Personal Technology is optional. None of us is required to use it.

[MineralMan]

Last edited Tue Oct 1, 2013, 03:06 PM - Edit history (2)

If a technological device interferes with your comfort or safety, you are free not to utilize it at any time. Turn it off or ignore it. Complaining about technology that has a power switch is a first world thing. Just turn it off if it bothers or endangers you.

This PSA brought to you by Citizens for Common Sense.

[steve2470]

1. in reference to ? nt

[MineralMan]

6. Whatever you wish.

If it applies, then it may be useful.

[steve2470]

9. The only tech device that ever annoys me is my phone, easy enough to turn down the ringer etc

I could leave the phone at home but then emergencies might crop up with my son or a flat tire. My computer, I love it too much to turn it off (yes I'm being silly).

I guess I'm pretty happy with tech overall. I am amazed at them younguns who constantly look at their smart phones while walking around. A new world, to be sure.

[MineralMan]

11. I keep a cell phone with me, but it is

powered off most of the time. When I am free, I Check for voice mail. I have yet to hear its ring tone, which I assume is set as the default. My wife is the only person who knows the number. I do not know it. It is her old phone.

[Make7]

2. Great, now I have to walk everywhere! ( n/t )

[panader0]

3. That's a good thing

I'm glad I'm not required to use it, because responding to this post is just about the limit for me.

[MineralMan]

8. Some things are more complex than others.

Thank you for your reply.

[Fumesucker]

4. Eh..

[onehandle]

5. I am communicating via butter churn. nt

[MineralMan]

7. Not I. I am using my Kindle Fire.

Soon, I wiil power it off and go to bed, though.

[Bluenorthwest]

10. Also optional, the non sequitur

nt

[MineralMan]

12. An OP is, by default, a non sequitur.

It follows nothing, but is an Original Post. Thank you for taking the time to reply, as always.

[Bluenorthwest]

13. An OP is also optional.

This one is very 'beer and travel money'.

[MineralMan]

14. OK...

I chose the option of posting. You opted to reply...twice. Options are good. I am happy to have piqued your interest in my post.

[hunter]

15. That's false.

There are many ways our society imposes both technology and work on people.

Our so-called economic "productivity" and population growth is destroying the environment that supports us.

I'm some sort of Luddite. I think there are many sorts of "technology" the human species ought to be avoiding.

Cars and war machines are something we could do without.

Instead we are in some sort of death race, zooming ever faster towards our own self destruction.

There's no reason we couldn't all enjoy a twenty hour work week, long, long, vacations, comfortable low energy housing, free health care and education for all, everyone living in a way that's in tune with the natural environment.

Damn it, this is the twenty-first century yet our leaders all seem to have crawled out of some regressive nineteenth century work-or-die hell hole.

Frankly, I think most "common sense" is wrong.

[femmocrat]

17. We were joking at work today....

about how much longer it takes to do everything by computer. They gave us a five-page handout on how to do a maintenance request! We used to write it on a little half-sheet of paper form.

Getting into my gradebook/attendance program now takes 21 steps. We used to make a mark on a permanent card and send it to the office with a helpful student.

We are trying to become a "paperless" workplace, but everything now takes about 10 times longer, actually hurting productivity.

On edit.... I forgot to mention how many hoops we go through to request a sub. We used to make a phone call and talk to a secretary who then called in a sub. Now it is all done by computer, putting those sub-callers out of work. Most days there are not enough subs to cover the classes because of computer problems. It is endless......

[Nay]

50. Oh, don't get me started. I'm not a teacher, but I recently retired

from the corporate world and I'm glad of it, because of what you describe AND another problem -- the amount of "make-work" that can be directly attributed to the existence of the computer. There is a common type of boss whose modus operandi is to demand elaborate spreadsheets, complicated 'dashboards,' time-wasting Power Points, splashy newsletters, etc., in order to demonstrate to his boss that he is doing something. If I had a dollar for every one of those things I labored over just to know that it landed in the boss's boss's email trash, well, I'd be enjoying a REALLY rich retirement.

[ecstatic]

16. The government shutdown coverage is really making me uncomfortable

and angry. I should probably change the channel. Hopefully things will work out before midnight.

[hootinholler]

18. What complete and utter bullshit

Unless of course you are sleeping naked outside. Don't make a fire, that would require the use of technology.

