Technology at Our Fingertips

Two weeks ago I asked for input about your favorite technological advances and networking platforms. In the meantime I've been talking to people (yes, live and in person) to find out their views and also doing a bit of experimenting with the help of willing family members. Return to "Keeping In Touch" if you need a reminder concerning this subject. I mentioned that I would be giving my opinion in a later post. Well, this is it.

My Space: I've never used it and from what I could tell few do anymore (or will admit that they do). Since I never was part of the My Space scene I cannot comment on why it is not used more by those within my circle.

Facebook: Ah, Facebook. Pastor Dad opened an account purely to help me research this phenomenon. Since I prefer to remain anonymous, someone had to be willing to be recognized. We brokered a deal. I'll continue to do the anonymous blog posts and he'll meet and greet the public with his Facebook account. Those of you who know my true identity probably know his and have either already befriended him or are free to go do so now that I've told you he is there.

This seems to be working out great so far. Why, just this morning, Pastor Dad was exuberantly noting that he is up to 100 friends. I'm glad, too, because frankly, I was beginning to worry that I would need to open an account just to help him reach that milestone. Thank you, thank you, whoever you were that became his 100th friend. And yes, I've noticed that I only have 18 followers here. What can I say? I know that I have more readers than that based purely upon the comments that I receive both on the blog and in person, and by the numbers reported by Sitemeter, but it sounds like sour grapes to say so. :)

Cell phone: Seriously, how did I live without one? It is just that much a part of my life and I'm not even one of those people who uses mine every single day. But the potential is there, and I'm very glad to have it. If I forget to take it with me I almost feel like I've left the house without my purse.

Cell phone usage has grown so inexpensive that it is replacing the home phone for many families. We aren't one of 'em, but that might happen someday, especially if our current landline company keeps coming up with new ways to aggravate us. I realize that cell phones themselves are not that cheap, and at the Bear's current rate of product turnover he'll need to be the CEO of a Fortune 500 company someday just to pay for his appliances. Since we moved him to a model with no bells or whistles he has not been a happy camper but his average rate of attrition has slowed exponentially.

As for me, I'm good with an old Samsung. I've found that it is better than a set of keys for keeping toddlers and preschoolers occupied during quiet ceremonies (if the volume is turned to silent, that is). And the camera on the phone is quite a hit with the younger set, too. Right now Tigger's picture is gracing the display where Sweet Pea's used to be. Equal time and all that jazz. Can't show partiality!

Which then segues nicely into texting. Uh, yeah. How else does one keep in touch with one's son's girlfriend's mother?! I've found that texting is one of the most useful tools I have in my parenting arsenal for keeping my teenager honest and I think I've got a pretty well-behaved son, all things considered. But texting tends to provide another layer of spying confirmation.

That brings up another important point. I think it is imperative for parents to be part of all the social networking platforms that their children use. I'm just joking about the spying part, but really, don't we all need accountability? I know I do. I like the fact that some of our church members, my husband, children, in-laws, and friends read what I write. I've obliterated many a mean-natured post just because I knew that people who love me would be sad if they read it. We're providing the same service for my minor child. It is our job, after all.

Also, since Lulu and Princess grew up with this technology literally at their fingertips it is just another way that we kept in touch after they married. Girls who wouldn't talk to me much before they married now text me almost daily. Nice!

Twitter: I've been tweeting for awhile now but only within the past couple of weeks have I begun to see its benefits. For quite awhile I felt like it was a virtual cocktail party (not that I've ever been to one) where everyone talks but nobody listens. Or perhaps it was my own shyness that prevented me from reaching out to others or using the technology available to me. Either way, I've made helpful connections now.

Since I began using one of the many Twitter-related services available (I use TweetDeck thanks to Karen) I have been able to divide my contacts into groups that are more meaningful to me. For instance, I have a group entitled "Family or Almost" which includes well, family, and those like Kelly who are family without having the genetics that makes the rest of us sneeze every time a cottonwood seed drifts past our noses. (Count your blessings, Kelly.) Anyone who knows my real name goes into that category on my TweetDeck. I consider my friends to be family, too.

I also have a group for "Bargain Hunting" and one for "Genealogy." This enables me to see quickly what's new in each column. Those of you who are either not tweeting or are not following me can see my tweets midway down on my right sidebar here on this blog. I don't think you'll get much benefit from it, though, as this is kind of like overhearing one side of a phone conversation.

One of the things that I like about Twitter is that, like blogging, I can remain anonymous. Just remember, unless you set your profile to private, the whole Twitter world can read what you've written. The same can be said for blogging, too, you know.

Which brings me to blogging. Uh, yeah again. I blog. You're reading this. What more do you need to know?

As for the rest. I don't IM per se even though sometimes we reply to things almost instantaneously because we are logged in to our various accounts quite a bit. We don't miss pagers even if we were thankful to have one back in their day.

I personally do not Facebook. I do connect with others through genealogy bulletin boards (i.e. Ancestry.com). I don't use Skype anymore as I found it totally annoying. I have been invited to other similar services but nothing more has come of them even though I have agreed to be a part. I'm leaving the burden upon the people who first instigated contact with me.

With the exception of my Twitter tweets showing on my blog I tend not to mix my media. I don't send tweets from my cell phone or from Pastor Dad's Facebook. I don't want a Blackberry so that I'll be tempted to be connected 24/7. I guess I am mixing things up a bit by even blogging about my other avenues of social networking, but since I'm now rapidly approaching the end of the blog post that will stop as well.

I also am not ashamed to learn new things about technology from my children. Are they smarter than I am? Well, duh. Of course they are. I sincerely hope I taught them to be. I sincerely hope we are continually teaching each other new things. I look forward to the day when my grandchildren will need to show me how to use some certain piece of technology. So look out, Polly, Tigger, Sweet Pea, and Fen! Someday Gram will be calling you for help programming whatever replaces our 8-track, er, DVD player.