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View Full Version : Are We Too Connected?


Jon Westfall
05-27-2005, 11:44 PM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://wifinetnews.com/archives/005325.html' target='_blank'>http://wifinetnews.com/archives/005325.html</a><br /><br /></div><i>"It’s too early to say whether it’s a trend, but Victrola Coffee &amp; Art in Seattle shuts down its free Wi-Fi on Saturday and Sunday: I spoke to co-owner and co-founder Jen Strongin today after a colleague tipped me to the fact that this lovely, single-shop coffee establishment had decided to experiment with taking back its culture by turning off the Wi-Fi juice on weekends."</i><br /><br />While most of us see nothing but benefit to Wi-Fi Hotspots (After all, we get connected, the owner gets more traffic in their establishment), or to being more connected in general, this article brings up some interesting issues. <br /><br />For me, I'm the exception where I live. When at mostly suburban Borders or Barnes &amp; Nobles, I'm the lone person with a PPC or Laptop (Much to my fiance's dismay). This isn't the case in bustling "hip" areas though, and the sea of laptops described in the article can be a common sight. So which atmosphere is better? Well, in terms of connectivity, a Seattle coffee shop with free Wifi certainly beats out my Borders &amp; GPRS internet (I guess I could pay for T-Mobile Hotspot, but who wants to pay when they already have a data plan?), but am I losing something by interacting with my computer instead of other people? And while I always purchase a drink when sitting there typing on my gadgets, is it possible that free Wi-Fi is actually hurting owners more than helping as in this article?<br /><br />So are we too connected to the internet now, not enough, or just right?

allenalb
05-28-2005, 02:44 AM
we are too noticeably connected, and not enough invisibly connected.


it's just a phase we must go through before we get to the inevitable 'star trek communicator and tricorder tied into ship's computer' phase that we are all eagerly awaiting :)

Jason Lee
05-28-2005, 03:28 AM
I am not too connected! (as I type this from my bathroom on my pocket pc phone.)*


*sorry if thay was too much information but it is the truth. LOL

Darius Wey
05-28-2005, 03:54 AM
I am not too connected! (as I type this from my bathroom on my pocket pc phone.)*

*sorry if thay was too much information but it is the truth. LOL

It was. 8O

seaflipper
05-28-2005, 04:06 AM
I am not too connected! (as I type this from my bathroom on my pocket pc phone.)*


*sorry if thay was too much information but it is the truth. LOL

My highest scores on Bejeweled2 are in the toilet :lol:

tut00
05-28-2005, 04:33 AM
I don't think we are, but then of course right now as I type this i am 200 miles from home sittting outside my camper enjoying the nice nidght air.

I enjoy being able to connect to the things I like!! Plus while on vacation, I can look up the weather, get directions, check movie times, etc., ect.

Wouldn't want to not be connected.

Jorgen
05-28-2005, 05:31 AM
as I type this from my bathroom
I hope you wiped the message before sending it! :)

One cannot be too much connected. It is nice to be able to google something anywhere.

Jorgen

Jon Westfall
05-28-2005, 05:35 AM
There are times that I've posted to PPCT from unothodox locations such as those mentioned. Women's clothing stores dressing-room wait areas (i.e. the place the men get parked while their women are trying on clothes) are also popular when my Fiance and I are out shopping. I've posted while in class, posted while in the hot tub (With my PPC in a plastic baggie to prevent accidents), posted in a car, posted in a train, etc...

Connectedness is a good thing most of the time. However, even I draw the line: I don't post in church!

Tierran
05-28-2005, 05:46 AM
Well, if the owner want's to take back his 'culture' (whatever...) he can keep his coffee on those days too :roll:

If I lived by that coffee shop and frequented it...my frequenting would be a couple days less frequent. :lol:

jimski
05-28-2005, 07:16 AM
I don't think we are too connected. Actually I don't think we are connected enough. When you look at the big picture, there are still relatively few places where free WiFi is available. So when it is available, people will play with it like a new toy. I have seen many people at free WiFi hotspots who are browsing, but don't quite know why. More W?BIC than anything.

When free WiFi and high speed "all you can eat" data services become so commonplace that it would be odd to find a place without access, people will find more time to enjoy the things and people around them and only connect when they need to, knowing that they always can.

Gremmie
05-28-2005, 09:01 AM
The way to test if your too connected to anything is to remove it for a weekend to see if it makes your life too dull or unable to function. At times I can be too connected to internet, take it away and (sometimes) my day can become awfully boring. Last night I was up late and it appeared cable went down for repairs, meaning my internet and TV didn't work...I promptly went to bed.

pr0vider
05-28-2005, 11:36 AM
I pretty much agree with Gremmie, above. I've got an Axim with wifi and bluetooth capabilities but have never used them; I bought it solely for its VGA resolution, speed and prodigious memory. The Axim, as I have programmed it, has become a library of the information I need while out and about from the office or home. My cellphone is the only live connection I need.

I don't want to spend all my free time staring at a computer screen; I do enough of that at work and sometimes at home. :|

ricksfiona
05-28-2005, 10:01 PM
The only problem I have with WiFi at a coffee shop is how people feel they have a right to occupy a seat for hours on end by buying 1 little cup of whatever.

