Computers & teh intarweb
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Bill Drayton Jr.
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Computers & teh intarweb
So after not using one for about five weeks I became totally used to not having one and now that I am back using one I'm wondering if they are actually really that cool or just another addictive behavior. I've got a pretty radical perspective regarding them now in that are they really as cool as we think they are? I don't know anymore - I'm actually thinking that they are just a huge waste of time that sucked out a ton of life that I could have been using for something more enriching. I mean I really can't think of anything of real value that I've got from using one other than becoming more proficient at using one, typing faster, moving windows around quicker, clicking on buttons faster - but pretty much useless skills to have unless you are using a computer. I mean I quit watching television years ago and it freed up a large amount of time but now I see that my new TV is my computer. It's just an amusement anymore really. How has it made my life better? Has it made my life better? I don't think it's really worth much more than a communication device to send email and pictures. It's kind of sad really. Oh and I'm not talking about computers in general I mean the one with a keyboard and mouse - you know a PC/laptop and not such thiings as cell phones, embedded controllers, etc...It's kind of scary thought really all the time I've wasted maintaining my machines and all the stupid problems like are basically totally useless like disposable knowledge etc...
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enderzero
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Well that is an interesting thought, but you have taken it to an extreme. While many agree that technology in general (and computers/internet in particular) is a very addictive distraction, there are certainly some benefits that even you can't disagree with.
Just one example is communication. Who would you have said that too just now if you had a complaint? Would you have telephoned one (and only one) of your friends? Would you have written a letter? By far my favorite thing about the internet and computers is that it has allowed me to stay in excellent contact with this small group of friends, since I have been traveling and living in other places. Would we be as close when we do see each other if this line of communication had never existed? And that doesn't even take email into account.
The examples could go on and on. I like where you start from there but it simply is not as black and white as that. Could we exist with less time in front of the PC? Of course. Would we be better off? Maybe. But would the world be a better place if computers didn't exist. Surely not.
One final thing that piques my curiosity: In my job I spend a good deal of time in front of a PC - probably 90% of my day. in fact. At elast half of that time I am doing my own thing, (surfing, etc). What would I spend all that down time doing if it was only 20 years ago and I didn't have a PC? I honestly have no idea.
Just one example is communication. Who would you have said that too just now if you had a complaint? Would you have telephoned one (and only one) of your friends? Would you have written a letter? By far my favorite thing about the internet and computers is that it has allowed me to stay in excellent contact with this small group of friends, since I have been traveling and living in other places. Would we be as close when we do see each other if this line of communication had never existed? And that doesn't even take email into account.
The examples could go on and on. I like where you start from there but it simply is not as black and white as that. Could we exist with less time in front of the PC? Of course. Would we be better off? Maybe. But would the world be a better place if computers didn't exist. Surely not.
One final thing that piques my curiosity: In my job I spend a good deal of time in front of a PC - probably 90% of my day. in fact. At elast half of that time I am doing my own thing, (surfing, etc). What would I spend all that down time doing if it was only 20 years ago and I didn't have a PC? I honestly have no idea.
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Bill Drayton Jr.
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I didn't explain it fully as I think I was still trying to figure it out when I was typing the message. It's more of an intangible thing for me right now in that I really can't explain it that well but it has nothing to do with the computer being a tool, for communications or otherwise, but something in terms of the source of enrichment - personal enrichment. Like if I didn't ever have a computer I think that I would have been able to have a more meaningful and enriching life by doing things that changed me more internally for the better instead of it being more of a tradeoff for disposable computer skills. Like how much did spending all the time I have spent on a computer hinder me? An example of personal enrichment would be travel or learning something like another language or gaining better command of the English language even. The three English classes I took enriched my life and what I learned has overlapped into other areas of my life. With computers there really isn't any overlap into anything else it seems to all be confined into using a computer. I dunno, maybe my finger dexterity is a little better than if I had never learned to type? Maybe that would make me a better piano player? Moving the mouse around might make it easier for me to use a laser pointer? This is the kind of stuff that I mean.
I'm sure things are different for different generations/types of people.
