. It's instant, archived, editable, and globally available (where there's internet of course).

If it's an idea that needs to be visually designed (shapes, graphs, space), I find that I can mostly do this by redefining the problem in a way that can be written down.

There's a small percentage of time where having a diagram is truly essential to my workflow. I'm not opposed to whiteboarding in these cases, but it's not as vital to my process as the author implies it is for them.

> indescribably helpful

I tend not to be convinced by things that are indescribable. What I'm understanding is that it's a tool that makes you happy. That's sometimes a valid enough reason to do something.

[t-writescode]

Are you a visual learner at all? Or an artist at all?

Like, do you ever draw shapes, or correlate shapes?

Have you ever drawn a flowchart for somebody?