Writing Discussion 1

I enjoyed the fact that the NY Times featured an article on the ubiquitous media consumption in our society. Gadgets such as smart phones, netbooks, iPads, and laptops have taken their toll on our collective ability to pay attention. There are several points in this article that I can relate to in my experience.
Gadgets can help us do a lot of things, but as in the case of Kord Cambell, one minor overlook almost caused him to forgo a considerable profit by missing a buyer for his start up company. This slip-up seems to do one of two things to user's like Kord: The user becomes determined to "master" his technology and become more diligent in its use or they vow to reduce their dependency on the gadget. A guy like Kord chose to use his gadgets more, a guy like me wants to depend on them less.
This sort of negative consequence that Kord almost suffered seems to import the idea that their are necessary technologies that have to be used everyday. Marketing forces in America have seemed to pick up on that and capitalize on that fear. I saw a smart phone commercial yesterday in which the actor said " I need my Droid everyday, I can't live without it." I can't live without it, huh? That's a pretty dramatic, fear instilling statement. Another commercial showed off all of the useful features such as Facebook, Twitter, and other Apps. Someone please let me know when the usefullness of FB, Twitter, and an App that lets you make your digital pictures look funny, gets you ahead in your day to day activity.
I just recently purchased a $50 flip phone because I like them. It calls people and does not break when I drop it. It was hard to find one, none of the oligopolistic cellular provider companies are selling them in their stores and their service people will not aid you in aquiring one. They are forcing the American cell phone customers to buy only what they make available, meaning more people with more smart phones. Invariably, this leads to more multitasking.
I recognize the negative effects of multitasking in my day to day business. I've seen it make people miss important engagements in they way Kord has. I 've seen it draw people away from meaningful conversations and family time. I've seen employees in organizations waste hundreds of labor hours cost on Youtube, FB, and iPhones. My stance is that multitasking has taken its toll. This article makes me reflect on the negative impact techonology. We must use it when its useful, but fight the feeling of needing to always be immediately connected to our multiple and pervasive forms of media usage. I do this buy having a phone that only calls people. I check my emails twice a day. I only get on FB once a day. Everyday is still a battle to use technology only when its useful. Other battles take place on XBOX live, where my visual tracking ability, developed since Doom first came out, causes me to relentlessly punish my opponents.