Can you live without your smartphone?

[Andres]

One of my pet peeves: children and teenagers with a mobile phone.

How on Earth has it come to this? Why do 10 year olds need a mobile phone? One of my colleagues has a son who is in elementary school. She gave him a cell phone when he was 11, because children were making fun of him, as he was the only one in his class without a mobile phone. 11! And they all have a mobile phone already, very busy sms'ing, as if it's all for free. Sheer idiocy. Ridiculous. I absolutely hate it. I hope I'll find a school for my yet unborn child where mobile phones are strictly forbidden.

My mother in law is a teacher in secondary school. Pupils are constantly busy with that mobile phone when she's teaching. Punishing them doesn't help. They behave like addicts; they'd rather starve to death than be seperated from their cell phone for more than a day. And they're all addicted to the internet as well.

Is this me getting old?

[Rhyfelwyr]

I never even use a mobile. They keep taking my number off me because you lose it if you don't use it in 6 months.

[Zradha Pahlavan]

I don't need a phone to be smart for me.

[A Nerd]

I prefer emails to cell phones. The only reason I have a cell phone is to call AAA in case I should break down on the highway.

[Hosakawa Tito]

One of my pet peeves: children and teenagers with a mobile phone.

How on Earth has it come to this? Why do 10 year olds need a mobile phone? One of my colleagues has a son who is in elementary school. She gave him a cell phone when he was 11, because children were making fun of him, as he was the only one in his class without a mobile phone. 11! And they all have a mobile phone already, very busy sms'ing, as if it's all for free. Sheer idiocy. Ridiculous. I absolutely hate it. I hope I'll find a school for my yet unborn child where mobile phones are strictly forbidden.

My mother in law is a teacher in secondary school. Pupils are constantly busy with that mobile phone when she's teaching. Punishing them doesn't help. They behave like addicts; they'd rather starve to death than be seperated from their cell phone for more than a day. And they're all addicted to the internet as well.

Is this me getting old?

Where were all y'all when I needed ya last night? I can just imagine a Neanderthal clan discussing a similar, for the time, newfangled "atlatl contraption" them new kids down the block are using.

I feel the same as the "who needs it" crowd, and that's my gut reaction. However, I also realize that sometimes, my gut can be totally wrong. Let's face it, communication in the business/professional/personal world is evolving to this, with or without us. The biggest downside, as Andres has described, is more about self-control than the technology itself. And since I'm all about self-control and the teachable moment, my teenage charges have a few caveats attached to their CrackBerrys.

1. They are paying, on a pro-rated basis, money or labor, to help defray the cost.
2. During family times/meals/school/60 minutes before lights out the dang things are turned off.
3. Overindulgence in tweets, email checks, texting, etc... as determined by me/or the boss will be verboten, and can result in confiscation.

So, Hosag has warily set aside his fire-hardened thrusting spear and adopted, on a trial basis, this new technology.

[Gregoshi]

All these devices are is a distraction from the here and now. Why talk to the person you are with when you could be emailing or texting someone else?

Our whole family has cell phones. We only got the kids phones when they were about 15-16 years old and they started leaving the nest to go out with friends. They are handy to have but I get annoyed if my phone gets too active. My kids, my son in particular, is (a) totally devoted (slave) to his phone - much to my annoyance. My wife has a smartphone from work, so they can slave drive her with work even after hours. Lovely, especially when we go on "holiday".

However, I see no purpose to a smart phone. When I'm out, I don't need to read an email when I'm trying to pay a cashier at the store. I don't need sports scores instantaneously. And I don't want to watch Star Wars or play a game on a puny 2.5" screen.

[Hosakawa Tito]

Fortunately, where I work, cellphones are contraband and a good way to get locked out, fined, and maybe even fired. I don't want to be available 24/7 and am not unless I wanna be. These things can be shut off Greg, that's my point, so those who do choose to be "harassed" or "addicted" by them make that choice. Giving ones friends/colleagues/boss/family your undivided attention while in their presence is common courtesy, along with those around you that don't need to listen in. There's a time & place for using this technology, and even though I may not like or want to use all this stuff....well we'll see how my kids handle themselves and go from there.

