the present invention is directed to an improved system and method in which a pen - sized and shaped device detects , recognizes and stores handwriting as it is written by the device . the invention employs both an active feedback network and a character recognition methodology of partitioning detected input into character components . the active feedback network continually monitors device output to determine the sufficiency of the data input . if the data input is insufficient , the device modifies its detection methodology to obtain data the device readily recognizes . data recognition is performed in multiple asynchronous processes . elements of individual characters are sampled by the detector . character elements are processed and recognized on this elemental level . recognized character elements are stored for subsequent assembly and recognition on a character level . thus , preferably two recognition sub - processes take place , one on a character element level and another on a character level .