But computers don't save you time.
Computers do let you do things you could never have done otherwise. Computers let you do a lot of jobs to a higher quality. But they don't save you time.
This is because they are powerful, general tools. They let you complete work that might have previously required a professional. (Like typesetting a document.) That is, they let you do complex things, which you may not have had the skills to do otherwise. But that means there is a limit to how simple they can be, because at some point simplicity becomes a lack of control, and you can no longer make the computer do what you want it to do. You have to know how to do what you want to do before trying to do it, immaterial of whether you are using a computer or not!
Computers have raised expectations. For instance, these days a thesis is expected to be typed, footnoted and big. Not so long ago the thesis would be hand-written, footnoted, but not quite so large. Computers enabled people to insert text and automate the numbering of footnotes. So the thesis grew longer, quality of the presentation increased, and it saved no one any time at all.
In America productivity was lower than normal in the years around 1990, coinciding with record spending on Information Technology (that is, computers.) Last year it was closer to normal, and some business analysts feel it is because people are finally coming to grips with the value, and failings, of computers.
These findings won't come as a surprise to anyone who has used a computer for a while. They eat up time. They give people the tools to do bigger and better things, and demand more time as a result. Unfortunately, if the resulting product is of a higher quality than required, this extra time is time wasted. So even constructive use of a computer can be a time waster. (And if you want to kill time, then the computer is the tool for the job.)
The trick with making profitable use of computers is: use them to purpose. When you approach a computer, you must approach it with intent. Furthermore, if it breaks, get good help. Any organisation which has more than two computers and doesn't employ some one to keep them running smoothly is spending money on very expensive support: support by the user.
When learning how to use a computer, intent is the game. A computer becomes much more understandable if you think of it as a tool, albeit a complex ones, for writing, or drawing, or playing games. Trying to take in the whole of the computer without using it for a specific purpose is like approaching a car with nothing more in mind than just `sort of learning about it', but not specifically trying to learn how to drive. Before long you are being told about the engine, the braking system, different types of lubricant and the stereo. By the end of it you may be impressed, but you almost certainly won't be able to drive. And this is the point: driving is pretty hard at first, but it gets easier with time, and it is invaluable once you know how.
Computers are only tools. If you are trying to write a play and you have no experience with writing theatrical works then a computer is not going to help you much. In fact, if you are unfamiliar with word processors then it will probably distract you from your real purpose, which is learning about the mechanics of theatrical writing, not the mechanics of the computer.
Computers can do wonderful and useful things; they cannot just be branded as irrelevant. But like all tools, you need to know how to use them, and like all tools you use them for a reason. Otherwise they are just big time wasters or expensive toys.