My (Half-Serious) Analysis of the Cause of the Economic Crisis
ByPermit me this rant. See if you can find a common denominator.
OK, so I get an email from Facebook saying, “You haven’t been back to Facebook recently. You have received notifications while you were gone.” (Naughty me!)
So I click on the link. Ask trusty Roboform to fill in the password etc. Didn’t work.
Strange. It always did work. It worked on Tweetdeck.
So I click around some other ways and FINALLY get into Facebook. (Somehow, don’t ask me what finally worked.)
So, where are these friend requests? Not a clue. I click Friends and see I have some Suggestions. I click on some people I know I’d like to be friends with. Every time I click, I have to
type two (difficult to read) words for verification. If it takes 20 seconds to type in those 2 words (more for the less readable ones), for those 35 people I’ll spend 12-15 minutes just sending requests.
Then they have to go and try to do what I tried to do above. Just to “connect”?
BTW, I still can’t find the people who have requested my friendship.
Can someone please tell me why Facebook is so popular?
If you want my updates, to go twitter.com/DianeEble please. Twitter I can handle.
Now, why am I bothering to write this?
See if this next snippet gives you a clue.
My husband came home from work telling me they got a new copy machine at the office. One that takes special training to figure out. One that needs a MANUAL to figure out how to use. He still hasn’t been able to do the (formerly simple) task of making a copy to then fax to someone, though the machine is supposed to do it.
The old machine worked just fine, he says. He’s not the only one for whom the new machine is a source of frustration and time wasting. Everyone is complaining about it.
Do you see anything these two situations have in common?
How about uncritical acceptance of technology that sucks time and does not measurably add anything to one’s life? In fact, too often all it adds is frustration and stress.
So here’s my humble theory of why the economy is in shambles: We’re all too busy trying to figure out and/or keep up with technology that we can’t get any truly productive work done!
The main thing is, we’re not asking ourselves the right questions BEFORE we jump into The Next Cool Thing (like whiz-bang copy machines or the latest social networking thing that EVERYONE uses, after all).
Don’t get me wrong. I use a lot of technology and what I use makes my life measurably better. Like Roboform, Evernote, my XSite Pro software that allows me to create and manage websites quickly and easily. Two weeks ago I got new software that I LOVE that truly helps me be more productive. I don’t know where I’d be without these great tools.
But always I ask: “What will this REALLY do for me, and what is the REAL cost in terms of time and energy?”
Another question: “Does this ‘fix’ what ain’t broke?” (Sorry about the grammar, but sometimes slang is more effective.)
Are you asking the right questions? The economy depends on you! (LOL)
5 Comments
September 28th, 2009 at 4:48 pm
Yes, I totally understand your frustration. I haven’t had any problems with Facebook but I am so exasperated with Microsoft Explorer. I am headed for a divorce. I have visited the Apple store to consider a different device.
It is mandatory that we say something when we are not getting the service we deserve. Blogging and YouTube are equalizers we should use more often. Thanks for sharing your experience.
October 5th, 2009 at 8:16 am
I grinned wide, while shaking my head, reading your Facebook description. I had the exact same thing a few days ago. Maybe it was some glitch on their side, but my response was the same as yours: Why is this so popular?? And *where* are the darn friends requests I am supposed to have ignored?
I could not find them and after about the second scribbly-handwriting deciphering, I clicked it shut.
@ Velma: I come from Online-Journalism, originally, then moved over to editing, and now writing. So I usually find my way around computers and browsers. But I grew more tired every year of the trouble with Microsoft programs and computers. When my Toshiba notebook broke after only 2 years, I had enough and got a Macbook Pro when the new generation came out in spring of this year. Our local Mac-shop sold the old line cheaper (when asked), since most people only asked for the new models.
It was still quite expensive for a poor author. But I have not regretted it ever. I swear I have nothing to do with Apple – they don’t know I exist. I am just very happy with my computer. It was the first time ever that I started up a new computer – and it just worked. The only trouble I have is getting some of the software I used which only exists for Windows (like voice recognition from Dragon Naturally Speaking). I refuse to install Windows on the mac, so I cannot keep using that and am still searching alternatives. Sorry for abusing the comment section for this, but both texts spoke to me since I was also at the point where I thought: “Why am I wasting so much time each day just to get a damn computer or damn program to do what I want?”
October 29th, 2009 at 6:36 am
You hit it right on the head, but I think we’re in an even worse loop with the advent of “tutorial videos” spreading like a virus. I just bought a course on something or other for $197. It’s good content, but it came as a download and it’s 8 hours of video in what is essentially a Power Point presentation. I could have easily read this damned thing in 2 hours if there had been a manual. Plus I could have made notes in the margins, underlined, etc. I’m not a preschooler. I can read. I HATE tutorial videos! Same for sales pages that are videos. The seller decides how much time I have to spend just to hear the pitch or use the product. In most cases, they’re as big a time waster as the technology you spoke about in your blog post. Actually, I think they’re worse.
October 29th, 2009 at 10:23 am
Michael, you are SO right! You’ve hit it on the head, why I can’t stand these video tutorials.
I like print, for the very reasons you mentioned. And you have helped me confirm that the kind of courses I want to offer will be print with audio option, for those who like to listen.Video has its limited place, but ONLY when visuals are necessary. And there’s no reason, when that’s the case, that you can’t put the visual in the document as a screen capture.
Our time is our life. My vow is to never waste anyone else’s or my own. That’s my pledge to all MY followers.
November 7th, 2009 at 2:51 am
Facebook does not ever make me verify my account by typing in verification words. Perhaps there is some way you can verify your account or computer id with them.