Thursday, June 26, 2008

Mobile web access via 3G: addictive: Take two

Ok, That last post was a bust. As I was typing out the last entry on Multiply's mobile front end with my trusty Nokia 6120 classic, I thought I'd look something up on Go ogle. (wow, shouldn't I be raking in $$$ for all this advertising?) So I saved the unfinished entry as a draft. Upon returning to the Multiply window, it dawned on me that there was no option for editing the draft saved on my mobile. The only link from the draft view was "Publish this entry". Assuming I would be taken to a page that would at least give me the option to veto any permanent action, I naively clicked the link. And as luck would have it, whaddaya know, they did mean what they said by "Publish this entry". So, here I am, back on my laptop, nursing my sore thumbs (man, that phone's keypad is for midgets) venting useless frustration on what would have been a perfect (?) mobile blog entry.

I think I lost my original train of thought somewhere along last paragraph's second sentence. Anyway, the freedom and connectivity these innovative technologies bring us is undeniable. However, there is as always the hidden danger of us leaning on these modern conveniences as a crutch. Too often have I found myself staring at a computer screen aimlessly wandering around the net, flitting from one interest to another. A waste of time better spent on more productive pursuits. As with any other tool, the age-old cliche still applies to the internet: with great power comes great responsibility. That utterance from our friendly neighborhood arachnid DNA-infected superhero can in fact be traced to an even older source, the Gospel: "From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked." Luke 12:48. A great many things can be accomplished with such a far-reaching medium as the internet, not a few of which are unhealthy and even illegal... We are still free to choose the purpose for which we use these tools. I've kept in touch with family and friends online, made new friends, made some cash, learned tons and got to scratch that wannabe writer's itch with this blog. As well as a host of other activities are too unsavory to post here, hehehe... Yeah yeah, so I have gigs and gigs of illicitly acquired software tucked away somewhere...

So the question remains, what am I doing online at this hour? Am I doing anything worth depriving myself of sleep? Have I "set my mind on things above" (Col 3:2)? Tall orders. But I do hope to be more responsible with my online time in the future. I'm glad that I've cut down on my gaming time and eliminated some destructive online habits. Yet as always, there's a lot of room for growth. And with that, I bid you all a good night.