From: khaled Alkotob (khaledsa@juno.com)
Date: Sat Oct 08 2005 - 22:02:52 BST
Erin
The question to ask is not whether technology solves or creates problems,
but how does it effect the quality of life.
Since the development of mechanical type/word processor, has the quality
of the written word improved.
Yes it's great to be able to pick up the cell phone and not just call to
ask your spouse what else she needed from the grocery store, but if you
got separated in the mall/park/store, you can find each other. Calling
911 when your car goes off the road out in the boonies is a wonderful
thing.
Here is the flip side. i am a commercial photographer. I used to shoot my
assignment, drop the film off at the lab, pick it up and give it to the
client, who in turn would send the slide/film tot he printing house and
that was the last i saw of it.
Now that I shoot digital. I have to have my computer up to snuff,
operating systems, backup, virus protection, high speed Internet, Photo
manipulating software. The client expects the image delivered to the
printing house within hours of the photo shoot.
I have become the photographer, the photo lab, the pre press service, Fed
Ex, and the list goes on.
I would rather be taking pictures. In reality, it's actually less time
for me than the time it used to take to drive tot he lab and back. But
know i got to know all that stuff. Sometimes I would rather not. There is
no end in sight to keeping up.
Sometimes, it's just a learning curve. We don't think about electricity,
plumbing, AC, auto. They are just there and we use them.
Sometimes, we say well this modern high tech is not quiet it. So you see
organically grown heirloom tomatoes. Seeds from the past grown the simple
way.
The question is: How does it improve the quality of life? At what price?
Khaled
On Sat, 8 Oct 2005 09:52:20 -0700 (PDT) Erin <macavity11@yahoo.com>
writes:
> Arlo,
>
> I wasn't ever suggesting technology solved our
> problems. I was commenting on the attitude towards
> technology...which is why I put the ZMM quotes about
> technological hopelessness.
> Pirsig seems to me to be exploring the attitude of
> 'technology being the problem' .
>
> Maybe this is something though...does an expectation
> for technology to solve your problems lead to
> technological hopelessness?
>
> For example that "the failure of technology" seems
> analogous to saying the axe failed when it was used to
> kill a person and succeeded when use to cut up some
> logs.
>
> When I said I came to peace with technology after
> reading ZMM I was suggesting technology had solved my
> problems...it was more of an attitude adjustment. I
> still had the same problems but not longer felt
> comfortable blaming technology for them.
>
> Erin
>
>
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