Asker of questions.... wrote:
Today you are making a huge sacrifice by turning off your phone for an hour. People get peeved if you don't text back within minutes. Bosses and customers demand access-ability.
Here's a tip: just don't respond to people. They'll stop texting you.
No, it was not.
troll_69 wrote:
Vineyard Vines wrote:
Yeah, I travel a lot, and always met really interesting people in airport waiting lounges, on the plane, whatever.
Nowadays everyone has their face stuck in a phone and I'm loathe to interrupt.
I do miss chatting up strangers.
I think that has more to do with people being less trusting these days; they tend to assume you want something with them that will cost them financially or greatly inconvenience them
It's because of tinder and other smartphone apps that allow even below average women to take their pick of thousands of men, and so no longer have any need or desire to be 'chatted up' in public. In some countries like the UK, it's borderline illegal to talk to a random woman if you're a guy now.
I have a work phone which is turned off promptly at the end of the day. There are times I would like to throw it out the window. My personal cell is left in my home, most of the time and I will check the messages at my leisure. It really irritates me when someone just has to answer their phone right away, every time, and it's generally junk calls.
Since the smart phones was invented by NTT Japan in the late 1990s it's changed society. Russian war crimes in Ukraines, US war crimes in Palestine, Chinese war crimes in Xinjiang, etc. can be uncovered by big data searches of posts and GPS whereabouts details.
Today's mobile phones and their apps cause more problems than they solve. Just one example: Cyclists have been driven off of the road because they are in significantly more danger from distracted drivers than they were before 2007 (the year the iphone was released).
The phones are related to dose of the poison. Whether it be social media or algorithmically pushed "news". Put down the phone and the dose goes down an order of mag or more.
Was life better without electricity?
You aren't the only one... I grew up splitting time between Eastern WA and North Idaho. Our cabin in North Idaho didn't have an address (a listed address) or a phone. At the time I thought it was weird but now I think it would be great.
A couple of posters have stated the common sense solution of “just turn your phone off”. Which makes perfect sense.
But I wonder how many of us can truly do that. In other words, what would happen if you told your associates/ relatives that you will have your phone off for a week or a month. (No texts, posts, emails or calls) And it will be turned off just because you don’t want to be bothered. Not traveling abroad.
People would view that as very odd. probably unacceptable. There was a time when it was 100% normal. I get nostalgic thinking about that aspect of life. I’m sure if we could time travel you would have another aspect of life “back then” you would enjoy.
Yes, life was better before smartphones. The internet has broadly been good, but the ability to take the internet in your pocket everywhere you go is not. In the 2000s, there was a clear distinction between internet time and real life. Nowadays, people are so glued to their phones it makes meeting new people difficult.
The ideal solution is for society to abandon the smartphone and have everyone go back to dumbphones. Social media could still exist, but its consumption would be more limited.
and there is a VERY EASY way to fixe the issue...GET OFF SOCIAL MEDIA.
SDSU Aztec wrote:
F no. One example is running late for a meeting and having to decide whether to be even later by stopping at a payphone to notify them. If I did decide to stop, about half the time the phone was broken.
As a parent, being able to call my children anytime is wonderful.
I'm in my 60's - having my parents not being able to call me anytime was wonderful. I tried to afford my kids the same privilege as much as possible.
I'm not saying it was better before cell phones. I like not carrying around a Thomas map. I like not memorizing telephone numbers. I like being able to find a good restaurant when I'm in a new town, and I like carrying around my music. Podcasts are great.
However, I refuse to be always available. When I'm off work, only my boss can call or text me (and they rarely if ever do). I don't return text's immediately (unless it appears to be an emergency). I don't answer every call (leave a message). More importantly, I don't reach for my phone every time I'm bored. At least I try not to. And maybe even more important - no social media on my phone.
No, just different. A lot of benefits to not having a smartphone (privacy, productivity, and being resourceful to find entertainment).
Also a lot of benefits to having a smartphone. Essentially unlimited information and entertainment at your fingertips 24/7. It’s addictive and can distort your view of reality.
The good news is that you can self impose limits on smartphone usage, so I’d say it’s a net benefit to an individual.
As a society, I think the smart phone, particularly social media, may end up doing more harm than good.
I remember the good old days when you had to go to your local library, thumb through the card catalog file then go upstairs to the fiction section in order to read Letsrun.
Asker of questions.... wrote:
It is interesting to me that some are nostalgic for the ability to have good ole conversations with others. While I miss being not available at all to others if they wanted anything from me.
I would guess that many miss both:
1) the ability to have good ole conversations with others and
2) being not available at all to others if they wanted anything from you
I think smartphones are great, as cordless phones that you can take out of the house and hold a charge. Social media is interesting for communicating with old friends and distant family without actually having to talk to them. But, you still need to know how to talk to people, in person, and many people have lost that ability. Ah well, progress and concessions to progress.
GPS on your phone that can update in real time is great. Getting lost sucks
Every store, restaurant, or service having their own app is not great. I don't want a freaking app for a place I go to twice a year.
Social Media is a mixed bag. Its good for some people but harmful to others, even if they can't realize it.
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