Modern Technology

This is from facebook:

Jeff VenderMeer did a post on communication technology... To wit, the new Google Glass and why it is not a good idea. I decided to not become comment # 110 on his post and instead do my own post. I deeply value the Internet. It has made my life much easier and more interesting. Now, when it's one a.m. and I need some bit of information for a story, I can get it at once, instead of waiting till the library opens. And when an idle question drifts through my mind, I can access Wikipedia. How old is Chow Yun Fat?

I love having facebook friends on the other side of the world.

I love being able to to take my netbook out to a coffee shop and write. Cell phones can be very useful. But there is also something to be said for actually being where one is and noticing what is going on around one. And there is something to be said for limiting information, especially since so much of it is crap.

I have always been a bit slow to adopt new technology, and I plan to continue to be slow. My phone is dumb. My netbook is a netbook. My Netflix movies come on DVDs. There is something to be said for time not filled with electronic input.

When I go on trips, I often carry my netbook. But I don't use it to connect with the Internet. The time away from e-information is very pleasant. I took my new nook to Minneapolis on Tuesday. Riding the bus on the way back, I pulled it out and played solitaire. It bothered me that I wasn't paying attention to the sky and the passing city. So I put the nook away.