The PC: A celebration of technology not a be-all-and-end-all

I do have to comment. This past weekend was the 30th anniversary of the first personal computer. Invented by a 'skunkworks' team at IBM, this demonstrated that amazing things can happen when you have talented people, funding and the ability to make decisions. (Dr. David Bradley was interviewed on NPR)

This invention set our society on a remarkable trajectory that has morphed from a pure office-based-desktop environment to any-place-any-time-any-where.

The anniversay was celebrated in lack luster fashion...but not as the homage to a device. It is more about the progress of invention, not that the PC is another discard of technology. It's rather that it was the path to new and more nible devices that have given us freedom to be virtual and the sentence of being always available.

I believe that we have officially made the transition from fixed-assets to pure information. We can get the information, education, IP and conversation we desire regardless of device.

It is not a pleasant situation to be in as a PC manufacturer. One would hope that they have diversified, extended their portfolios - have tablets in market.

It does show our evolution. We haven't held on to the PC as the only vestage of computing. It's not like our dependency on oil for cars. In a way - it's very cool.

An area of concern would be for those that cannot due to their economic status or financial capabilities make the move; however long term it appears that these devices will cost less and give more people access. It is access that is critical - not the device.

How wonderful - I'm excited to think what the next 30 years will bring...OK - -I'm still holding out for flying cars and Rosie the maid robots. A girl can dream, can't she ?

All my best,

K

Are our computers the real weapons of societal distruction ?

I make my living in technology. I had always seen technology as a catalyst for change and the instrument to make our work easier and ultimately our lives better.

There is another (as there are probably many more) opinions on what technology is doing to us. Or let's pose it differently: how we have embraced technology is detrimental to our society. I know the same argument can be made for drugs, cigarettes, junk food, sex and guns...it's not the  (fill in the blank) that is killing us; it's the people who use it that are. The beloved -- operator error !

I took a recent vacation, where I figuratively 'fell off the grid'. I did this with purpose to 1) see if I could really do it and 2) what impact it was going to have on me.

Here's what happens...Day 1- you are pacing frenetically because you can't change the TV station (no TV), check your Blackberry (I fully grasp why many people call it a 'Crack-berry) and are extremely anxious...There is just fresh air to breathe and it is quiet. What to do with the silence ? It's deafening.

By Day 3, you are starting to smell the fresh air, taste the organic food and sleeping deeper than you have since your last full summer of fun...somewhere north of 12 years old and south of 14 (when you started to care more about what people thought of you and less about having real fun). You start to look at the environment, notice things..literally smell the roses. And,you know, it's fabulous ! The gnawing in your stomach about deadlines starts to erode. You start to laugh, your face looks less constrained and you actually breathe deeper.

Somewhere around Day 5 - you declare that you don't want to go back to the grid. OK - -reality check - -the grid did pay for the tranquility.

You do realize that you may even have free time. There is a consciousness that TV, news, the bustle of commerce has numbed your brain. You start to think that you don't 'need' anything. Hummmm...it's like detoxing from commercialism..

When you return - you are relaxed and fully recharged and in my case, landing in Orlando - immediately overwhelmed with electronic messages, advertising galore and manic movement. The first thing you notice is that as a culture overall (this is solely my observation)...we as Americans are: very loud, fat and rude. It was a stark contrast and it was immediately noticeable.

The conundrum is what to do about this ? It is very, very easy and seductive to go right back to where you left off. Pull the Blackberry out upon landing, dial and declare "I've landed" along with 240 other people ?

I've chosen the less-traveled route and am attempting to take my holiday halo and apply it to my real life. Can I become evolved enough to understand that once again -- technology is a conduit...not a be-all-and-end-all. It  is there because I promote it, it is my job. It does not have to be my life. Matter of fact, I refuse to make it my life.

Here goes....

1- No TV. I did pull out the remote and plug in the final episode of the "Bachelorette"...It struck me as very trite that I consider someone's mating ritual my business, or that I care about these people that I do not even know. How many of you substitute the "housewives of XX", "Survivor", "Big Brother" or any of the reality genre as friends, family and filler? I did...I watched it for 15 minutes and couldn't take it any more. This was drama that I don't need or want in my life. Again, it's quiet.

2- Make my own food - yes, every day. I have a strong need to know what's going into my mouth. Did you know that even Kellogg's Corn Flakes has High Fructose corn syrup in it...for 10 days I ate clean food. I felt good. I don't know if I can go vegetarian, but I can eat healthier.

3- Breathe - Other than that which is require to maintain life, really breathe and do so deeply - feel alive...I've even picked up meditation. It is quite restorative. Who knew ? Oh, many cultures have - -as Americans, we don't know how.

4- I no longer impulse buy. Interesting by-product of not watching TV...you don't feel like you need anything. It becomes very overt how much you are marketed to on a daily basis. I make my living marketing. I love marketing. I also would have an 'need' to fill the artificial void I thought I had (yes, the sentence does read that way). The void was fear of boredom and anxiety - -and it did not require new lip gloss, a meal at Chili's or a new pair of shoes to remedy. I just needed to connect to myself. 

All our messages, portrayal of culture...facades are delivered by technology. This is why we feel bad about ourselves, we can never measure up to the pictures. I have also noticed that I feel really good about myself. I'm on a roll about feeling like I'm on the verge of personal transformation. 

Technology can also be the enabler of the transformation...blogging is vastly therapeutic...technology can give you the opportunity to work any where; it is completely invisible to you where I am. This gives me freedom and latitude to pick where I want to be....hummm...in the midst of this...or in the soothing mountains, by the beach or a combination to match what else I want to accomplish. 

I offer you the opportunity to un-plug for a while and then re-examine what you want to do with technology...Do you want to be controlled by it (not being able to put your mobile device down while out with friends) ?  or...Do you want to control it - create barriers of entry, boundaries ? 

I am choosing the latter. 

This hot summer evening rather than retreat to the sofa and veg-out in front of the TV-- I'm going to call some friends, have some coffee and laugh...I will laugh. And just maybe catch a lightening bug or two, just like I did when I was 12 years old and summer seemed to last forever.  

Wishing you a wonderful summer evening regardless of the season.

K