Musings on Random Musings

[BlackSword]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Fixed.

Not that bad, but one time one of my co-workers brought his computer to a meeting because, "I've got a lot to do, so I'll try to pay attention but have some other work I have to do." As I was sitting behind him, I got to see that he apparently had a lot of Facebook statuses to update, because that was what he was doing.

[Old Man]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I sat in a presentation the week before last where there were three of us resellers being presented to. The other two guys were on their smartphones the whole time, and one left early. I had already seen the presentation and was there mainly for political reasons. I helped the presenters get their demo past a sticking point.

[Enforcer84]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Fixed.

 

That actually might be easy to tell...

[Cancer]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

England & Australia were robbed by FIFA

Hmm, they weren't alone.

[Burrito Boy]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I'm thinking of getting my friends gag gifts this holiday. Something that has to do with Hannah Montana.

 

Can I be your friend?

[Old Man]

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Me too, if you're really giving out actual Hannah Montanas. I guess I'd have to wait a year or two to make sure it was properly aged, but that's not a problem.

[Tim]

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nope she turned 18 this year.

[Old Man]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Instant gratification!

[James Gillen]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I tend to not mind changes in technology if only because technology is the only thing about humanity that seems to progress and stay progressed. Politics' date=' male-female relations, economics, culture, and so on haven't advanced greatly for a thousand years, except where technology forced them to.[/quote']

 

Excellent point.

 

JG

[tkdguy]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Can I be your friend?

 

Me too' date=' if you're really giving out actual Hannah Montanas. I guess I'd have to wait a year or two to make sure it was properly aged, but that's not a problem.[/quote']

 

Actually, I was just thinking of a T-shirt or notepad. DVD perhaps?

[tkdguy]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I don't mind technology changing; ultimately it is nice to be able to contact someone almost any time of the day no matter where I am. I am not tied to my house waiting for a call or message from a friend. I do get frustrated that manners don't keep up with changing technology' date=' so people will answer phones at the most inopportune times, most meetings consists of continually hearing blackberries buzz with new messages, and last time I ran a meeting I noted that there were more computers than participants. Next time I running a similar meeting I will likely get snarkier and say, "alright children, close your computers, we're starting."[/quote']

 

Not that bad' date=' but one time one of my co-workers brought his computer to a meeting because, "I've got a lot to do, so I'll try to pay attention but have some other work I have to do." As I was sitting behind him, I got to see that he apparently had a lot of Facebook statuses to update, because that was what he was doing.[/quote']

 

I sat in a presentation the week before last where there were three of us resellers being presented to. The other two guys were on their smartphones the whole time' date=' and one left early. I had already seen the presentation and was there mainly for political reasons. I helped the presenters get their demo past a sticking point.[/quote']

 

See? That's my point exactly. Is it really necessary to be that connected all the time? We got along just fine without all that. Sure, all this stuff makes a lot of things easier, but we don't need to use it every waking hour. There's more more to life than all this.

 

I don't plan on using my computer this weekend. I'm going to work on other activities. I decided to do this before I opened this can of worms.

 

Edit: One of my coworkers feels the same way. He's a few decades older than me, but he understands where I'm coming from.

[Old Man]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Is it really necessary to be that connected all the time?

 

Well, yeah, it is. My sales reps absolutely must be that reachable because our competitors are. That's sort of an unintended consequence of the technology; customers now expect an unreasonably fast response time for inquiries. But it's still nice to be able to talk on the phone in the car when necessary, to be reachable when a close relative is in poor health, and to be able to make emergency phone calls from anywhere, including the wilderness (if you're lucky). That's just cellphones; smartphones are another matter entirely. I routinely am able to look up information on the internet from my phone and, when I had a data center to run, was able to run it--with limitations--from the beach, freeing me from my desk. And I can, and have, posted here while seated in a public bathroom.

 

It's not all upside, of course. Just today my wife called me thirteen times, and only one of those was even remotely important. Constant interruptions drive me up the frickin' wall. But the increase in communication capability, to me, justifies the increase in interruptions.

[tkdguy]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I guess it depends on the type of job. I'm glad my job doesn't require that, but again, that's just me.

[archermoo]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I don't mind technology changing; ultimately it is nice to be able to contact someone almost any time of the day no matter where I am. I am not tied to my house waiting for a call or message from a friend. I do get frustrated that manners don't keep up with changing technology' date=' so people will answer phones at the most inopportune times, most meetings consists of continually hearing blackberries buzz with new messages, and last time I ran a meeting I noted that there were more computers than participants. Next time I running a similar meeting I will likely get snarkier and say, "alright children, close your computers, we're starting."[/quote']

 

I both agree and disagree with you.

 

Valuing the incoming call over the person that you are talking to face-to-face is certainly annoying. Particularly if you are that face-to-face person. Personally I don't generally do that unless I have good reason to assume that the call is an emergency.