[MineralMan]

23. Thanks for your thoughtful analysis.

Really.

[tkmorris]

19. Cryptic bullshit

If there's a point you want to make, make the bloody thing. Stop dicking around.

[Shankapotomus]

22. OP is referring to NSA spying

Implying that the temporary and easy solution would be to power down your spied on gadgets.

[MineralMan]

26. Actually, that's not what my reference is.

That's what you interpreted it to be. You're incorrect.

[Shankapotomus]

27. No, you're wrong

Just kidding.

In that case, what is this cryptic BS?

[think]

33. Cryptic snark is more like it......

[MineralMan]

24. Nothing cryptic about this bullshit.

If a technological device interferes with your comfort or safety, it has a power switch you can use.

It's something I think is worth remembering and mentioning.

But, I really appreciate your reply. My technology is on right now, and I'm using it.

[Skip Intro]

20. The NSA will just switch it back on.

[Gravitycollapse]

21. *Citizens for Common Sense (AKA people who don't understand technology).

[trumad]

25. Snarf

Bingo

[think]

28. How utterly unprofound.....

[MineralMan]

29. Thank you for taking the time to reply!

Your reply makes the thread more visible to others, and that is a good thing.

[think]

30. Next you can tell us how bread CAN be sliced!

[MineralMan]

53. Or broken up or torn. There's more than one way

to eat a loaf of bread. Slicing is often the least enjoyable method.

[think]

56. You make an excellent point. Breaking bread is much more enjoyable.

May you break bread often with good friends and family.

[MineralMan]

57. Sliced bread is for sandwiches.

That's fine, but excellent bread should not be sliced, but broken or torn into individual pieces. That way, the experience of consuming the bread is more complete, from the tactile feel of the crust to the fragrant revealing of its interior crumb. Sliced bread is boring, but breaking a freshly baked loaf is a pleasure to share with others.

[WinkyDink]

31. The Unibomber lives on!

[MineralMan]

58. What an odd thing to write...

I'm not sure what you mean.

[WinkyDink]

67. A weird attempt at humor about anti-technology. Yeah, I should've reconsidered.

[MineralMan]

32. I changed the title to add Personal to Technology.

That's because many people must use technology in their jobs. Clarity.

[kentauros]

34. Does that include toilets?

I mean, that is personal technology with a power switch (flush lever), and relies on potable water pumped by electric motors (with power switches) by our local municipalities

[MineralMan]

36. No. I'm using the word "technology" in the way it is commonly

used these days, to refer to digital electronic devices. I understand that many things are technology, but the term is used almost universally now to refer to digital technology.

[kentauros]

38. I know what you were referring to.

But as far as I use the term, technology covers everything humans have ever developed. A toilet is quite personal, is technological (rather amazing in its simplicity, too), and has a "power switch."

People also complain about their toilets working properly

[MineralMan]

39. When my wife and I moved from a small town in California

to Saint Paul in Minnesota, one of the chief benefits was that there was not a septic tank in the yard of our new house. In the 30 years I lived in the CA house, I dug up the top of that septic tank about six times. By hand. There was no access for power equipment.

A year before we moved, though, I invested in a new septic tank in the front yard, and a grinder pump well in the back. It was a strong selling point for the house when we sold it.

So, I'm a big fan of community sewer handling and treatment. Septic tank technology stinks!

[kentauros]

40. I'll have to ask my father about their septic system.

I don't think they've ever had a problem with it, and it was built in when they built their house over fifteen years ago.

I'm sure putting it in was a pain, too, as they live in central Texas, where the limestone is at the surface pretty much everywhere.

If you have the room, I'd say go for the natural, marshland-style of septic system

[MineralMan]

41. A well-designed, modern septic system can be pretty trouble-free.

That house in California, though, did not have such a system. Instead, it had a septic tank made of bricks, installed by the original builder of the home in 1952. Inadequate in design and capacity, it was a constant problem. I could relate many stories of the issues we had with it over 30 years. But I won't.

Today, in our 1954 home in St. Paul, we flush the toilet and it just works. Every time. It is a marvel of technology. Sometimes, I just flush it to renew my excitement of never having to hand dig to expose the top of a clogged septic tank. Ah, the simple pleasures.

