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[DrKillPatient]

Well hello there fellow B12ers, I have a rather strange predicament and I wonder if anyone's got some advice in remedying it.
Basically, I'm incredibly good at anything I do on the computer, whether it's programming, writing a paper, etc, but as soon as I start writing stuff on paper, I fail miserably, because I'm highly dysgraphic and the effort of writing distracts me from the work at hand. This shows up primarily in math, where there really isn't an alternative to writing everything out, so I end up skipping steps and generally confusing myself because, among other things, I have no spatial sense whatsoever and my writing sort of circles the page or meanders randomly. Even if I'm not distracted by the effort, I usually end up copying steps wrongly or illegibly.
However, over the summer I went to a tutor to keep up my math over the summer, and get ahead a bit since I'm actually one math class behind (wasn't fully taught algebra at my previous school). In a few cases I just did problems verbally and he wrote them down, and apparently I'm incredibly good at thinking mathematically (linearly, I suppose). Here's the trouble; I don't think doing all my tests verbally will be easily possible, and writing stuff out certainly scrambles my thoughts to the extent that I don't do very well at all.
So, I wonder, has anyone else here had such trouble, and if so, what did you do to overcome it? I'd definitely like to do well with math, since I want to go into computer science, and actually I do like it, with the exception of all the writing.

[Vector]

Get permission to use a computer for examinations and homework as a special provision (should be possible if you have diagnosed dysgraphia), and get fast at using LaTeX.

[DrKillPatient]

LaTeX? Just googled it... what is it exactly? Automates certain tasks in documents? Is it specifically oriented toward mathematics? One of the main reasons I've not looked into doing math on a computer is because I couldn't find anything suitable, it would be great to have something like that.

[dimondmine2]

try wolfram alpha, and im dysgraphic as well (but not severely)

[shadenight123]

Get permission to use a computer for examinations and homework as a special provision (should be possible if you have diagnosed dysgraphia), and get fast at using LaTeX.

this.
in italy if you go through a medic which gives you out the certificate that you are indeed dysgraphic, the school "has" to oblige. (my brother went through it)
and if the school doesn't oblige, you can always try to get written exam free and only oral examinations...obviously this if you really insist on it.
i suppose you already go to a logopedist for your dysgraphic disorder, right? my brother went through it too for a couple of months, while it didn't solve the problem, now he can happily write his name without qualms (yes, he was THAT bad).
just, are you sure it's dysgraphism and not being disortographic? (i suspect both are the same thing, i just assume i suck at translating from italian to english and viceversa concerning medical terms, since it all ends in the "writing badly" thing)
so, apart from the medical evaluation, (so you have paper, paper makes miracles at schools!) ... practice is the only other thing i can think of.

[Vector]

LaTeX? Just googled it... what is it exactly? Automates certain tasks in documents? Is it specifically oriented toward mathematics? One of the main reasons I've not looked into doing math on a computer is because I couldn't find anything suitable, it would be great to have something like that.

LaTeX is specifically an offline word processing service professional mathematicians use to format papers, with all the symbols and so on available.  It does not do the mathematics for you, which is why you should prefer it to Wolfram Alpha and other such crutches (which you would also not be permitted on examinations by any reasonable school district).  It is essentially perfect for your expressed needs.

[Darvi]

is indeed awesome. I used it to make my notes for my end-of-the-year exam in physics and I passed ^_^

[olemars]

In that regard I can recommend TexnicCenter.

[DrKillPatient]

In that regard I can recommend TexnicCenter.

That's windows-only. I use Linux primarily.

LaTeX, on the other hand, seems like a great idea. Arch, my distro of choice, has documentation for setting it up, so I should be good to go... I'll see how using it turn out. Thanks, guys.

[ed boy]

I am also a mathematician with dysgraphia (though from the sound of your post, yours is worse than mine), so I hope I can be helpful.

The first thing you should do is inform your school that you are dysgraphic, so you can be entered into your exams as such. I was permitted to use a work processor for some of my exams (the essay ones) instead of writing. For the non-essay exams, I did not use a word processor (with the various symbols needed one would probably have slowed me down), but I was allocated an extra 15% time in exams. When I got to university, I was allocated an extra ten minutes per hour in exams. However, I am in the UK; depending on where you are, it could be different. Which country are you in/what stage of education are you in?

Also, you will want to consider the type of pen that you are using. I find that the quality of my writing varies greatly depending on what sort of pen I am using, with the best results being with a yoropen (I probably sound a bit spambotty by plugging their stuff, but you should really give one of their pens a go).

As for LATEX, it is a mathematical typesetting software. It allows one to use mathematical notation that most other text software does not support. It is very good in the sense that it is very comprehensive, and once something is typed up it looks very smart, though I personally have found it to be a rather slow way of creating documents, certainly too slow for use in an exam situation. For example, in order to write ^d2r/_dθ², I have to type out $\frac{d^{2}r}{d\theta ^{2}}$, which takes me a lot more time than simply writing it on paper.

[Comp112]

I have no advice, but I wanted to thank you. I read your OP and thought it sounded quite familiar, and decided to look into it more. I realize now what I have been experience/doing my entire life is this, at least I now understand whats going on, instead of feeling like I did something improperly.

[TheMasterTurtle]

Woah, I just realised I have all the symptoms of dysgraphia, although that is not surprising and probably tied to my hand eye coordination disabilities. 

[eerr]

What level of math are you in, and how high do you want to be prepared for?

[DrKillPatient]

I have no advice, but I wanted to thank you. I read your OP and thought it sounded quite familiar, and decided to look into it more. I realize now what I have been experience/doing my entire life is this, at least I now understand whats going on, instead of feeling like I did something improperly.

Woah, I just realised I have all the symptoms of dysgraphia, although that is not surprising and probably tied to my hand eye coordination disabilities. 

I'm glad this thread helped. I just assumed I had horrible handwriting for a while, as well. Heh, I suppose it's common to do that.

What level of math are you in, and how high do you want to be prepared for?

I'm in geometry this year (algebra 1 the year before, algebra 2 next year). I don't really know how high I want to go, although I'm in computer science so I suppose I should go a bit higher than whatever's the usual. I like math, actually, or at least the logic behind it (but say what you will about the consistent repetition of "solve X+Y=Z"x100), and I'd definitely look into doubling math for a year because I'm one level behind as a result of my previous school.

I've got a three-day weekend starting tomorrow, so I'll have some time to set up LaTeX. I've looked into the documentation a bit more and it's looking very promising.

[Nivim]

What level of math are you in, and how high do you want to be prepared for?

I'm in geometry this year (algebra 1 the year before, algebra 2 next year). I don't really know how high I want to go, although I'm in computer science so I suppose I should go a bit higher than whatever's the usual. I like math, actually, or at least the logic behind it (but say what you will about the consistent repetition of "solve X+Y=Z"x100), and I'd definitely look into doubling math for a year because I'm one level behind as a result of my previous school.

If you get into the habit of doubling math or making your own study, you can probably get to the kinds of math requiring imagination early (or at all). It would be nice to hear how you handle integration a couple years from now.