Monday, June 4, 2007
Week 3, Thing #7- Technology concerns
You know, this is all a lot of fun - blogging, Flickr accounts, RSS feeds, and so forth - and I think it has lots of practical applications as well, but I have a question: Who has the time for all this? No, no, I'm not complaining, and I'm really glad we are doing this and learning so much and that the emphasis is on fun, but seriously, what it comes down to is what is a person giving up in daily life to keep track of, let's say, four other blogs, ten newsfeeds, and various friends' Flickr postings, as well as keeping up one's own blog? OK, so here are some practical applications: let's say you are in the military, and you get sent to Iraq, and you want to keep people informed about what you are doing and how you are faring, but you don't have time to send messages to everyone (well, you do with your e-mail distribution list, but others not included in that list might want to follow your journey as well), so you set up a blog and post. Makes sense, right? Or let's say you're into arts and crafts, and the Flickr toys have that artsy-craftsy feel to them - you know, little trading cards with your image on them, posters of your favorite images, and so on and so forth - so Flickr toys could be great fun as well and maybe useful, etc. I can see keeping in touch with friends through Flickr and various blogs, etc., etc. I guess I really shouldn't be too concerned about people spending even more time in front of their computers, keeping up with their favorite blogs, gazing at the latest images posted by their friends, reading their newsfeeds. Afterall, what did they do before all this? Maybe watch some television, hang out with friends, that sort of thing. I guess I just worry sometimes that while we are in front of the computer, might we be detaching from real civic engagement? Just a thought and a concern...
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You have hit the nail on the head with your comments. The computer is a toy, a hobby, nothing more in most cases. People do all these things, not because their lives are thereby made so much more efficient or productive, but because they like playing with the technology, like interacting with people, etc. You can make the same case for TV: Gee, I learn so much. But TV also comes down to a question of how does one want to spend one's time? I do indeed fool around with the computer some, but all of these tools are just too much at one time. How many social networking sites do we need to belong to? How many new toolbars do we need on our browser? I feel so much better being outdoors, making cheese, baking bread, reading, traveling, writing, etc. After an hour on the computer, my brain feels like polenta.
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