Most of my generation who grew up in the US have always been able to take telephones for granted. My own life experience with phones is more varied. From 1967 to 1971 we lived in Bangkok, where I never used a phone. As was true for kids at the time all over the world, I didn’t need… Continue reading Telephones
Tag: networked society
Global Telecommunications: A Personal History
I was born in 1962. During my lifetime, long-distance and mass communications, previously rare, expensive, and available only to a few, have become available to a large proportion of people all over the planet. The consequences, for individuals and societies, have been profound, and are still playing out as these critical tools continue to spread.… Continue reading Global Telecommunications: A Personal History
Those Anti-Social Smartphones
An ironically popular theme in social media lately is “Smartphones have made people antisocial!”, often illustrated with a photo of a bunch of people who happen to be standing or sitting near each other, all heads-down, engrossed in whatever is happening on their phones. There is usually accompanying text, some sanctimonious, head-shaking statement about how… Continue reading Those Anti-Social Smartphones
Lines of Communication: Woodstock School in the Telecoms Age
When I attended Woodstock (1977-1981), communication from and within India was fraught with difficulty. Letters to foreign countries – even in Asia – took weeks. Packages arrived damaged, or not at all. (Nowadays, Indian mail is more reliable than Italian.) In my four years in Mussoorie I spoke with my parents by phone twice, I… Continue reading Lines of Communication: Woodstock School in the Telecoms Age
40 Years Online: Communicating on the Internet Since 1982
Note: This is a heavily revised version of an article that I originally wrote around 2001, now updated for this year’s “significant” anniversary. 25 years online seems like a milestone worth marking! I can say without hubris that I have a talent for communicating online. Which shouldn’t be surprising: I’ve been doing it for over… Continue reading 40 Years Online: Communicating on the Internet Since 1982