What enriches your life? Taking drugs and "expanding your mind"? Visiting ruins in South America? Spending 5 weeks backpacking through Europe?
Skills are just what they are. If you can hone any skill to become a source of wealth or production then whats the complaint?
Look at baseball players for instance. I'm sure Alex Rodriguez's parents suggested the same thing when he was out in the street playing ball with his friends. "What a waste of time, what are you going to do with baseball skills, come inside and study biology." Well, it probably never crossed his parents' mind that he would one day become the highest pay sports player in history with his "worthless baseball skills". Now he has the opportunity to enhance his life and other's in ways that probably none of us ever will.
What enriches your life? Taking drugs and "expanding your mind"? Visiting ruins in South America? Spending 5 weeks backpacking through Europe?
Skills are just what they are. If you can hone any skill to become a source of wealth or production then whats the complaint?
Look at baseball players for instance. I'm sure Alex Rodriguez's parents suggested the same thing when he was out in the street playing ball with his friends. "What a waste of time, what are you going to do with baseball skills, come inside and study biology." Well, it probably never crossed his parents' mind that he would one day become the highest pay sports player in history with his "worthless baseball skills". Now he has the opportunity to enhance his life and other's in ways that probably none of us ever will.
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Bill Drayton Jr.
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computers are an amazing educational tool...the ways a computer can help you learn complicated concepts, from science and math to art or whatever else strikes your fancy is incredible. It is hard to argue (at least in my opinion) that access to such a powerful tool does not enrich your life; it certainly has enriched mine.
sure, there are downsides to "technology"...but like anything else, moderation is the key
sure, there are downsides to "technology"...but like anything else, moderation is the key
stay under the 1yen curve!
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Bill Drayton Jr.
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Again its being used as a communcations tool though and really if you want to learn about any of those things you are mentioning having a computer is not required because it in itself is not the thing responsible for enriching your life. I guess I'm just dissapointed in how much of my life I have wasted away on this thing. It's kind of like how much time I have wasted sitting in a car spinning my wheels or sitting in traffic..
When you are put into a situation where you don't have something that you once thought you needed (usually only if you really didn't NEED it,) you'll come to these conclusions. I have thoughts about such things all the time. Do I really need such a full-blown synthesizer? Do I really need multiple high-end computers that store all my favorite entertainment mediums? The answer is, I don't NEED them, but they server a LUXURIOUS purpose in my life. I don't HAVE to use them, and often don't. There are tons of times I look at my PC thinking, maybe I'll play a game, and then I go read a book (this does happen quite a bit these days,) or I'll play with my kids, etc. Other times, I say, god-damn! I just have to take a few rounds around the old sprite-ridden track on Outrun.
This is more of a thing that you personally are struggling with right now, and for good reason. You're evaluating what you believe are your addictions, what you want out of life, what's important to you, and what you can or can't cut out of your life for the better. If you let your PC become another addiction, then yes, it is one. Me, I have all this hardware, software, equipment, gear, etc. at my disposal, and I use it when it pleases me. I'm no slave to it. (this wasn't always the case, but a family puts it all into perspective)
I love knowing I can sit down and play any game in existence "IF I FEEL LIKE IT!" It's an option. That doesn't mean I have to play forever, honing my skills, etc.
Did you not have a great time playing Diablo 2 with McNevin and I a while back? We had fun, got a little bored later on, quite playing, and one of these days, I'd love to do it again when the time is right.
I often think "I'm a music hobbiest, not a hit-producer, so why do I need a synth that goes beyond whant most bands, producers, etc. have?" Why don't I just get something simple that will satisfy my occasional hobby. Well I still struggle with this from time to time, but the fact is I already have it, it brings me happiness when I have time for it, I have the potential to do more with it if I want. It's a luxury. I don't spend every waking minute in front of it. I spend I'd say 3-5% of my time using it. So it does have a wacked out use to expense ratio (hence my luxury classification,) but it does in fact bring me TONs of joy when I do sit down with it.