[seireikhaan]

My cell phone can call people, take very poor, blurry pictures, and can sorta text awkwardly. Its pretty much a necessity, as I switch around between uni, home, other home, and none of them utilize a land line. I don't use it much, but its still something I need, if people need to contact me outside of email.

However, as I mentioned, its a far cry from a "smart phone". I personally fail to see any need to surf the web at any possible moment.

[Scienter]

My mother in law is a teacher in secondary school. Pupils are constantly busy with that mobile phone when she's teaching. Punishing them doesn't help. They behave like addicts; they'd rather starve to death than be seperated from their cell phone for more than a day. And they're all addicted to the internet as well.

Is this me getting old?

I'll join you in being old. I can't stand it when I'm in a store and some teenager is trying to both interact with a salesperson and text/talk/tweet/whatever. It's so rude! Seeing people use their smart phones during a movie fills me with near homicidal rage. There's an appropriate time and place to use a smart phone, and what bothers me is that most people don't seem to know that. Don't get me started about people who talk on the phone or text while driving...

Now get off my lawn!

[Andres]

I'll join you in being old. I can't stand it when I'm in a store and some teenager is trying to both interact with a salesperson and text/talk/tweet/whatever. It's so rude! Seeing people use their smart phones during a movie fills me with near homicidal rage. There's an appropriate time and place to use a smart phone, and what bothers me is that most people don't seem to know that. Don't get me started about people who talk on the phone or text while driving...

Now get off my lawn!

Argh, people using their phones during a movie should be a criminal offense; they should lock people up for doing that.

But what I hate most is people picking up their phones at a restaurant. I'm there to enjoy the lovely company of my wife, excellent food and wine, not to hear some nitwit talking way too loud, thinking he's important because 'hey, look, it's week-end and I have an IMPORTANT phone call! Please, look at me, I need attention!' I don't care! I don't care about your important phonecalls. They should force you to eat your cell phone! And then burn you at the stake while you're standing on a pile of mobile phones

I hate it when people do that. Is there anything more barbarian than picking up your mobile phone at a restaurant? Is it that difficult to switch that devilish device off for the duration of one (1) dinner?

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Hmm.. I have a phone?

[Hosakawa Tito]

I'll join you in being old. I can't stand it when I'm in a store and some teenager is trying to both interact with a salesperson and text/talk/tweet/whatever. It's so rude! Seeing people use their smart phones during a movie fills me with near homicidal rage. There's an appropriate time and place to use a smart phone, and what bothers me is that most people don't seem to know that. Don't get me started about people who talk on the phone or text while driving...

Now get off my lawn!

Scienter has got it. We need smartphone etiquette training.

My cell phone can call people, take very poor, blurry pictures, and can sorta text awkwardly. Its pretty much a necessity, as I switch around between uni, home, other home, and none of them utilize a land line. I don't use it much, but its still something I need, if people need to contact me outside of email.

However, as I mentioned, its a far cry from a "smart phone". I personally fail to see any need to surf the web at any possible moment.

Personally I don't need that either, but I'm not raising my step-children to be a carbon copy of me. I'll give them a bit of guidance & exposure to this technology, and let them make up their own minds as to it's worth.

Argh, people using their phones during a movie should be a criminal offense; they should lock people up for doing that.

But what I hate most is people picking up their phones at a restaurant. I'm there to enjoy the lovely company of my wife, excellent food and wine, not to hear some nitwit talking way too loud, thinking he's important because 'hey, look, it's week-end and I have an IMPORTANT phone call! Please, look at me, I need attention!' I don't care! I don't care about your important phonecalls. They should force you to eat your cell phone! And then burn you at the stake while you're standing on a pile of mobile phones

I hate it when people do that. Is there anything more barbarian than picking up your mobile phone at a restaurant? Is it that difficult to switch that devilish device off for the duration of one (1) dinner?

Normally I'd endorse Andres for Etiquette Sensai, but ummm....maybe we should give someone else a go?