 

And I do put my phone on vibrate when I'm in meetings, but e-mail is a fairly standard way I get notified of emergencies, so again I'll generally check what at least the subject of the e-mail was, though delaying it until I can do so with the least amount of disruption. I also use my phone for note taking. As to bringing my laptop to meetings, I generally only do that if there is something on the laptop that I need to demonstrate at the meeting.

 

Personally I'm somewhat amused that the trend seems to be that what I call a "laptop" anymore is just being called a "computer" by most people anymore. One of those ongoing things. I can remember when people would use the term "computer" to refer to the dumb terminal that they accessed the mainframe from. As microcomputers started making their way into use, they shifted to being called "computers" leaving the dumb terminals to be called "terminals". When laptops first started showing up, that is what they were called. Often so that executives (who frequently didn't really even need a computer, so could easily get by with the reduced functionality of a laptop) could stress to people that they rated getting one. Now we seem to be at the point where "computer" is most commonly used to refer to a portable computer of some kind, and if the person is talking about a fixed location system they'll call it a "desktop".

 

Note, this isn't a "darn people using words wrong" diatribe. I'm just amused at the shift of the language. It doesn't really surprise me that in dealing with technology the language should shift so quickly.

 

So how's that for a random musing on a random musing?

[archermoo]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I guess it depends on the type of job. I'm glad my job doesn't require that' date=' but again, that's just me.[/quote']

 

The need to be constantly available is one of the downsides of working with technology. To me at least it is worth it to be doing something that I enjoy. And hey, I spent the first several years in my current position without even having a pager, since I was supporting stuff that was only used during normal business hours, and for that matter wasn't patient care critical. The job has shifted so now I've got one, but the labs I support don't generally operate outside of normal business hours. Even if they do, it would be for an emergency case and they have downtime procedures if the systems I support aren't working. Generally if they've got a problem off hours, they use the downtime procedures and just let me know the next day that they had a problem.

 

Fortunately we are currently working on replacing the system that gives me most of my headaches. Started looking at demos from vendors this week. There are some really cool systems out there.

[Bazza]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I both agree and disagree with you.

 

Valuing the incoming call over the person that you are talking to face-to-face is certainly annoying. Particularly if you are that face-to-face person.

This morning watched Bloomberg's Game Changers on Googles founders. Early on one of the big advertising execs was in a meeting with one of them. Conversation paraphrased:

 

Google founder listening to ad exec but looking at PDA type gadget

Ad exec: will you look at me when I'm talking to you?

Google founder: continue I can do both

Ad exec: choose one

Google founder: I choose this (his gadget)

[Bazza]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Is it really necessary to be that connected all the time?

Well' date=' yeah, it is. [/quote']

No…it is NOT! Commercial reality is an ersatz necessity -- a manufactured need. Even within the personal sphere is it not necessary to be so potentially connected every-moment-of-the-day. The truth of the matter is that humanity doesn't need to be that connected all-the-time. Marketing wonks want us to believe otherwise because they want to sell us upon this ersatz need that they desire to fill.

 

For instance, the work-home balance and you, yourself say that in your typical day only one of those is actually important enough.

 

However, within the commercial sphere, you are indeed correct that this has imposed it self upon humanity and has placed a burden upon people's time to be 'every-ready'

 

And I'm with you that having these gadgets to have this information at our fingertips to say, look up IMDB to find the name of the actor that looks familiar or 1 million other useful activities. THis is indeed useful and a lifestyle benefit for those who want it.

 

My understanding of TKDGuy's argument is that is is not necessary for everybody, meaning society at large, and to suggest an alternative. And by-and-large I agree with this view.

 

 

Another thought that occurred to me is that this increase of information and the hyperactivity it causes, can/may induce depression upon the psychology of a person, ie "it is all too much! I give up". It is also noting HPL said: "The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents…". It may as well refer to our information-overloaded society. An example: i recently read a column by tech columnist for the NYT, David Pogue, who has been covering technology for the paper for 10 years. In his recent column he said this which i quote (the third paragraph for me is key):

 

Nobody can keep up. Everywhere I go, I meet people who express the same reaction to consumer tech today: there’s too much stuff coming too fast. It’s impossible to keep up with trends, to know what to buy, to avoid feeling left behind.

 

They’re right. There’s never been a period of greater technological change. You couldn’t keep up with all of it if you tried.

 

Well, here’s a dirty little secret: It’s almost too much for me, too. Heck, it’s my job to stay on top of this stuff — and even for me, it’s like drinking from a fire hose. I do my best — I read all the blogs, devour the magazines, attend the conferences and listen to the PR pitches — but I sometimes feel as if I’m furiously paddling my surfboard on the top of a tsunami wave.

