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How to stop being “terminally online”

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Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#91

Post by bootlooped »

rco8786 wrote: post #39

A lot of good questions to ask yourself here. But, > have you ever used/applied "internet slang" (cringe, based, cuck, chad) in/to real-life situations? I take slight issue with this one. To me, there is no difference between “internet slang” and just “slang”. The internet is ubiquitous and the language we use online and offline is largely the same now. Didn’t always be this way. I still remember the first time I hea…

I think I remember reading a Reddit post once about a girl whose boyfriend would say things in real life like "can we get some f's in the chat boys". Things that were clearly very niche and would either be completely unintelligible to the audience or at best sound out of place. I think it's a matter of reading the room.

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#92

Post by mark_l_watson »

ChildOfChaos wrote: post #80

I'm struggling with it. I have a website blocker on my Mac, but then I just turn it off eventually and go back to old habits, if I block hacker news, reddit etc, then I end up just having random thoughts and googling those and finding other sites to read through and of course sometimes reddit can have the answer for the thing i needed to google, so that can be annoying. I changed to a white list to try and solve this…

I think most people struggle with this if they recognize this as a problem. I use https://freedom.to to set up times of day when I can access social media. And yes, sometimes I shut this down when I want to cheat.

For me the best life hack to avoid wasting even more time is to rely on my Apple Watch to get phone calls and text messages, and leave my iPhone at home. This is sort of like using an old flip-phone because it takes accessing social media off the table.

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#93

Post by slothtrop »

blfr wrote: post #24

It's a good guide but it only addresses fairly vacuous and not that great online activities. My Twitter feed is a collection of funniest, most deranged takes on any subject. People IRL have no chance to compete, no one can outdo the best two seconds of 800 people. Same with HN. Conversations like these are rarely happening offline. And then there are communities I sunk into. Private forums I have been a member of for…

Whether my online activities are less vacuous or not, by the numbers I spend an inordinate amount of time on the computer or other device. Granted mostly for work, but even after I get through evening chores, I tend to want to go straight back.

I think one mistake of perspective we have, when terminally-online and evaluating the alternative, is looking for other sources of passive constant stimulation as a substitute for social media feeds. Not bombarding your senses is part of the point. Daydreaming and thinking doesn't have to be boring, even just enjoying a moment of quiet.

Saying that, I think most people lack social validation in everyday life and try to satisfy it virtually. Having interesting conversation is separate from that, but also a consideration. We seem to be disappointed by our offline social lives but don't do a whole lot to rectify. That would require change (scary) and effort.

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#94

Post by Tijdreiziger »

bootlooped wrote: post #91
rco8786 wrote: post #39

A lot of good questions to ask yourself here. But, > have you ever used/applied "internet slang" (cringe, based, cuck, chad) in/to real-life situations? I take slight issue with this one. To me, there is no difference between “internet slang” and just “slang”. The internet is ubiquitous and the language we use online and offline is largely the same now. Didn’t always be this way. I still remember the first time I hea…

I think I remember reading a Reddit post once about a girl whose boyfriend would say things in real life like "can we get some f's in the chat boys". Things that were clearly very niche and would either be completely unintelligible to the audience or at best sound out of place. I think it's a matter of reading the room.

“F’s in the chat” doesn’t strike me as a particularly obscure meme.

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#95

Post by mark_l_watson »

glitchc wrote: post #67
XorNot wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> But I read so much more You're reading all the time on the internet, it's literally the foundational enabling skill of it. I find it very weird when people say the benefit of being offline is they "read more".

Online reading is all sizzle and no steak. It’s akin to making a meal out of condiments: Each individual element is tasty but the overall meal leaves you dissatisfied.

In general I agree with you. As interesting as stuff on Twitter (I follow some very interesting people) and HN is, I use https://freedom.to to time-box my access. I don’t time-box my access at all for reading books.

That said, I have some low quality conversations with friends in real life also. However that is a different dynamic because conversation does not have to perfect and periods of silence while, for example, hiking with friends is also good.

I don’t want to go off on a rant here, but our civilization is changing: more automation, less work required from a large fraction of the population. We need to get “being a human” in this new world right. Going on a Cal Newport style digital diet is just a part of a strategy for life.