The other aspect is HOBBY. It's something to occupy time that would otherwise be spent doing what? If computers aren't as much your thing anymore, why not get a new, decent mid-range system that will run a few games, get things done for you when you need it, run some free music apps for when you're feeling experimental, and get rid of the excess. Your problem has always been excess (which I've struggled with myself as you know.) I have a few excess luxuries right now, but I really have paired MOST things down to either what I need, or what I want without being ridiculous.
Take my new car. I got a Porsche Boxster. It's not practical for kids, it's an indulgence, and it was far from necessary. You know what though? It cost me less than a similar year Honda, Toyota, or other equally practical car would have, breaks less, (may be a bit more expensive when it does break, but it all evens out,) it makes me happy to drive it, it gets good gas mileage, and I have a mini-van for kid purposes. I've got my responsibilities covered, I got a fun car for less than a practical one, I don't feel the need to push it, change it into an addiction, I won't be modding it. It's fast enough, it's fun, it fits into my life, etc. I got something I wanted without going to the extreme. I didn't buy a Ferrari, I didn't buy a high-end luxury sports car, a Carerra 4S, I got a fairly current low-end basic german sports car.
Nothing has to go to excess. Working non-stop 18 hour days is what burned you out on computers. That's nearly irreparable. Of course you're having thoughts of being sick of them. Make sure you have one that covers your needs, use it when you feel like it, go out and do other things when you don't. You don't have to take the sell off your possessions and live in the hills in a cave approach. Just do what the hardest things I ever learned (and probably you to a higher degree,) and MODERATE. Get a nice ADEQUATE sound system (you don't need 2 Mackie 12 subs.) Get a nice fun car (when you can drive again) that makes you happy to drive, but don't go nuts with it unless it's your primary hobby again, get some climbing gear, and get in shape out in nature instead of a sweaty unhealthy (mentally) environment.
Just some rambling thoughts from someone who's gone through a slightly smaller scale version of whay you're thinking of now.
This is more of a thing that you personally are struggling with right now, and for good reason. You're evaluating what you believe are your addictions, what you want out of life, what's important to you, and what you can or can't cut out of your life for the better. If you let your PC become another addiction, then yes, it is one. Me, I have all this hardware, software, equipment, gear, etc. at my disposal, and I use it when it pleases me. I'm no slave to it. (this wasn't always the case, but a family puts it all into perspective)
I love knowing I can sit down and play any game in existence "IF I FEEL LIKE IT!" It's an option. That doesn't mean I have to play forever, honing my skills, etc.
Did you not have a great time playing Diablo 2 with McNevin and I a while back? We had fun, got a little bored later on, quite playing, and one of these days, I'd love to do it again when the time is right.
I often think "I'm a music hobbiest, not a hit-producer, so why do I need a synth that goes beyond whant most bands, producers, etc. have?" Why don't I just get something simple that will satisfy my occasional hobby. Well I still struggle with this from time to time, but the fact is I already have it, it brings me happiness when I have time for it, I have the potential to do more with it if I want. It's a luxury. I don't spend every waking minute in front of it. I spend I'd say 3-5% of my time using it. So it does have a wacked out use to expense ratio (hence my luxury classification,) but it does in fact bring me TONs of joy when I do sit down with it.
The other aspect is HOBBY. It's something to occupy time that would otherwise be spent doing what? If computers aren't as much your thing anymore, why not get a new, decent mid-range system that will run a few games, get things done for you when you need it, run some free music apps for when you're feeling experimental, and get rid of the excess. Your problem has always been excess (which I've struggled with myself as you know.) I have a few excess luxuries right now, but I really have paired MOST things down to either what I need, or what I want without being ridiculous.
Take my new car. I got a Porsche Boxster. It's not practical for kids, it's an indulgence, and it was far from necessary. You know what though? It cost me less than a similar year Honda, Toyota, or other equally practical car would have, breaks less, (may be a bit more expensive when it does break, but it all evens out,) it makes me happy to drive it, it gets good gas mileage, and I have a mini-van for kid purposes. I've got my responsibilities covered, I got a fun car for less than a practical one, I don't feel the need to push it, change it into an addiction, I won't be modding it. It's fast enough, it's fun, it fits into my life, etc. I got something I wanted without going to the extreme. I didn't buy a Ferrari, I didn't buy a high-end luxury sports car, a Carerra 4S, I got a fairly current low-end basic german sports car.
