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Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

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Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#41

Post by pjc50 »

As part of the slightly older generation, the last time I was seriously "out of contact" was Inter-railing in the late 90s. We had one guidebook and the Thomas Cook International Rail Timetable: that was essentially all of our planning. We would routinely arrive in another country knowing only a fragment of the language and having no accomodation, and somehow this all worked out fine.

The downside is that I have zero photos of this time and only fragments in a diary. These days I would have several thousand selfies in front of the major monuments of Europe, like everyone else. The correct number is probably somewhere between those two.

I had basically no news either. Occasionally we would spot a headline in Le Monde or the SdZ. But it was the late 90s, so hardly anything was happening anyway. I think that would be my main reason to isolate from the internet today.

Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#42

Post by luddite99 »

zikzak wrote: post #14
sacman08 wrote: post #3

Yes I have. It was called the 1980's.

Came here more or less to say this. I really think a pre-Internet, pre-highly connected brain is different from one where the Internet is ubiquitous. I am not saying it is better, but it is different. The idea that to look something up you have to remember it or note it down by your family's telephone on a slip of paper, go to the library, find a reference book you can't even take home with you, research it in that a…

Yeah the 80s are definitely outside of my frame of reference, growing up in the 90s alongside the growth of household computers and the internet, living with technology has been the baseline for me. It's interesting to hear the experience of those who grew up on the other side of that divide and have an insight into both of those worlds.

Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#44

Post by thawaway1837 »

I was without a phone for a out 3 months.

After the first week of constant anxiety because it constantly felt like I had forgotten something, it was incredible, getting used to not having Google Maps at all times, and drawing up the courage to ask strangers for help with stuff like using their stores phone to call a friend who I was waiting for, for directions, etc. it was absolutely incredible.

I felt like a literal weight had been lifted off my shoulder and felt more independent and free than ever before. I explored a ton more, and had a great time overall. I was also less stressed out and did much better at work due to the significantly reduced distractions.

Of course, I was completely single at the time, which made all of this possible. I’m not sure it would be doable either when in a relationship or married.

Also, a lot of people are commenting about retreats and stuff, which also I have done and is great. However, living your normal life without being hyper connected and your face in a screen at all times (basically going back to the 90s) is a very different and refreshing experience.

Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#45

Post by bdefore »

crucialfelix wrote: post #16

6 months while travelling in India in 2003. I had brought my Mac, but on the 9th day some mysterious force blew the "daughterboard" and bricked it. So I had to devote myself to meditation and occasional slow internet cafes. I noticed how much the screen alters perception. It's a bizarre 2d world. Completely unreal. We evolved to live in our bodies interacting with objects, but instead we end up glued to pathetic litt…

As an American, I traveled in northern India for three months in 2004, two of them sedentary in Mcleod Ganj. It still resonates both from the contrast of India itself, but also in how I was able to happily fill my days without screens and fill them with friendly people. I'd amble around with my legs not unlike the way I amble around the Internet today. I'd 'waste' a half hour hanging out with strangers over metal cups of chai.

At the time, I had a Palm Tungsten and a foldup portable keyboard and would every day or so write a blog post on it. I'd send it out by putting its card (SD?) onto a USB adapter, dragging that to a slooooow Internet cafe where I'd hope I could connect to my Movable Type (Gatsby before there was reasonable JavaScript). If it didn't connect, no bigs.

It might have been the peak happiness of my relationship with the Internet. Just enough.

I got my invite to Facebook a year later.

Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#46

Post by tuxxy »

zozbot234 wrote: post #6
ceilingcorner wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Kaczynski really did everyone a massive disservice by turning to violence. He was a nut, but his criticism of industrialization is more coherent than you'd think. In an alternate universe he is a public "thought leader" giving TED talks on the subject.

His ideas are not original at all and he's no "thought leader"; the anarcho-primitivists had raised the same points a lot better and more coherently than he did. Just read the original sources, no reason to pay attention to a violent nutcase.

But don't take Anarcho-primitivism seriously. A lot of the "thought leaders" on that side of the Anarchist spectrum just use it as a means to espouse what would normally just be considered Fascism except with an Anarchist twist.

It's the same stupid arguments that people use to justify population control due to "overpopulation". There's a school of thought called anti-civilization that's a tad similar with some divergences that offers far more interesting critiques of industry. Once you get through that, post-civilization thought is also rather interesting.

But really, Anarcho-primitivism is essentially fascist dribble disguised as environmentalism and social justice.

Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#47

Post by blaser-waffle »

Sans phone and laptop connectivity for about 6 months. Was working on a farm in Australia during a working holiday visa. Not my main goal, either -- I was there to do NBN work building fiber optic networks. But Abbott froze the project and I figured I'd give farm work a try for a little while. Didn't hurt that I was dating a Canadian girl who was a cook on the farm station.

I had a phone and laptop with me, but no connectivity. Only way out was the satellite link the owner of the farm had. We got plenty of satellite TV channels, but no real dial out. Owner would let us plug in once a week to the sat-router and check emails / quick facebook updates, but otherwise sans connection the whole time.

Played a lot of cards, talked a lot of shit, worked a lot. Big dinners with the whole staff and the farmer's family. Not a bad experience but not a great one, either.

Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#48

Post by zozbot234 »

luddite99 wrote: post #20
seesawtron wrote: post #2

It might be a bit unorthodox and I would possibly get flagged for writing this but I found the ideas of Kaczynski on impact of technology on us very profound and thought-provoking[0]. I try to separate the "art" from the "artist" and do not condone his violent actions thereafter. But this idea has been around in various shapes where people debate if its true that techonology is evolving at a much faster rate than our…

Thank you for sharing this one, I agree with you that we should be able to discuss ideas on their own merits. I'm only vaguely familiar with Kaczynski's philosophy and his actions, but I look forward to giving this a read over the next 24 hours. Just looking over the introduction, certainly some strong beliefs there, but it does resonate to some degree. It does feel like this rejection of all-encompassing technologic…

> Things like minimalism, mindfulness and paleo diets spring to mind. But then again, maybe these are all manufactured and part of that same technological/industrial/consumerist wave.

Of course they are. "Rebel", "counter-cultural", "subversive" anti-consumerism is the silliest and most conformist variety of consumerism. :-P

Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#49

Post by tuxxy »

mauvehaus wrote: post #26
zozbot234 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The "thought leader" thing was supposed to be a joke. Yes, I got your point but it could be misinterpreted. Plenty of people are quite unaware of where these ideas actually come from, and who deserves credit for them.

Would you mind sharing some starting points for a reading list? I'd be curious to read some of the source material you're talking about.

You could begin with the Anarcho-primitivist philosopher John Zerzan. However, heed my comment above: a lot of the followers use this philosophy to justify horribly fascistic ideals. Take a peek at the alternatives to this such as post-civilization.

Re: Ask HN: Have you ever gone without a computer or phone for an extended period?

#50

Post by tk75x »

yesbabyyes wrote: post #40

At some points, when losing/breaking a phone, I have just refrained from buying a new one for a few weeks / a month. It felt pretty nice, actually. For about a year, I used the Firefox developer phone with Boot 2 Gecko. It was kind of usable as a phone, but it really made me not use basically any apps apart from some lighter web use. It was surprisingly OK, for me, but sometimes a hassle. Ever since, I have mostly go…

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Type-C-USB-3-1-to-USB-C-4K-HDMI-U...
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