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#96

Post by cratermoon »

bootlooped wrote: post #91
rco8786 wrote: post #39

A lot of good questions to ask yourself here. But, > have you ever used/applied "internet slang" (cringe, based, cuck, chad) in/to real-life situations? I take slight issue with this one. To me, there is no difference between “internet slang” and just “slang”. The internet is ubiquitous and the language we use online and offline is largely the same now. Didn’t always be this way. I still remember the first time I hea…

I think I remember reading a Reddit post once about a girl whose boyfriend would say things in real life like "can we get some f's in the chat boys". Things that were clearly very niche and would either be completely unintelligible to the audience or at best sound out of place. I think it's a matter of reading the room.

idk my bff jill? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nIUcRJX9-o

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#97

Post by [deleted] »

Tao3300 wrote: post #76

> if you find it hard to ditch tiktok, instagram, twitter, or some other similar site, going "cold turkey" will be even harder. try to gradually reduce your usage YMMV but my trick for Facebook was a hard commit to "I'm going to take 2 weeks off". Cold Turkey with a boundary. I think I check it once for five minutes every month or two now. HN is trickier because I don't have to login first to see it. When I start to…

[deleted]

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#98

Post by mark_l_watson »

timellis-smith wrote: post #6

Honestly, I'm an information addict. I'm online far too much mainly reading news etc. I think I've forgotten how I lived without a constant stream of information. I'm seriously tempted to get a dumb phone to remove temptation to browse when I have a few minutes to spare. The stupid thing is for all my reading, I don't feel any wiser or even knowledgeable. At the same time I think I'm less able to engage in normal con…

You realize a problem so you are on a good path. Two things that help me: prefer not carrying an iPhone and rely on my Apple Watch. Also, instead of spending over an hour a day on YouTube watching alternative news commentaries from people like Matt Taibbi, etc. I try to cut down on that substituting YouTube channels on philosophy, Thai Chi exercises, etc.

Also, having a library card at your local library gets you books to read, both physical books and eBooks through the Libby book reading app.

Anyway, congratulations on recognizing the problem: you are ahead of the game compared to most of my friends in real life and family.

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#99

Post by jchw »

bootlooped wrote: post #91
rco8786 wrote: post #39

A lot of good questions to ask yourself here. But, > have you ever used/applied "internet slang" (cringe, based, cuck, chad) in/to real-life situations? I take slight issue with this one. To me, there is no difference between “internet slang” and just “slang”. The internet is ubiquitous and the language we use online and offline is largely the same now. Didn’t always be this way. I still remember the first time I hea…

I think I remember reading a Reddit post once about a girl whose boyfriend would say things in real life like "can we get some f's in the chat boys". Things that were clearly very niche and would either be completely unintelligible to the audience or at best sound out of place. I think it's a matter of reading the room.

Every day that goes by, the out group of internet slang and memes grows smaller. I don't really know if I'd consider this a good thing or a bad thing so much as just, a thing. But there's a lot of joking amongst younger internet folk about how they'll probably be talking internet slang in retirement homes in a few decades. It's a funny visual, perhaps because of the weird perception that we always think we will be like today's older people as we grow older for some reason.

Those Reddit threads make for good entertainment today, however fake they probably usually are. But for better or worse, some day, I suspect it's going to flip around.

Re: How to stop being “terminally online”

#100

Post by soulofmischief »

applobabab wrote: post #20
silisili wrote: post #2

One thing I've noticed about 'terminal online' is that people vastly underestimate how much it affects them. Myself included. It seems if I ever call out a loved one, whether my brother or wife or friend, for being on their phone too much, they immediately get defensive and argue they were just doing some one task. Even if this was initiated after them being zoned out for an hour or longer. And I've done the same whe…

>mom is too busy with Facebook again That sent shivers down my spine, wow.

My mom's been lost to Facebook and gambling apps for years. At some point in the last couple years I told her I didn't love her anymore because being around her is only negative and her screen addiction has put my life in danger on the road my entire life, and caused her to completely skip out on providing for her children.

Zuck, Zynga, all of them can be launched into deep space for all I care.

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