linear and non-linear communication

Communication in a linear form can prove to be difficult.  One sentence can be interpreted differently depending on punctuation!  A Normal sentence turns into a statement just from adding an exclamation mark, capital letters and so on.  I have been a participant in feuds over what was meant by a statement and how it was interpreted.  Although I am a big fan of Msn, Facebook and ICQ, I still favour phone conversations because you can hear intonations in people’s voices.  Both phone and online communication allow time for questioning statements if you are confused about what someone said but I find that there is less confusion when talking to someone in person and over the phone.

I think people can get a lot more out of non-linear forms of communication.  I am the type of person who gets tired of starring at a computer screen or television screen for a long period of time.  I need to spend most of my time in the ‘real’ world, with actual people rather than talking to someone on the other end of the computer.  I enjoy face to face communication.  I love being outside and enjoying walks no matter what the destination might be.  I don’t know how an individual can learn life skills by looking at a computer screen.  Yes, they learn technical skills but it does not correlate and help sociability skills. 

My sister is a chemistry major and it seems that although she can communicate at a level that the rest of the family can understand and relate to, there is a communication barrier when she talks about her studies.  The same rings true for doctors.  They have had a high level of education and can talk to their co-workers in a high intellect, but when they are communicating what an operation might entail, they need to be able to describe the procedure in Laymen’s terms.  I think that computers and technology should not rule someone’s life.  Life needs to be experienced with real situations in a non-linear form.

Seaching and searching

Do you always find what you are looking for on the Internet? Generally, I am able to retrieve the information, picture or video that have searched, however, there are certain instances that make the process painful. For instance, I recently was trying to find a video on You Tube and it seemed like no matter what words I put into the search engine, I turned up short of what I was looking for. This partly has to do with the fact that You Tube allows individuals to post their personal videos online, but more so because I was trying to find an exact episode without knowing the specifics. As much as I think it is a great idea to put a person’s work in a place that others can view them, I think that there should be a designated url to lump them together in order to increase the probability of finding what a person is searching for. This could please the majority of users on websites like that of You Tube.

The search engines available now, may have always been there, however I can say that many of them, like google, have improved the capabilities of the way they function. Along with the technical improvement, I have learned how to search for items better and properly with receiving an end result that I am pleased with whenever I am seeking information of different sorts.

Although specific websites have been designed to help the average onlooker, it is in the best interest of each person to learn how to hunt for items so the frustration of leaving empty handed occurs less frequently.

Gadgets

I have to say that the past couple of days have been the most frustrating when dealing with the technology and Internet that consumes my house and life. For some reason, the Internet has not been cooperating to the extent that I have needed it to. The wireless router malfunctions within 5 minutes of me trying to access different websites. I have reset it numerous times and although it will let me on the Internet, it is not working long enough.

There comes a time when I get so dependent on my computer and the Internet that when it is unavailable for whatever reason, I feel lost and out of touch. I rely so much upon something inanimate; it is almost as if technology controls me. I say this because I don’t think an hour goes by that I don’t check my e-mail or some other type of technology. I would be devastated if I could no longer have access to the Internet, my computer or my cell phone. All of these, you could say, have become a part of my life that I couldn’t live without. I feel awkward when my cell phone is not attached or at least close by. I think back to a time before I had access to the Internet and a cell phone, and I do not know how I lived without them.

I stated above that technology controls me. This is true! I like to think that I am trying to find an appropriate balance between staying up to date with new advancements in society, but at the same time, keeping perspective of what’s really important. I love my cell phone and would never choose to be without it, yet I will not go out and buy the latest Iphone because I don’t see what is wring with the phone a currently carry around and use. When it is time to replace it, I will, but for the time being, I am content with the technology that surrounds me!