Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Life before smartphones (2020)

mattruby.substack.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

161–170 of 495 posts

Re: Life before smartphones (2020)

#161

Post by jokoon »

I bought a smartphone something like 2 years ago and only started paying for wireless data 1 year ago, because I was tired of being stubborn about it, I really felt I was excluded from many things.

I have to admit I often go on reddit when I have some time, but I don't go on instagram or facebook.

Sharing videos on whatsapp when you're in rural areas is crazy, and to me it's really pointless, even though I like technologies.

It's hard to say if people are less social because of smartphones, since social networks are not so social after all.

Although I'm really curious if avoiding digital social networks would result in an amputated real social life. Online dating really really allowed me to get out more, and I don't feel like there is a good enough equivalent for friendships and activities.

Re: Life before smartphones (2020)

#162

Post by psychomugs »

progman32 wrote: post #75
krylon wrote: post #57

Now I feel old. I remember vividly running around with my first camera, looking for objects worthy of being photographed. The film cost money, so did developing it into pictures. I really had to weigh the pros and cons of taking a particular picture. And in a class of ~25 kids, I was one of three who owned a camera. Not that it was such a luxury item, but most people weren't into that. These days, (nearly) everyone c…

I remember back when I got my first digital camera, people would routinely ask me "ok but how do you look at the pictures? Do you just print them out?". Looking at them on a screen was almost unfathomable. Nowadays, a physical album seems to have taken the place of your camera in the 90s. Not quite a luxury item, but you'd have to be "into that" to go to the trouble of making a physical album.

I once sent a friend a photograph I had taken of them on black-and-white film (Olympus XA with Kodak Tri-X). They were flabbergasted when they asked for the full-color version and I told them it didn't exist.

Re: Life before smartphones (2020)

#163

Post by maerF0x0 »

jwond wrote: post #96
mrweasel wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

After getting vaccinated I was sitting in the waiting area, for the 15 minutes our suppose to stay, in case you get an allergic reaction and I noticed that most people where NOT looking at their phones. They where just sitting, doing nothing. I did the same, and honestly, it was absolutely wonderful just to have 15 minutes where you did nothing. I'm not saying I wouldn't get bored just waiting for extended periods of…

When I go to the gym I don't bring my phone with me, and when I am resting in-between sets I just sit there. Sometimes my mind will wander, but often I just sit there and my mind is pretty much blank. I find it very relaxing.

I do like having a timer and gym log built in my phone. But +1 to not always having content streaming. Turning off music + youtube gives my mind a break.

Re: Life before smartphones (2020)

#164

Post by robohoe »

pugets wrote: post #142

What I miss more than anything else is having an attention span. Years of abusing social media has left my brain pinballing all over the place. I am a collection of unfinished thoughts. Even as I write this, I can feel my mind needing to latch onto something new.

This one is a tough one and I can relate. I haven't been able to finish a book or work on any labs or FOSS work in years now. I reach for the phone even when I get a moment of downtime. The addiction is strong and now I as learn to be more mindful I realize how common place it is for everyone.

Re: Life before smartphones (2020)

#165

Post by psychomugs »

theyellowkid wrote: post #156
lordnacho wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Regarding photos: People our age only have a few childhood pictures, and they are warped by time on analog media. Those pictures of us as a kid look really old because they are naturally filtered. Soon people will wonder WTF old-pic filters are for, and some historian will have to explain why it's blurred and the colors are faded. Also why did people have clothes for each decade? Our kids, by contrast, have had pictu…

Looking back, I wish everyone had taken pictures of everyday life (probably with an Instamatic). Christmas pictures, awards, meh. What I really want are pictures of the halls in high school, street racing, parties with giant bonfires and beer.

I feel like the optimal living-documenting ratio was right before the advent of digital cameras: photography was accessible enough, but there was enough disconnect between the event and the record to be present. Now it's much easier to live through the phone's what-you-see-is-what-you-get viewfinder [1].

[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27697921

Re: Life before smartphones (2020)

#167

Post by rubymatt »

Hey, I'm Matt Ruby (author of this essay).

If you dig it, please consider signing up for my newsletter where I published it. You'll get my jokes, videos, & essays in your inbox weekly: https://mattruby.substack.com/

Also, I've got a new standup special/album that you can watch on YouTube or stream as an album: https://800PGR.lnk.to/RubyTW

And you can watch a video version of this essay here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30ja0d3qXv4

Thanks for reading! Hit me up at mattruby@hey.com with any questions/feedback.

Re: Life before smartphones (2020)

#169

Post by kodablah »

dilap wrote: post #123
varjag wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I (legally) smoked on a plane!

smoking on a plane sounds like simultaneously the most wonderful and most terrible thing ever similarly it was amazing to smoke in bars, but it's great to not have smoke filled bars

Smoking in bars still exists in many places in the US. Granted in Texas for example, in jurisdictions where it's still legal, seems like at least 90% choose not to allow it by choice of the business owner.

Re: Life before smartphones (2020)

#170

Post by psychomugs »

jokoon wrote: post #161

I bought a smartphone something like 2 years ago and only started paying for wireless data 1 year ago, because I was tired of being stubborn about it, I really felt I was excluded from many things. I have to admit I often go on reddit when I have some time, but I don't go on instagram or facebook. Sharing videos on whatsapp when you're in rural areas is crazy, and to me it's really pointless, even though I like techn…

I've owned a smartphone since late high school (~2010) but didn't get a data plan until some five or six years later. I actually miss having to be more intentional about where and when and what I was doing; data feels like an invisible umbilical cable that I can't cut off.
Post reply on HN