But I do know one person who owns a coffee shop which I installed WiFi on her request. While there are people who leech off the free Internet, she feels the benefits outweigh the cons. She gets a lot of people who do meetings at the shop or access work remotely. And buy an appropriate amount of product.

Are we too connected? Everyone has the choice of how connected they want to be. If I went to a coffee shop to eat/coffee and work and they turned off WiFi on certain days, I would go somewhere else. If this place is my first choice to hang out and get coffee/food, then I would still go.

It's someone's choice to use WiFi, cell phones and pagers. Let's keep it that way. I am a techie, but I only use my cell phone for emergencies and work.

The only issue is when this technology gets in the way for everyone else. There used to be things called 'respect' and 'manners'. If we keep this in mind, we'll be okay.

TMann
05-29-2005, 07:07 AM
I think that we're dealing with two different issues here.

In regards to the coffee store removing their Wi-Fi access, I think that it sounds like it was a necessary move for them to stay in business. Also, it sounds like the paying customers, who actually wanted a cup of coffee, were being inconvenienced by the laptop folks taking up a lot of the seats. I admit that I, too, seek out places where there is free Wi-Fi access, but I do make it a point to purchase something there, and also to not overstay my welcome. Technology has created a lot of new etiquette issues that many people have not yet come to grips with.

As to the issue of being too connected, I think that it depends on how you use your technology. If the technology is consuming the other important parts of your life, than yes, you are too connected! For example, if a person can't bear to go out to dinner with their family and friends without having their Blackberry or PPC with them to check e-mail, then they are losing out on an important opportunity to strengthen the relationships in their life. As another example, I've read statistics where many people in modern countries are spending LONG hours at their computer, surfing the net, or visiting chat rooms, while their REAL families are in the same house being ignored.

I think we all have to examine the way in which our technological tools are being used. If they are getting in the way of the important relationships in our lives, than it's probably time to reexamine ones priorities...

TMann

bjornkeizers
05-29-2005, 01:24 PM
Tech is my religion, so it won't surprise you to read that I don't think we're connected enough. I have plenty of wifi at home and in the neighbourhood (I've installed several networks - always with the one stipulation that I get WiFi access) but in the City, free WiFi is sorely lacking.

Some places like the library and one or two bars offer WiFi, but it's limited in speed and you pay a monthly fee. I haven't found any free accesible spots in town outside of the badly configured spots from individuals.

I like WiFi, but I'm so not going to pay 40 euros a month or so for the pleasure of connecting in one or two infrequently travelled spots.

So, more WiFi please!

TMann
05-29-2005, 03:30 PM
I think we all have to examine the way in which our technological tools are being used. If they are getting in the way of the important relationships in our lives, than it's probably time to reexamine ones priorities...

TMann

As a rebuttal to my own post, I have to add that technology can be a tremendous aid in helping us connect to those that are important to us as well. For instance, I have relatives that are all over the United States and sister that is living in Paris, France. It is still amazing to me that I can send her an e-mail with digital photos and have her receive that correspondence moments after I send it. My kids are much more connected to their cousins because of the opportunities that technology affords. In another instance, it has become my habit to send my wife a quick e-mail or two during the day when I'm at work; she spends a lot of time at home working with my autistic son and it's unusual for us both to be free at the same time for a phone conversation. E-mails sent from my Axim or my Treo actually help keep us connected.

So summary, I guess that I do agree with all of the above posters who said that they are looking forward to the day when we are more connected, as it will allow us more options in how we manage our various responsibilities. However, when the time comes that we do have the ability to be constantly connected, each of us will still need to prioritize our time, and not let the things that are urgent, get in the way of the things that are important.

TMann

d-roC
05-31-2005, 08:42 PM
Tis been a while since I posted here, but I liked this topic enough to bring it up on one of my websites (http://mobileministrymagazine.blogspot.com/), so i'd at least post here too.

I agree with the above poster that said that when being connected takes you away from the relationships that make you who you are, that you are too connected. Is there a time to be ubiquious and have all of those connections. As one who likes to get lost, I'd say yes. At the same time, one should moderate themselves and put things down to grow in other areas.

The other side of that question probably more relates to businesses. Should a cafe be connected everyday as another means to draw in customers. Maybe. Maybe even have disconnected days and nights. Or even a disconnected night where after a live performance, the connection is turned back on so that people could view band info and email them. That would be my idea of maximizing the connection times, and at the same time, leaving times (weekends maybe) as the relationship building visits to the cafe.

Me personally, I dont have wifi on my PDA (palmOne T5) because I dont want to be connect everywhere. But also because if I want something, my phone is right there to play modem to connect to. I do web development for a living and it is personally rewarding to get away from the net, and even the computer, for some rest.

buss
05-31-2005, 11:40 PM
A good friend owns and operates a very popular restaurant/pub, he has made his reputation on having good friendly service and having an atmosphere where total strangers can walk in from the street and feel right at home. On many occasions I and other regulars have asked that he install an access point, even to the point of offering to pay for the wireless router. Absolute refusal, in his mind a pub is where people go to meet and talk. The last thing he wants is to have 25 individuals setting at bar deep into their own laptops or PDAs instead of talking amongst each other. For me the issue was closed when he stated that people would leech off the connection, buy one beer and then sit at the bar for an hour. Said he would have to raise the price of the beer to cover the overhead!

That was enough for me.