Now, I understand that most people love music. I'm sure everyone, or pretty close to everyone listens to music everyday. But, I use my iPod every single day when I go to class. I'm listening to it while I'm on the bus and I am definitely that girl who walks to and from class with her earbuds in. I guess I can't help it but music has always been a soothing thing for me. Music is the place where I drown out all the other noises going on in life and just forget about them. Music is very much an escape for me but I do not think it's as impairing as some people's addiction to televisions like David Foster Wallace points out. However, it does allow me to get some of that "me time" I love to have.
People have been listening to music for centuries, or rather millennia! But now, music is portable and the evolution of music has made it possible to take it with you wherever you decide to go. Portable music is a recently new technology. It has changed dramatically from say, a radio to an iPod. But interestingly, I'm not only limited to just the music with my iPod anymore. Now, if I forget my laptop at home, I can still check my e-mails and even watch videos on my iPod. Technology has evolved so much and I don't even have the iPod touch that allows you to record videos! There has been such a change, now along with your cell phone or your iPod touch you can broadcast yourself to others. In the "Rediscovering Reality" reading, we realize that our reality can be much like another person's reality with just the push of the button. More people are becoming connected than ever before. You could argue whether or not that is a good thing, but my small vehicle for music has turned into something that can allow me to share my life with others. That's great and all, but I still really only use it to listen to my music.
It is amazing how many aspects of technology provide the same services. I don't really see the point of making different types of ipods when there could just be one. Even cell phones now have the ability to hold music and do everything an iPod touch can do. Why keep making better and better versions. Like you said, you really only use it to listen to your music. I think advances in technology are going to the extreme. Why not just make iPods that hold music? That is what their oringial use is for anyways.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was interesting how you brought up all the capabilities that your ipod can do including email, videos etc. I often think about that in regards to my iphone.. it's hard to believe that music, email, and social networking used to not be portable. Our generation is very unique from others in that aspect. We are seldom disconnected from all the media in our lives. And I also liked your point about how our reality can be changed with the push of a button. Very fitting considering how we can read blogs and watch videos on our phones and ipods.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Courtney on how "many aspects of technology provide the same services". It's even more interesting to note how the latest technologies are becoming "everything in one device". The main examples that come to my mind are the laptop, the iPad and smartphones (more specifically the iPhone 4). The only difference (if viewed from a completely logical perspective) between these devices is the size and the fact that the iPhone 4 can make calls, while the laptop and iPad can't. Smaller devices seem to be in favor now days, which is perhaps why there is so much hype about the iPhone 4: it is small and it does everything.
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