Ullman and I share a need to keep in contact with people through the internet, in particular with people we care about. Ullman formed an online relationship with one of her co-workers, named Karl. During the article, she described how there was a need to keep in contact with him - seeing his email arrive in her inbox and her need to press 'r' to reply. I too have had such experiences with people close to me. Two summers ago I traveled overseas to India for two long months on an engineering internship (Ullman, also an engineer). My girlfriend at the time was back home in the United States and keeping in contact was hard. Phone calls could not work because of the time difference and hassle it would create for one side. Skype would also not work because of the lack of fast internet connections in India. We settled for email as a means of communication. Similar to Ullman, there was a urge to reply to an email I received from her immediately. The email I would receive were longer and more letter-like, unlike Ullman's, which were more conversational. However, there was that sense that the email should be cherished, read over and over, and after a day of two, replied too. However, that is not the case with email because its ease at which one could reply caused me to reply to my girlfriend's emails almost instantly. There were nights I would wait for an email from her, similar to Ullman's insomnia, because I knew my girlfriend would soon awake back in the United States. The speed and ease of email caused me to react this way to these messages, similar to how it caused Ullman to react to her conversations with Karl through email.
Another point of comparison however is that I have never had to meet someone for the first time after months of communicating online. All of my online communications were with friends of family whom I have previously met. My friends, in particular, I would meet everyday. I however would, during times we were apart, talk with them online using instant messenger. Ullman's relation with Karl was one where she had never really met him. They were coworkers, but their relation during work was not the same as the one she shared with him online. Only after months of email communication were they allowed to really be themselves with each other when they went on their date. My relationship with my friends and family were the same as they would be online. I would act and say the same types of things online as I would in person with my friends. That 'awkwardness' when I would meet my friends was not there, unlike the awkwardness Ullman felt when she met Karl for the first time.
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I think it is important how you described the differences you use for different styles of communication. With different groups, you act differently. That's very interesting.
ReplyDeleteI am in constant contact with others. I always have my iPhone with me, which downloads all of my email. Even now, I'm writing this post on my iPhone. I feel as though I couldn't go throughout my day without it. That's how far the Internet dependency has taken me.
ReplyDeleteI like how you point out the conveniece of online communication. Email, unlike telephone calls or talking person, can be done at the convenience of only one of the people taking part in the conversation, instead of both needing to be available in order to continue the conversation.
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