[Husar]

I have an iPhone, and it's a useful tool. I have 100 free minutes and 40 free SMS a month, I may get close to the minutes but I hardly ever send SMS around.
It's mostly in silent mode anyway, real people always have priority over phonecalls except perhaps if I'm expecting an important call or my boss is calling but neither happens often.
It has actually made some situations easier and more convenient due to the internet flatrate and connectivity, which is the main reason I bought it. I can check the mails, read the news, check webpages, chat etc. all on the move and wherever it has an internet connection, or I cannot, it's my choice, there's no force and I turned a lot of the notification things off.
One of the more useful things is that I can send messages etc. over the internet, there are apps doing that which make SMS useless if the other person has an iPhone, too, like someone I know from Switzerland, I can stroll through a park and send her a picture of the park for free etc. Maybe it's not especially useful per se, but it's pretty nice, like wearing nice shoes that cost 50 bucks more than just useful shoes, or a nice suit that cost a thousand bucks more than just cheap jeans, a shirt and sandals.

[Azathoth]

Reading these reactionary rants fills me with a desire to buy a cellphone and yell into it at every public place in the city.

[Scienter]

But what I hate most is people picking up their phones at a restaurant. I'm there to enjoy the lovely company of my wife, excellent food and wine, not to hear some nitwit talking way too loud, thinking he's important because 'hey, look, it's week-end and I have an IMPORTANT phone call! Please, look at me, I need attention!' I don't care! I don't care about your important phonecalls. They should force you to eat your cell phone! And then burn you at the stake while you're standing on a pile of mobile phones

I hate it when people do that. Is there anything more barbarian than picking up your mobile phone at a restaurant? Is it that difficult to switch that devilish device off for the duration of one (1) dinner?

I can't stand it either! If I'm at a nice restaurant I don't want to hear people blabbing into their phones. If I can't hear them, I don't care, though. It's their choice to be rude to the people sitting at their table.

We have some women at work who think that the perfect place to carry on a phone conversation is in the bathroom stall. My personal favorite: "Blah blah blah, hold on a second, I have to flush!" *flush* *continues noisily using the toilet* "Sorry, I had to flush!"

[A Nerd]

My personal favorite: "Blah blah blah, hold on a second, I have to flush!" *flush* *continues noisily using the toilet* "Sorry, I had to flush!"

Well concerning that...I hope everything came out alright. Conversationally speaking of course. ;)

[Louis VI the Fat]

I'll join you in being old. I can't stand it when I'm in a store and some teenager is trying to both interact with a salesperson and text/talk/tweet/whatever. It's so rude! Seeing people use their smart phones during a movie fills me with near homicidal rage. There's an appropriate time and place to use a smart phone, and what bothers me is that most people don't seem to know that. Don't get me started about people who talk on the phone or text while driving...

Now get off my lawn!

Argh, people using their phones during a movie should be a criminal offense; they should lock people up for doing that.

But what I hate most is people picking up their phones at a restaurant. I'm there to enjoy the lovely company of my wife, excellent food and wine, not to hear some nitwit talking way too loud, thinking he's important because 'hey, look, it's week-end and I have an IMPORTANT phone call! Please, look at me, I need attention!' I don't care! I don't care about your important phonecalls. They should force you to eat your cell phone! And then burn you at the stake while you're standing on a pile of mobile phones

I hate it when people do that. Is there anything more barbarian than picking up your mobile phone at a restaurant? Is it that difficult to switch that devilish device off for the duration of one (1) dinner?

My, aren't we an old-fashioned lot, stuck in social etiquette taken directly from Pride and Prejudice.



Do you hear me whine about having to look at people eating and chatting while I'm on the phone?

[A Nerd]

My, aren't we an old-fashioned lot, stuck in social etiquette taken directly from Pride and Prejudice.

Mr. Darcy would never use his cell phone in a rude fashion, or even own one at all! He is too much of a gentleman. Technology is for heathens!

[Hosakawa Tito]

My, aren't we an old-fashioned lot, stuck in social etiquette taken directly from Pride and Prejudice.