[kentauros]

43. Simple, technological, pleasures!

[seveneyes]

35. Sometimes you have to cut the wires

There is no switch on some vehicles with GPS recorders built in from the factory. Not a big deal, but not everyone knows how to do it without bricking the vehicle.

[MineralMan]

37. That is true. However, that particular technology doesn't

really inconvenience or endanger its users in any real way. Truly.

[LanternWaste]

42. And one may also utilize a horse and buggy for a commute from Ft Worth to Denton every day

And one may also utilize a horse and buggy for a commute from Ft Worth to Denton every day to better validate their complaints about carbon emissions, leaving those who yet drive no room for concern.

The PSA brought to you by Department of the Practical, Office of Six Of One, Half A Dozen of the Other.

[MineralMan]

45. That seems like a rather hazardous option.

I don't believe there is an older road with no motor vehicle traffic one could use. I would not endanger a horse in that way.

[LanternWaste]

47. Not using personal technology can indeed, be quite hazardous and dangerous.

Not using personal technology can indeed, be quite hazardous and dangerous.

One may in fact, make the case that the use of personal technology is, for all practical purposes, required by a post-modern culture, and the choice we make to use it is a choice based on cultural coercion, rather than a choice based merely on preference as implied.

[MineralMan]

44. An Example of Older Technology that Cannot Be Turned Off.

Last night, while sitting in my living room chair, browsing DU on my nifty Kindle Fire, the telephone rang. I'm a fan of old telephones, so the phone next to that chair is a 1930s rotary dial candlestick phone. It keeps me in touch with my generation's history. It rang. Lacking a caller ID feature, along with a missing switch to turn the phone on and off, I had no idea who was calling me.

Since my parents are in their late 80s, simply letting the phone ring isn't an option, so I removed the ear piece of the phone, picked up the phone so I could speak into the microphone, and said, "Hello. This is {MyName}." I was grateful to learn that the call wasn't about a new medical emergency for my parents. I was less amused, though, when the caller said, "This is your second and final chance to lower your credit card payments." I've received that final chance call dozens of times, already, so I'm skeptical that it is truly the last such call I will receive.

I replaced the earpiece on its hook and returned the candlestick phone to the chairside table. The telephone interfered with my comfort, but I have no switch I can use to turn it off. It is hardwired to the connection on the wall, since my house is a 1950s house, and I haven't bothered to convert to modular plugs. Besides, I do need to be able to take calls in case my parents do need to talk to me. I keep a POTS line, because my parents always seem to struggle with conversations on my cell phone, and because I like to be able to call 911, and have the people there know my address immediately. Since I'm 68 years old, I could have a medical emergency myself, I suppose.

I have a smart phone, too. It is off. It remains off, unless I need to make a call while away from the house. I charge it once a month, on average. I have a variety of computers, tablets, and other communications devices, too. They're off unless I am using them, as well. The only communication devices I own that are always on are the various telephones connected to my POTS line. I even have an oak wall phone on the kitchen wall, complete with a stool to sit on when I use it. There are several cordless phones, too, connected to that POTS line. I don't turn those off, despite the occasional annoyance they cause.

[think]

46. And yet a landline too is optional. Thinking is also optional

But in a modern society most people choose to think.

Turning off a device because of a societal flux caused by a breach in privacy is an option but should such a flux in privacy exist?

Is this not the point that is being is being driven home with this thread? The fact that if one's privacy has been undermined illegally by outside forces the response recommended in this thread is to avoid technology rather than express concern over the illegalities that are disturbing one's privacy?

Seriously. Why else would one's personal technology bother one so much as to be concerned about one's "safety" & "turn it off"?

If one is speaking of some other ways personal technology could create a problem for a person's "safety" such as texting while driving this post has taken the long way in making that point. All the while leaving open the option that the true opine in this post is to dismiss the greater issues concerning the problems related to personal technology that people here are actually addressing.....

[Bonobo]

48. So obvious that it doesn't need an OP.

But if it satisfies your sense of "teachin' the youngsters", then it's all good I guess.

[MineralMan]

51. And, yet, you found the thread interesting enough to participate in it.

As have several others.

[lynne]

49. Most certainly. But, there can be unfortunate consequences -

- as many organizations use technology for meeting schedules, volunteer opportunities, etc. that are not work related. Want to volunteer so that you can participate in an event without paying an entrance fee? Need to use email to do that.

Not to mention that my mother has been screaming for two years that she never sees current pictures of the grandchildren. And that's because she refuses to use email.

