over a year ago, i created a twitter account under ‘attritionorg‘. it is shared with others on the system, but i do most of the tweets. it was a break down from my previous notion of avoiding social media. i figured out how to use twitter for my own benefit; not only as a source of information, but a new method to poke small bee nests. i now really appreciate the value of being able to throw stones at charlatans and large security companies, who now feel the need to be mindful of their social presence. that means, often times replying to me and trying to put out small fires i set once in a while.
weeks/months ago, i broke down and created a ‘real’ Facebook account (real name/pic/info attached), started following close friends and others i have known for some time, even if not as close these days. i even started playing a few of the various browser games to see what millions of people found so fun. while i do see the appeal, i also see countless bugs and annoyances that infuriate me.
today, i bought a smart phone. after years of getting by just fine with my RAZR, i sold out further and got a phone that does much more than phone calls. while my old phone worked, the service was pretty horrible, yet served its purpose. i probably told three dozen people over the last year that when i left my computer, i didn’t want to have one on me. that getting away from the computer was just that. so why the change of heart?
convenience. watching friends be able to google a restaurant, pull up maps of the local area or check e-mail has merits. while i don’t have any notion of checking e-mail while out and about, the ability to get to it if needed is helpful. having a real camera will also be nice; no need to carry the small camera in addition to the old phone. the ability to carry a sizable collection of music and not lug around an ipod is even better.
who knows, perhaps this phone will encourage me to get out even more. help sever various senses of obligation i sometimes feel that lead me to check online more often than i need to.