Technology

[dancerjodi]

Wil Wheaton posted something interesting here http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2007/07/geek-in-revie-1.html . I'm at work, so I can't read his Suicide Girls Blog . . . anyone want to copy the text and post it in my comments here? :)

It does raise an interesting issue. I think we're becoming crippled by our technology. What would happen to you if your e-mail and cell phone and GPS went away? Would you be able to function? I'm not talking about getting your work done at work (some of that does require specific technological tools) - I'm talking about the everyday mundane kind of stuff. Could you call your friends? Find a place you're going? Get money from a bank?

Some things to think about! :)

Comments

[cris.livejournal.com]

I actually got in a conversation with a co-worker last week about why I'd never install GPS on my car or bike, and basically explaining that I never wanted to give up my ability to navigate on my own. I can see the benefit of geography based lookup service (and would love a service that would not only tell me which Chinese restaurants are within a 5 mile radius of my car, but also which ones have available street parking ) but I wouldn't use it to give me directions.

Not having e-mail and a cell phone might make things tough, mostly because all of our interactions are based on the presumption of near universal access to e-mail and cells. People don't make plans in advance anymore and always play things by ear. It's never "let's meet at such and such place at such and such time" but the creeping vagueness of "let's plan to be in this neighborhood at this rough time window and I'll call you when I get there and we'll figure it out."

What's the deal with getting money from a bank? are we talking about not having ATM cards and having to get to a bank during normal business hours? or are we talking about not having access to online banking? or are we talking about forgetting where your bank is because you've become over-reliant on GPS? ;)

there are some folks who blog about going a week without Internet, but it would be interesting to try a week at a certain technology level. Like, a week of living in the 1970s (pre-cell phone, post-ATM, you can only go online if you have access to a 2400 baud modem) or a week of living in the 50s (pre-ATM, pre Visa card, no online access at all) etc.