Everyone can certainly choose not to use personal technology however they must remember not to complain about the consequences.

[MineralMan]

52. Oddly enough, I'm not recommending not using technology.

I'm only recommending turning it off when it is obtrusive or dangerous. Clearly, I use technology myself, and extensively, at that. However, I also take a break from it when its use interferes with other aspects of my life.

Appropriate use of technology is...well...appropriate.

[Safetykitten]

54. What an odd and strange post. So as people are shunted to technology, with no choice...

for banking, paying bills, using loadable credit cards, health records, getting healthcare plans...among other things, you think this is a choice.

[MineralMan]

55. The first line of my post reads:

"If a technological device interferes with your comfort or safety, you are free not to utilize it at any time."

We all use technology for many reasons. It's very useful and can save time and energy. However, we can also turn it off if it becomes annoying or in circumstances where it may interfere with safety.

It's amazing that so many people took my post to mean that technology is a bad thing, in general. I certainly did not say anything of the sort, and I'm a heavy user of technology. In fact, I make my living with it. However, I also insist that it not be a disruptive influence in my life nor affect my safety or the safety of others. I make extensive use of the power buttons on my devices, of which I have many.

Others somehow linked my original post with NSA spying, even though there was nothing in my post related to that.

I'm thinking some people are commenting on my post without ever reading my post. I find that amusing on one hand, and rather alarming on the other.

The word "If" is a conditional. If something, then something. If not something, then not something.

I despair about the apparent demise of the English language at times.

[think]

62. Ambiguity might not create ripples in a vacuum.

Being that DU is not in a vacuum the statement becomes less innocuous and more or less open to interpretation based on the history of discussions here as no point of reference is given .

Sorry for not accepting your post as strictly an ambiguous statement void of most context as I respect your intellect too much to consider any post made by you to be that base if that was your intent.

Yet if it were as a flower stretching for the sun and I did not see the flower for the beautiful creation it was; without toiling and working to enjoy it's simplicity; my apologies again for over contemplating a moment of zen....

[MineralMan]

64. All of my posts have some sort of reference point.

None stand alone, but are related to other things I've written or some other thread I've read that stimulated me to post an OP. I average about one OP a day. Some are long. Some are short. Mostly, I reply in threads, but I do post OPs from time to time, when I am moved to do so.

Zen is a warty potato.

[Logical]

59. I'm drunk too!!! nt

[MineralMan]

60. Is there someone with you?

Otherwise, I have no idea what you're talking about.

[Rex]

61. Then you can seperate yourself from you keyboard for a few days?

Admit it, you are addicted to online political forums. Even if it is bad for your health.

[MineralMan]

63. Sure. I do that whenever I travel.

I don't take any devices with me when I do. It's nice to be away from them. My parents, for example, shut off their internet access, since they were no longer using it. When I visit them for several days, which is happening more and more often, I have no access to the Internet. I don't actually miss it, and I don't work on those visits, so I don't need it.

My work, which is writing content for small business websites that are being created or completely revamped, requires me to spend my days in front of a monitor. DU is my coffee break, and I love coffee. So, I visit DU often during the day, and sometimes in the evening, depending on my workload. Typically, I'll work on a single webpage at a time, then take a break before starting on the next. That gives me time to think about its structure and plan what I'm going to write. Then, I write the next page, proofread it, and take another break. It's a system I've used for many years. If I just plod away on the writing without breaks, the quality of my writing begins to slip.

So, I write on DU, which has nothing to do with my work writing. Its a break. DU is a break. Instead of doing something else, I use DU.

Thanks for asking. Aren't you glad you did? Now, my break is about over, so it's back to writing about executive recruiting and placement again. Interesting stuff, to be sure.

[Rex]

65. HA! You are as addicted as I am!

I hear ya, I am always working with/on a PC in the office and cannot stay away from DU if I get a break. I always like asking questions and am surprised when I am rewarded with further insight. Thanks.

[MineralMan]

66. And yet, at the end of the day, I don't return to DU.

It's just a pastime. It's always entertaining, occasionally informative, and often laughable. What more could a guy ask for as a place to take a break?

DU is a Zen exercise much of the time. A koan without any clear message that can be ascertained without considerable thought. I post in the spirit of the place.

Most posts on DU represent the sound of no hand clapping.