Do you hear me whine about having to look at people eating and chatting while I'm on the phone?

Hehehe, seeing that his wife is in a delicate state, maybe we can put this down to "sympathy mood swing".

[Gregoshi]

Do you hear me whine about having to look at people eating and chatting while I'm on the phone?

Louis, when you go to a restaurant, you could always ask to be seated in a phone booth.

[Scienter]

My, aren't we an old-fashioned lot, stuck in social etiquette taken directly from Pride and Prejudice.

Do you hear me whine about having to look at people eating and chatting while I'm on the phone?

I'd get annoyed if I was out for a nice, expensive meal and the people at the table next to me were being loud and obnoxious. Same for talking loudly on phones. It only bothers me if I can hear them and it detracts from my dining experience. I suppose it wouldn't matter if I was at a McDonalds or some place similar, because I'm not there for the "dining experience."

And just as it's unacceptable to talk loudly during a movie, it's rude to talk on the phone or use a device that blinks/makes noise, and distracts people.

[Andres]

My, aren't we an old-fashioned lot, stuck in social etiquette taken directly from Pride and Prejudice.



Do you hear me whine about having to look at people eating and chatting while I'm on the phone?

And here I was, thinking you were the last bastion of civilised behaviour, the protector of extraordinary culinary experiences, a man of refined taste, style and class


How does sir wants his mobile phone? Bleu, saignant, à point ou bien cuit?

[Gregoshi]

How does sir wants his mobile phone?

May I suggest "to go"?

[Tellos Athenaios]

And here I was, thinking you were the last bastion of civilised behaviour, the protector of extraordinary culinary experiences, a man of refined taste, style and class


How does sir wants his mobile phone? Bleu, saignant, à point ou bien cuit?

Bien cuit please. We want to be sure the thing doesn't start wriggling suddenly.

[Louis VI the Fat]

Bien cuit please. We want to be sure the thing doesn't start wriggling suddenly.

If I were a chef I would prefer guests to shout in their telephones all night long over this.


Shall we bring monsieur a bottle of ketchup for his steak carbonisé?

[Lemur]

I'll join you in being old. I can't stand it when I'm in a store and some teenager is trying to both interact with a salesperson and text/talk/tweet/whatever. It's so rude!

Actually, the worst cell phone violation I ever saw was in a movie theater bathroom. I walked in, wanted to do my business, and there stood a middle-aged dude at the urinal with a phone to his ear. His monologue went something like this:

"What? Huh? Uh-huh. No, I'm pissing. Pissing. I said I'm pissing. Yeah. Uh-huh. She said that? No, pissing. Yeah, I'm pissing. Right now. Uh-huh. Yeah. Really?"

And he just went on and on. Surely there was something wrong with that dude.

[GeneralHankerchief]

My phone is pretty much the same khaan's. It makes calls, can take fuzzy pictures, and can text people. That's all I need.

Plus, I reap the benefit of smartphones without ever actually having to own one. Notably, if I need instantaneous access to whatever information, I'll just ask a member of the ever-growing "owns a smartphone" population to look it up for me.

[Gregoshi]

Plus, I reap the benefit of smartphones without ever actually having to own one. Notably, if I need instantaneous access to whatever information, I'll just ask a member of the ever-growing "owns a smartphone" population to look it up for me.

Then GHog whacks them over head with club. Too easy I say.

[Ser Clegane]

I am a bit old school with regard to these thingies.

I only have a "regular" cell phone from work - which is turned off by default. As long as I am at work or at home people should call me on my fixed line. I only turn it on on rare occasions, either when I need to make a call while on the road or when I know that I need to be available for family or colleagues while traveling.

I also could have a blackberry for work but consciously deceided against it - I know that I might not be able to resist checking my e-mail from time to time and the risk of for some reason decidiing to go through my e-mails during the weekend or during my vacation by far outweighs the doubtful "benefit" of being able to be reached by e-mail in urgent cases.

[Vuk]

lol, I don't even have a cell phone. To be honest, I don't regret it.