 

In other words, if you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone, and it’s O.K. to let yourself off the hook. (source)

 

The other thought that occurred to me today was that maybe there is a benefit to our information-overload, hyperactive, on-demand society. Perhaps it is fundamentally changing and 'rewiring' our consciousness to handle reality better. Not commercial reality, or our personal lifestyle, I'm thinking more about a multidimensional reality where time and space have additional dimensions (or more nebulous) to what our consciousness presently is conscious of. Maybe…this information-overload, hyperactive, on-demand society is preparation for this new multidimensional reality on the event horizon (pun intended).

 

In conclusion…I would like to think that I can see both points of view of this discussion, and as I said initially, I like my iPhone & iPad and find them useful to my lifestyle. But I also recognise that they are functional tools, but are ultimately not absolutely needed for humanity to be human.

[Bazza]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Addendum:

The recent film Avatar has a basic premise of having the hero rebelling against our technological laden society and embracing Nature, technological free. As Ido Hartogsohn describes Avatar:

 

It is as anti-civilizational and anti-technological as a John Zerzan book, psychedelic like a Terrence McKenna talk, and glorifies the indigenous and shamanic world view. (more)

 

This is not noteworthy in-and-itself but I came across this article discussing Avatar blues:

 

James Cameron's completely immersive spectacle "Avatar" may have been a little too real for some fans who say they have experienced depression and suicidal thoughts after seeing the film because they long to enjoy the beauty of the alien world Pandora. (more)

 

That this psychological and emotional reaction is occurring IS noteworthy, and I think adds weight to TKDGuy's initial post sparking this discussion. Maybe it has value; to halt the exponential progress of technology.

 

 

Ps: a short while ago, I was chatting with Oddhat via Facebook, so there is merit to our technological laden civilization.

[OddHat]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Ps: a short while ago' date=' I was chatting with Oddhat via Facebook, so there is merit to our technological laden civilization. [/quote']

 

People who complain about technology have rarely experienced true privation or starvation. I'll take the running water, electricity, and food transportation methods any day of the week.

 

And being able to talk to people almost anywhere in the world at almost any time is pretty cool as well.

[Cancer]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I admitted very shortly after I joined these boards that I would have been dead at age 5 without mid-20th Century medicine. I had a case of measles that would have killed me.

[Enforcer84]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

ok, we're piling on a bit. He's not anti progress he's anti annoying technology.

Anyone seen the vodka commercial in which the founder of twitter drinks with himself? It...wasn't much of an enticement for either twitter or...um Stoli?

 

anyway. that was my grump. Go back to whatever it was we're talking about.

[Old Man]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

Addendum:

The recent film Avatar has a basic premise of having the hero rebelling against our technological laden society and embracing Nature, technological free. As Ido Hartogsohn describes Avatar:

 

It is as anti-civilizational and anti-technological as a John Zerzan book, psychedelic like a Terrence McKenna talk, and glorifies the indigenous and shamanic world view. (more)

 

To briefly digress into a discussion of Avatar: yes, its core premise is anti-technological, but it undermines its own premise when it portrays the technology that created the hero's smurf body, the technology that got it to Pandora, and the technology that could presumably sterilize Pandora from orbit. And I have noted elsewhere on these boards that Pandora is sorely lacking in level 1 trauma care facilities.

[Bazza]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

People who complain about technology have rarely experienced true privation or starvation. I'll take the running water, electricity, and food transportation methods any day of the week.

 

And being able to talk to people almost anywhere in the world at almost any time is pretty cool as well.

agree. Our standard of living is something we take for granted.

[Bazza]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

To briefly digress into a discussion of Avatar: yes' date=' its core premise is anti-technological, but it undermines its own premise when it portrays the technology that created the hero's smurf body, the technology that got it to Pandora, and the technology that could presumably sterilize Pandora from orbit. And I have noted elsewhere on these boards that Pandora is sorely lacking in level 1 trauma care facilities.[/quote'] To briefly digress out of it I'm happy not to have seen the movie thus far and have not current plans to watch it.

[tkdguy]

Re: Musings on Random Musings

 

I wasn't expecting this conversation to still be going on, but...

 

People who complain about technology have rarely experienced true privation or starvation. I'll take the running water' date=' electricity, and food transportation methods any day of the week. [/quote']

 

So would I, but for the record, I have been able to live without all those things, even if it was just for a short time.

 

ok' date=' we're piling on a bit. He's not anti progress he's anti annoying technology.[/quote']

 

Thank you, that was pretty much my point.

 

No…it is NOT! Commercial reality is an ersatz necessity -- a manufactured need. Even within the personal sphere is it not necessary to be so potentially connected every-moment-of-the-day. The truth of the matter is that humanity doesn't need to be that connected all-the-time. Marketing wonks want us to believe otherwise because they want to sell us upon this ersatz need that they desire to fill.

 

.....

 

My understanding of TKDGuy's argument is that is is not necessary for everybody, meaning society at large, and to suggest an alternative. And by-and-large I agree with this view.

 

Nice to know I'm not alone here.

 

As for what I did without my computer, I caught up on some reading and writing and did some reorganizing at home. And I got caught up on my sleep.