Mobile freedom

Transcript

In The rise of technology addiction, David Reid writes about addiction to mobile phones, which blur the lines between work and private life[1]. Although some people seem to adapt well to such technology, many experts worry about technology addiction, information overload, and impaired judgement.

The Internet brought my work into my home in the late 1980s. At night and on weekends I do a lot of work-related communication by e-mail. Sometimes the work load gets heavy, but I can get away from the pressure when I go outdoors. I don't have a mobile phone.

Mobile phones are great for some people. Many working people need to take care of family matters or contact coworkers when they're in the field. Also, if I were young and single, I'd want to stay in touch with my friends and take advantage of opportunities to socialize.

I think a mobile phone would just complicate my life. If I had one, I might worry about missing calls or messages. Maybe I'd quickly become addicted.

I really like digital gadgets, especially audio recorders, cameras, and my Palm PDA[2]. But I'm happy without a mobile phone, even though I'm out of touch unless I'm home or at the university. Sometimes it's inconvenient, but I see no reason to make myself available to everyone all the time. I really appreciate the freedom to be left alone.

Notes

[1] Reid based this BBC News >Click article on a panel discussion at the LIFT 07 conference.

[2] My personal data assistant (PDA) is a Palm Tungsten T3. I use it to keep my schedule and contact information, and it makes a nice portable library. It's SD card has quite a few novels and nonfiction works, which I can read when I commute by train and subway. I can also write notes with it, but I prefer an A5 spiral notebook as my portable writing medium.