My handwriting implement of choice is…

[ambrus]

Chisel

 34/4%

Stylus

 14/2%

Quill

 7/1%

Brush

 6/1%

Fountain pen

 77/8%

Wooden pencil

 43/5%

Mechanical pencil

 150/16%

Cheap ballpoint pen

 145/16%

Quality ballpoint pen

 131/14%

Gel pen

 97/11%

Felt-tip pen

 19/2%

Whiteboard marker

 29/3%

Chalk

 23/3%

Crayon

 19/2%

Tattoo needle

 12/1%

Spray paint

 9/1%

Other

 16/2%

I never write by hand

 84/9%

915 total votes

[apl]

Tattoo needles must never be used by Agile developers... Revising your code would be a bitch...

[JavaFan]

OTOH, using a hard to reverse writing tool quickly learns you to write things right the first time.

[tubaandy]

But code revisions would require Lasers. Mmmmm...

[ww]

... what earthlings call a "flying saucer" for programming tasks such as "crop circles."

I know you didn't ask, but like many of my confreres, I choose a middle-sized asteroid for an eraser (though a dwarf planet will do).

[roboticus]

I use a cylindrical pigment applicator.

</overgeneralization-mode>

...roboticus

[Illuminatus]

I think the most obvious choice for me would be "doesn't matter, because nobody would be able to read it anyway"

However, given the choice, I would definitely have to say Pastry Bag, since you get to eat all of your mistakes...

fnord

[ramrod]

Blue BIC round stic medium made in the USA.

Even though its cheap, you wouldn't believe how many people try to steal my pen.

[JavaFan]

Made in the USA? You are aware that Bic is a Fren^WFreedom product, aren't you? (Of course, that doesn't mean BIC pens can't be made in the USA).

[BerntB]

Pilot G-TEC-C4 (see e.g. net stores.)

I've been using these for at least a decade. They aren't expensive, but break easily. I buy a dozen at a time, so I'll always have a few around.

The winning feature is that you can write with really small details. (Ads claim 0.2 millimeters line widths, iirc.)

[MidLifeXis]

Zebra F-301: red, black, or blue. Other pens tend to bleed, blob, or dry out on me. These pens cost me a little more (not a lot more ;-) up front, but dollar for dollar have probably lasted longer.

I do have to watch who I lend them to, however ;-)

[jdporter]

My fave is Sharpie, so I voted felt-tip pen. Of course, not all felt-tip pens are Sharpies.

[Tux]

For me a quality mechanical pencil. Either full-metal or some softish finger-friendly material. And, important, a good eraser on the back. Preferably one that can be replaced. I've replaced many with cut-out pieces of bigger erasers.

These pencils are good for cross-words, difficult logical puzzles, but also for prototyping your thoughts on paper.

What I missed was a wooden stick, which I use when I walk with my kids though the woods or on the beach to draw various things in the sand.

[apl]

These pencils are good for cross-words

I use different colored pens for doing the NYTimes crossword; I want to know what my mistakes were...

[ikegami]

I love whiteboards!

[Gavin]

I prefer to write on them!

[codeacrobat]

Of course the magic marker http://nethack.wikia.com/wiki/Magic_marker.

[ambrus]

Right, that counts as a felt-tip pen in reality. Now I wonder which option a wand of fire corresponds to.

[chexmix]

I guess that "femur or tibia dipped in foeman's blood" comes under "other," but ...

[sweetblood]

Finger paint: Red for strings, green for comments, black for code.

[ambrus]

Green for comments.

[jmcnamara]

I use a Uni-ball Kuru Toga self-sharpening mechanical pencil, a Pilot G2 Gel pen and a Lamy 2000 fountain pen.

I also like Bic ballpoints.

--
John.

[DrHyde]

Hmmm, no "whatever's available" option.

I prefer to not write by hand - it's slow, hard to decode, and painful.

[tbone1]

Lately, it's my finger. Stop that, you smutty little lads, I bought an iPhone.

[gloryhack]

PaperMate PhD, whether pen or pencil. It keeps my tired, overworked fingers from cramping when I have a lot of writing to do.

[tubaandy]

I end up using a lot of hotel pens. One of the consequences of travel for work.

I joke with my wife that one of the reasons I went to grad school was to be able to justify poor handwriting. OK, well, maybe not. :)

[ambrus]

I use different tools depending on the occasion. I carry a single refill pencil which I use for simple note-taking and drafts and doodling. For more formal stuff, I use normal biros. For things that are important to me, I use good pens: a Parker ballpoint pen, or gel pens with a thick tip – these latter leave a nice and distinctive mark. Finally, I usually have real cheap biros with me which are for lending for other people and not minding if I don't get them back.

Also, I prefer whiteboards over blackboards because the chalk dust is bad, the whiteboard writing is more readable, and the whiteboard is easier to erase well too. With a few exceptions, I don't get to choose this one though, I just have to use whatever is in the room.

[hexcoder]

I never write on hands and consequently also avoid palm readers.

[chuckbutler]

My weapons of choice Uni-Ball Vision Elite pen and Rotring pencil. The pen does not leak, and in blue, it has great contrast. I acquired the pencil to use with drawing templates (I know, old school) but works good as my daily.

Good luck. -c

[pmonk4ever]

Cross Pen & Pencil set. Easy to refill and looks good on whatever surface I write on. Fine point pen and 0.5 lead.

[eric256]

Foray Wooden Liquid Graphite Pencils. Right like a pen but with graphite so they erase nice, and a wooden body so they are nice to hold.

[graceoflarkspur]

I'm pretty happy with my graphics tablet's stylus. A somewhat distant second, though, is a gel ink pen. Third is mechanical pencils (which were actually what I learned to draw with, back in high school; working in grays let me forget about my color blindness.)

[jonadab]

Avant Stellar.

What? Don't look at me like that. That should count as handwriting, or else I'd like to know how many wpm you can do without hands.

[dHarry]

I use a Waterman. Got one as a present and used it for over 16 years. The ink refills are a bit expensive though:( But the writing experience is beyond compare IMHO.

[Xilman]

Mont Blanc fountain pen, early 1970's vintage.

[tweetiepooh]

Finger, but blood only comes in one colour. And it changes as it dries.

[Anonymous Monk]

Other - mine writes on snow

[StommePoes]

I used to always use a black Pilot vball Extra fine, which is one of those inky pens. You can't draw anything decently with a ball point... they skip.

Nowadays, since I draw much less than I used to, I use whichever pen I've gotten from one conference or another. Just last week my Sapo.pt pen from YAPC Lisbon split apart, spring flew out, had to junk it :(

[Anonymous Monk]

No leadholder option? I guess that's a subset of "mechanical pencil"

[Anonymous Monk]

Most definately joe

[Anonymous Monk]

Pen       is

[bpoag]

W^!