Every day Steven M.P. Gill goes to college and switches on his notebook to connect to free campus wifi internet access. This is his report.
I view my iGoogle page and then I check my emails. My Gmail account pulls in feeds from sites such as The Irish Times and Silicon Republic and various feeds from Facebook, Flickr and Audioboo. I get informed of new friends on Twitter and new Subscribers of my YouTube account, and……….. Oh No! My internet connection has been disconnected. I can’t get onto my Social Networking sites. No Blog!
No MySpace!
No Yahoo!
Aaarghhhhhh!
What is going on? Is this where we are? Are we so reliant on our Internet connection to be sociable? Do we prefer to look on Twitter for gossip rather than actually talking to our friends face to face? Is Facebook now our true face?
Yes I did lose my internet connection and yes I did panic. After a few minutes I realised that my life had already become enveloped in the virtual world of cyberspace, but I also understood that my life would now be incomplete without it. Is it sad? Am I dependant?
Hmmm!
In fairness we do not have to rely on these sites to exist. We are all capable of having a fantastic social life without the addictions of the internet. The internet has grown exponentially over the last few years and it doesn’t look like it is going to slow down, even in this time of Economic Crisis and this would be comforting for most. During these times it is vitally important to solidify our relationships with friends and colleagues, but not with our computer screens. Things will slowly get worse, for which we can only pay homage to our honoured establishments for proficiently providing such an ample future, and it will be more important than ever to have our nearest and dearest there with us, physically available for comfort and support.
I am not saying that these online communications are not good, because they are. It is just that if you spend all your time encased in virtual chat rooms and not out there in the park, or taking the kids to the beach, or even round your mates having a few drinks and watching the match, or whatever it is you like to do, then you are going to lose out on the more valuable parts of your life. The world is a wonderful place and is far better seen in 3D, true life, rather than in 2D, 32-bit colour. In fairness with all the changing climates I would want to see things now before they start to disappear and not just see them on a photography forum website.
The obvious advantage of virtual friends is that they are Virtual. You do not have to look at their faces, or look in their eyes or even apologise, but saying that they won’t know when you are smiling, or crying or even depressed. Virtual is not Actual. Social Media should never get in the way of Real Life. You don’t need it to exist. Personal relationships and friendships are hard enough to find in such a diverse society without making it harder on yourself. Some fortunate people have found great relationships, even marriages, through the internet and fair play to them but they are the lucky few. The internet is a potentially harmful place that is exposed to corruption and bullying just as much as in real life and in some cases more so. Yet we are still willing to put every last consecutive detail of our lives on the net and speak about ourselves and our feelings as if we have trusted this person our whole life. And you just do not know who the person really is or who is listening. We all know the potential hazard of talking to a kindly looking picture identified as being friendly just to find later that the real person behind the mask is actually stealing your private information from your own computer. Maybe it is too much of a risk? Maybe we are taking more risks than in real life? I know I do. Am I spending too much time falling into the realm of the Lawnmover Man.
So why don’t we spend a few moments reflecting on what the Internet has actually provided us. For me, there is presently an education, my Creative Multimedia course, and potentially a future job in ICT. All the Internet sites and RSS Feeds and Forums are all created by talented people in various companies who are trying to make money in the current market. All of these businesses are busy developing new and improved Social Media and information sites to try to distract you from your everyday life and pull you in to theirs. It is a business designed to make money from advertising and online sales by tempting you into their sites. It is reality. Newspapers, TV broadcasting and magazines all have to compete to make sales and virtual media is no different. The internet is full to the brim of these adverts.
The internet has also provided me with less time. Less time you ask? The addiction of the Internet is so carefully planned that an intended five minutes of surfing could easily turn into two hours. It is too easy to be attracted to new sites and brightly coloured GUIs. And the internet browsing always puts the sponsored sites first so for your convenience you are guided through the advertisements, and have to maneuver through many sites before you find the one that actually helps. It is all there to make money for the internet companies.
How many of us now actually use a library, or write a letter to our families, or even call round a friend's house just on the off-chance that they may be home, to surprise them and have a coffee. Is the convenience of the Internet so important that we are willing to lose these fundamental skills and practises? Are we turning into a species of little function?
Steven M. P. Gill is close to finishing his first semester as a third level creative multimedia student at Tipperary Institute and he cross-posted this entry from his personal blog.