Nothing has to go to excess. Working non-stop 18 hour days is what burned you out on computers. That's nearly irreparable. Of course you're having thoughts of being sick of them. Make sure you have one that covers your needs, use it when you feel like it, go out and do other things when you don't. You don't have to take the sell off your possessions and live in the hills in a cave approach. Just do what the hardest things I ever learned (and probably you to a higher degree,) and MODERATE. Get a nice ADEQUATE sound system (you don't need 2 Mackie 12 subs.) Get a nice fun car (when you can drive again) that makes you happy to drive, but don't go nuts with it unless it's your primary hobby again, get some climbing gear, and get in shape out in nature instead of a sweaty unhealthy (mentally) environment.
Just some rambling thoughts from someone who's gone through a slightly smaller scale version of whay you're thinking of now.
I'd also say on the enrichment subject, the computer is one of the premium sources for knowledge. What, are you going to order a set of encyclopedias, newspapers, and magazines to do (not as well I might add,) what you could do in 15 minutes on a PC.
I've traveled all over the world, and I've spent just as much or more time on computers than you have. (give or take a wee) I've tried many new things, I learn about what I want to, my wife and I are renovating our house right now. We have help from knowledgeable family members, but I've been acquiring power tools, reading a bit, observing, etc.
What's so much more enriching about another activity? Is cycling more enriching than sitting in front of a computer? Possibly, it depends on who you are, what other things you do, whether you make up for the deficiencies your chosen enrichment creates (i.e. physical health with computers,) etc.
EVERYTHING boils down to balance, learning, and combining and balancing your experience until you've learned the good and bad of your own personal world, and then keeping it that way. That doesn't even mean you can't cross over into the "dark yang side" of things once in a while for a little entertainment, it just means you better take the proper steps afterward to bring yourself back into balance. You lean to one side a little too long, and you become destructive, evil, self-destructive, waste of space, etc. You lean to far the other way, you put yourself on a pedestal that nobody can live up to, you lost potential friends, you annoy people, etc. etc. the term sanctimonious asshole comes to mind.
BALANCE IS KEY. teeter one way a bit sometimes when you need it, then teeter back a bit, just don't tip head-first into one or the other.
I've traveled all over the world, and I've spent just as much or more time on computers than you have. (give or take a wee) I've tried many new things, I learn about what I want to, my wife and I are renovating our house right now. We have help from knowledgeable family members, but I've been acquiring power tools, reading a bit, observing, etc.
What's so much more enriching about another activity? Is cycling more enriching than sitting in front of a computer? Possibly, it depends on who you are, what other things you do, whether you make up for the deficiencies your chosen enrichment creates (i.e. physical health with computers,) etc.
EVERYTHING boils down to balance, learning, and combining and balancing your experience until you've learned the good and bad of your own personal world, and then keeping it that way. That doesn't even mean you can't cross over into the "dark yang side" of things once in a while for a little entertainment, it just means you better take the proper steps afterward to bring yourself back into balance. You lean to one side a little too long, and you become destructive, evil, self-destructive, waste of space, etc. You lean to far the other way, you put yourself on a pedestal that nobody can live up to, you lost potential friends, you annoy people, etc. etc. the term sanctimonious asshole comes to mind.
BALANCE IS KEY. teeter one way a bit sometimes when you need it, then teeter back a bit, just don't tip head-first into one or the other.-
Bill Drayton Jr.
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Yes I've been thinking about the fact that I've been using these things for 22 years and while it's fun and brought me joy/amusement etc, been a good communications tool, and gave me a career it has hurt me as much as it's helped me, it's saved me time but it's wasted more time. I just always thought there was more to it and I've never evaluated it until now and its dissapointing.
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Bill Drayton Jr.
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I think I am just overanalyzing this - I mean the medium really isn't that important. I've never questioned how much time I've spent reading/handling books and books have given me less than computers have. Again this isn't about the contents of the book or the information a computer connects you to but simply the book/computer as a physical object. It's easy to get distracted with what I am talking about by thinking about the media that the object will give you.