PC Magazine - 2009 04.pdf - Libertad Zero - Blog
PC Magazine - 2009 04.pdf - Libertad Zero - Blog
PC Magazine - 2009 04.pdf - Libertad Zero - Blog
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Over the years, I’ve made jokes about using<br />
old technology and living without technology,<br />
but I’ve really never done either. Then,<br />
a few weeks ago, I took a vacation. No, not<br />
a staycation or a working vacation, but a<br />
real, leave-the-country, exit-the-electronsphere<br />
kind of sojourn—one in which<br />
phones don’t work and there is no Internet<br />
connectivity.<br />
Okay, that’s not entirely true. I could<br />
have turned on my phone and even<br />
accessed the Internet on this cruise, but<br />
both acts would have emptied my bank<br />
accounts within a few days. So, I turned<br />
my Treo off and pulled out the battery. I<br />
also left my laptop sequestered snugly in<br />
my cabin.<br />
It soon became apparent to me that<br />
previously I had been using technology,<br />
especially my Treo, to shield myself from<br />
inactivity and boredom. Typically, when<br />
I’m in a line or waiting, say, for people to<br />
join me at a dinner table (or rejoin me<br />
when they’ve perhaps taken a bathroom<br />
break), I’ll pull out the phone and check<br />
Google News, attack my steady stream of<br />
e-mail or, more recently, check Twitter and<br />
add an update or two. At home, my laptop<br />
is ever present. I usually pop it open when<br />
I get home at night and later leave it on an<br />
end table so I can pick it up at any moment<br />
and engage in all the aforementioned activities.<br />
Of course, there’s also ad hoc work.<br />
I’ll jot down some column notes in a Word<br />
file, go on TweetDeck, work on a budget<br />
spreadsheet, or maybe just noodle around<br />
on the Internet. My family often makes fun<br />
of me and tells me I should have the thing<br />
attached to my lap. That might be kind of<br />
nifty, especially if the lid is spring-loaded<br />
to pop open every time I sit down.<br />
During my vacation, however, I had<br />
no digital diversions. I’d be standing in<br />
the salad-bar line and my hand would<br />
reflexively reach for my pocket—searching<br />
fruitlessly for the phone that wasn’t<br />
there. I felt unmoored. On a typical day I’m<br />
in contact with two dozen or so people in<br />
FIRST WORD lance ulanOFF<br />
A Tech-Free Vacation<br />
my office and hundreds more around the<br />
world (via e-mail, Twitter, and Facebook).<br />
On this vacation it was me, my family, and<br />
my fellow cruisers. Despite all the hundreds<br />
of people, I was often alone with my<br />
thoughts.<br />
In that first day or two, I suffered mini<br />
panic attacks. I felt as if I was living in a<br />
bubble. I had no idea what was happening<br />
at the office and received scant information<br />
about world events. There were local<br />
and national news programs on TV, but<br />
since I rarely use those sources for local,<br />
national, and international information on<br />
all the topics I track, I felt as if I was try-<br />
ing to suck a potato through a straw. There<br />
was no way I’d ever get the same information<br />
blast from that narrow pipe.<br />
It wasn’t until the anxiety attacks and<br />
cold sweats stopped that I understood I<br />
was going through digital detox. I honestly<br />
didn’t know how to function without<br />
instant access to a world of information<br />
(personal and public). People around me<br />
likely noticed my pallid, sweaty appearance<br />
and darting eyes—surely that’s why<br />
they cut a wide berth around me. However,<br />
by the third day, I had stopped looking<br />
down at my empty hands and wondering if<br />
I could take out a small loan to pay for one<br />
full day’s Internet access. I started to take in<br />
my surroundings. My family looked upon<br />
me as a welcome acquaintance whom they<br />
hadn’t seen in a very long time.<br />
I’ll admit that the anxiety would still<br />
creep up every once in a while, and I’d<br />
have to shake my head and stare at the bril-<br />
liant blue ocean until the feeling subsided.<br />
It always did, and I can remember long<br />
stretches of time where I didn’t once think<br />
about my phone, my computer, Twitter,<br />
Facebook, or the Internet. In those times,<br />
I read, drew, engaged with my family, and<br />
lived a blissfully tech-free, 20th-century<br />
lifestyle.<br />
When the vacation ended and we<br />
arrived back onto U.S. shores, I did what I<br />
knew I would do and turned on my phone.<br />
Within minutes it began gagging on a flood<br />
of 500 or more e-mails. I stared down at<br />
the screen in wonder. My thumbs fluttered<br />
over the keys but did nothing. I just let the<br />
On a typical day I’d be in contact with two dozen or<br />
so people in my office and hundreds more around the<br />
world (via e-mail, Twitter, and Facebook). On this<br />
vacation, it was me, my family, and my fellow cruisers.<br />
mail arrive while I savored the final few<br />
moments of my digital-free vacation.<br />
Seventy-two hours later, my phone was<br />
in my pocket, my computer was on my<br />
lap, and I could hardly remember those<br />
precious hours when I lived without 24/7<br />
connectivity and interaction with a vast<br />
population of technology elite, enthusiasts,<br />
followers, and friends. I don’t know when<br />
I’ll do that again, but I’m certainly glad for<br />
the memory.<br />
Digital Edition Update<br />
In an effort to continue improving <strong>PC</strong> Mag<br />
Digital Edition, we’ve taken your comments<br />
and suggestions to heart. We’re in<br />
the process of redesigning <strong>PC</strong> Mag Digital<br />
to make it even easier to read and navigate.<br />
Follow mE on TwiTTEr! Catch the<br />
chief’s comments on the latest tech developments<br />
at twitter.com/LanceUlanoff.<br />
APRIL <strong>2009</strong> <strong>PC</strong> MAGAZINE DIGITAL EDITION