ADD: A Digital Distraction

Occupying much of my free time is a chance to catch a "wave" and go surfing. Of course I'm referring to the interweb and not some tasty waves along the Atlantic. I do enjoy the aspect of searching and staying up to date with the latest of the whatever & whatnot. However, lately I have noticed that all of this time online comes with a a bigger price & not just a monthly fee. The time (like all things) is the price, but the big idea is the effect to the mind. With all of the multitasking going on online with the modern user, I can easily note that our brains function differently than once before and who knows what to behold with the newest generations coming into an online world.

Back when the 56K internet connection was the "king of speed," everyone knew that the net was only going to get better and faster. I recall using two browsers at once to multitask online. I thought that was a grand idea. Now with modernized fiber optics and improved browser functions, some are doing way more than just two, three or four things simultaneously online. Even the iPhone has realized this (hence the new OS for iPod Touch also). This multitasking is making our brains react quickly to certain things entering our minds. Instantly, we need to find an answer. I can acknowledge that this is a great luxury, but with so much information in our hands, where do we draw the line? Now with the internet on many smart phones, there is no end to distraction overload.

In a blessing in disguise, my phone is currently on the fritz. I am almost humbled in the fact that I am often relinquishing myself from it at times and often consider future uses as I am currently in the market for a new phone. In order for many of us to accept thought process, we need some time away from all devices. I think that the web (and its more uses by the day) is just giving us too much to do online. This can be good and it can bad. Staying informed is great, but moderation is the key to any standard. Think about how many times people are messing around with their phones even in a grocery store line just to kill time until or even during checkout. Are phones and social media also becoming the communication protocol for even face-to-face contact? It seems like the direction we are headed for.

We've all noticed that kids today (which includes some of us also) and their new walk. The walk that includes texting or diddling on the cell phone/mobile device often causes some of us to say "Excuse You" rather than "Excuse Me." I just recently saw an ad for Mini automobiles which includes a man with his family shopping for cars. While discussing safety features and price, his two daughters are texting all the while during Dad's business dealings. Why is the media projecting the sense that this is all kids are interested in? Sure it may be all they do, but is there no other interest other than a connection to an electronic device?

If we cannot train ourselves to cast off from these devices at times, then we may become (or already are) addicted to yet another material need. I think that students of a new generation should learn online obedience as well as online etiquette. I propose this only because we surely are capable of controlling ourselves and don't always need to see a doctor regarding a "focus pill" for which the wealthy drug companies are making another killing based on our self-control decisions.

Expedient E-mail

At the beginning of the year, students were finally given a new e-mail account. The old University account was pretty poor in comparison to the modern e-mail client's ability. Many people have multiple accounts out there from their history of internet use and uses. I myself have 3 accounts and utilize them all very regularly: one for school, one for work, and one for my personal use. The reason I use all three is to regulate space between business me, student me and the real me. I surely don't want an e-mail from work to hit me during leisure time. Nor do I prefer for personal me or student me to interfere with work me. But hey, that's me. Some prefer all-in-one which I can see to be very manageable. I have noticed that many of my friends here at the University prefer to have all of their USC e-mail forwarded to their personal account. I must say though that the current student e-mail account through MS Outlook Live is pretty slick.

I would like to hit on some of the features of the current e-mail client within the University. A Microsoft Outlook Web App account has been issued to all students, yet not everyone utilizes their full account capabilities. Such features include a calendar and instant messaging (w/fellow clients/users) which is a current component within other e-mail services. A high point to add is access to some programs for the MS Office Suite. This includes a web version of Word, Excel, Powerpoint and OneNote. This prominent feature could come in quite resourceful if one is in a bind for a document or presentation if no Office program is available within situational computer constraints. But the biggest hallmark to be noted is the "SkyDrive" with a 25GB storage capacity. The SkyDrive (which is an online storage base) could also prove very clutch in a situation where one has forgotten or temporarily misplaced their flash drive or external hard drive. And with 25GB of storage, one probably wouldn't need their portable data as long as an i-net connection can be provided. One more reason why the internet and technology is lightening the load.

So, what I am harping on is the resourcefulness of your University-issued e-mail if you either have not utilized it or if you already know of its capabilities. Be sure to consider all existing equipment whenever in the virtual world. With your new, well-conditioned, much-better-than-previous-student-e-mail account in full swing, be sure to recognize your online efficcacy, especially when no MS Office is available and definitely if you've forgotten your flash drive!

Let me know of some quality features of your current e-mail client or one highly recommended. I am currently looking for a new personal e-mail account, so any tips or tools noted would be greatly acknowledged.

Portability Power

With all of the hullabaloo regarding the arrival of the iPad, one is to consider how this device will help to shape the future of the computer and how we use it. We already know that Apple (and its competition) has redesigned the current way we listen, transport and share music. They have also reinvented the way we use phones and have pretty much changed the phone to being less of a phone and more of a tiny computer. Now with the tablet format, the iPad/tablet has has condensed the size of the laptop and has applied the "no-button"/touchscreen format to the portable computer.

The eReader has helped to spawn the new physical look of the tablet computer. With the ability to read books, journals, magazines and newspapers all on one screen instead of hoarding around paper copies, the tablet will make these publications almost fun to carry around (remember: "traveling light is the only way to fly"). Toss in the benefits of the iPod Touch on a larger format and you've got your iPad. But the genius part of this idea is that with the new wave for modern reading, we have a more easily transportable computer. This medium shall benefit the student or e-learner as an all-in-one instrument for educational, personal and entertainment resources. Even the One Laptop Per Child campaign has acknowledged the new tablet PC format as the future standard bearer for student learning in developing countries.

We also must realize that every tech-savvy device being issued is just another form of what we can do with a laptop computer, but with ease of space and mobility. Obviously, we have been e-reading for a long while now. We have been listening to and acquiring music through our computers for several years. Some of us were even making long-distance phone calls through our computers for a while there. So let's all not forget our roots. Our wired roots that is,...the Desktop Computer. Take into consideration that all of our fancy gadgets take years to surmount to the quality, power and performance of the hardware and features of the contemporary PC. Even the tablet can't add up to all the wonders of a "regular" computer, but man are they cool (and easily portable)!