The Digital and Instant Gratification Age
So I’ve recently discovered The Nerdist Podcast with Chris Hardwick. The last time I saw him was on MTV’s Singled Out! Chris Hardwick has made a great network with Nerdist, and he invites celebrity guests on to just have a conversation. One of these was J.J. Abrams, and part of the conversation turned to the digital age we live in today.
I was born in 1980, so I remember the beginnings of the computer age! I had an Apple IIgs from 1991-1993, I know what a 3×5 and 5×25 drive are damnit. I guess back then you could say the world was on the cusp of the Digital Age. With televisions ever changing, going from eight track tapes, to audio cassettes, to compact discs, and now a wholly digital future for audio. From walkmans, to CD Players, to mp3 players, the technology has ever grown in the last 32 years. From sitting at home watching the programs you loved on television, to today when you can get them instantly anywhere you go. It’s no lie that iPhones, iPads, other tablets, and smartphones have changed the way we consume media.
I have always been the type of person to want what I want when I want it. Which most of the time is RIGHT THE HELL NOW! Even as a kid I wanted cartoon screenshots as pictures!
Look at how e-readers have changed the way we read books. Now I’m of the mind that I want to hold a book in my hands, not a elecrtonic device. However with other mediums in media I’m perfectly fine having digital copies. There have been such innovative advances in the technology we use today, compared to what we started out with in the 80s. At the same time I wonder if anyone feels that we need to step back, and reflect on how it used to be. When the family would eat dinner and watch the news, do homework, then go watch tv, before bedtimes kicked in.
Have we grown into the Digital Age to fast? Everything nowadays is I must have it NOW! For me, being a single guy, having no real ties to the city I live in, I’m perfectly fine with how fast media, and other items are available to me. The fact that in 24 short hours from the time a television show airs it is online. Whether that be on the channel’s website to stream for free, or purchase on iTunes. I used to have a huge DVD collection, and a coupla years ago I had to sell it off, but ya know what… I do not miss it. I can either wait til something hits Netflix or Redbox, or I can rent/buy stuff in iTunes.
It just amazes me how instantaneous everything is today. After all we live in a world where time flies, and no one really slows down to enjoy it. I am for the most part absolutely overjoyed with part of Digital Age, where everything is available right then and there. However at times there should be a disconnect to get back to reality. The sad thing is disconnecting from being online is not so easy. Think about it almost everything we do today is linked to the internet. With Facebook, Twitter, and other social media networks, we are in a time where everything and everyone is online.
I hear people say that “I feel naked without my iPod, iPhone, android phone” whatever, and to some extent I can see it. As I said before we rely on our digital devices, computers, and the like to live life. Now does that stop people from going to concerts, sporting events, movies, etc… no, it adds to the experience of going to said events.
So what do you think? Is the digital age progressing nicely, or do we need to take a step back? This topic might be a future GeekCast Radio Podcast episode!
