Should You Give Up Gadgets for a Day?

Clearly, some of us make bad decisions with our gadgets. But even without having to live down a mobile phone-fueled tirade of Gibsonian proportions, many of us have sought forgiveness for our gadget-enabled sins through a ritual purge.

That’s the idea behind Offlining, Inc., which proposes that we all participate in a one-day digital fast. Initially, the call was for a collective fast on September 18, Yom Kippur — the Jewish day of atonement, which calls for total rest (including prohibiting use of any electronic devices) and abstaining from food and drink. Now, the team appears to be targeting Thanksgiving instead.

It’s an unusual exercise — an advertising campaign for nothing in particular (besides signing up to “pledge” to participate in a no-device day) that can’t quite decide whether it’s holy or secular, just as it can’t decide whether life online does terrible things to you or that a one-day holiday from them would be kind of nice. The site includes a bullet-pointed “Ugly Facts About Life Online” that would make me retreat to the mountains if I took it seriously.

Read the completea rticle at reuters.com

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tweens get savvy with gadgets

Image
Tweens are more technologically savvy and count the internet as a source of happiness, research shows. Today's six- to 12-year-olds are laden with gadgets their older siblings could only have dreamed about – two-thirds of them own mobile phones and iPods. Almost half of the 1200 children who completed the Tween Tracker survey have Facebook profiles, despite being under the site's minimum age of 13. Two-thirds reported surfing the web without supervision. Social media expert Laurel Papworth describes Facebook as the online equivalent of a "keep out, I mean it!" sign on the bedroom door, allowing kids to shut parents out while sharing with friends – an enticing prospect at an age when they are developing their own identities. Parents failed to "make good arguments why one web page is better than another" and why internet use needed to be monitored. "Managing how they connect is a better option than saying 'don't connect at all'," she said...
Read more

Android Froyo - Nexus One

Nexus One owners went to bed Friday night with their Ugly Duckling getting recharged, and woke up Saturday morning with a Swan. Overnight, some N-One users have received the Android 2.2 upgrade as Google has started rolling out the upgrade. Those who passed on the N-One for the Droid Incredible might be muttering under their breath as Android 2.2 brings faster speeds, Adobe Flash 10.1, automatic app upgrades and much more to Google's own phone. As we last reported, the upgrade was supposed to start in a few weeks, but this a very welcome surprise. The next handset expected to get the upgrade is the Motorola DROID. If your Nexus One now runs Froyo, let us know about every detail. source: TechCrunch
Read more

Fujitsu Eyes Wireless Gadget Charging for 2012

Image
Researchers at Fujitsu Laboratories have developed a wireless charging system that they say can simultaneously charge a variety of portable gadgets over a distance of several centimeters without the need for cables. The system, which will be detailed at a technical conference in Japan this week, could begin appearing in mobile phones and other products as soon as 2012, the company said. Wireless charging has been attracting increased interest in the last few years as the number of portable gadgets multiples. Manufacturers suppose that consumers are eager to get rid of the myriad of chargers and associated cables that can clutter up a modern home. Many of the wireless systems developed to date rely on inductive coupling between two coils -- a method that works over a very short distance and typically requires gadgets are placed on a charging pad. Inductive systems can also waste a lot of the power consumed. Read the complete article on pcworld.com
Read more