Tattoos a source of conditioning?

As I write this blog entry, I’m beginning to think that I’m the only one on the face of this planet that doesn’t have a tattoo. I see tattoos everywhere on everyone that I encounter.  I even see tats on people who I never thought would let a tattoo artist’s pen near their skin.  But before you run off thinking this a tattoo vs non tattoo post – slow your roll – cause it’s not.  This is merely a matter of thought from a geek as to what tattoos can lead to in terms of tech. So just bear with me a bit…

Let’s face it, we’re in a rapidly advancing technical age that is unparalleled in human history. That’s unless you believe in notions like previous technically advanced human civilizations existing prior to this one – AKA Atlantis.  Alas, that thought thread is for another day.  Anyway, tech is so advanced these days that we all now live in a connected, information filled world.  For instance, my Samsung Galaxy S4 smartphone can tell me where my car is parked, if I’m late for work, how much weight I’ve lost, recommend gifts for my girlfriend and even get snippy with me on occasions.  Which, when I think back to the first days of my mobile computing/communications life (now some 35 years), this is light years beyond what I thought cell phones would evolve to.  Put it this way, in those days I was just excited just to be able to make a call from a cell phone.

Mobile technology is now beginning to evolve beyond the realm of smartphones into the realm of wearable tech.  Right now a lot of electronics manufacturers are clamoring to produce smartwatches, smart eyeware, fitness bands, etc.  Which most of these are limited as standalone devices as they need a smartphone or tablet as a host device to fully function.  But there’s even a push by manufacturers to make these devices standalone capable meaning that a smartwatch, for instance, will have all the capabilities of a smartphone.  This evolutionary step in wearable tech is already in process as major manufacturers like Samsung are currently working on standalone capable smartwatches.

Now here’s where I go into a bit of extrapolation and try to tie this into tattoos.  I believe the next evolutionary step for mobile technology is going to be implantable tech.  And this is where I believe tattoos (and for that matter skin piercings) will play a major role in this next evolutionary step.  This is because just as tattoos are the norm these days – it will also be the future norm to have some type of tech implanted in humans to allow total connectivity.  Right now the implantable tech concept is not really acceptable to most – but then again tattoos were not really acceptable to most years ago.

I’m not going to get into all the ramifications of implantable tech (anything from Borg assimilation to Biblical mark of the beast) because they’re too varied.  Which, as an aside, I could probably write a book on the aforementioned.  What I am saying, however, is that there will be a convergence of acceptability when it comes to tattoos and implantable tech.  And although the future is not set, the acceptability of tattoos right now will cause the acceptability of implantable tech in the future.  Just as today’s smartphones amaze us with what they can do – implantable tech will literally blow our future minds.

Do you agree with me on my premiss?  Would you also allow implantable tech on your body? Also do you sport tattoos or piercings?  Leave a comment.

P.S., I’m au natural – no tat’s or piercings.  I don’t have anything against anyone that has the aforementioned – just love my body the way it is…

Surface RT = another Microsoft epic fail

Perhaps you know by now about the nearly billion dollar Microsoft failure known as Surface RT.  Yup, almost a year since it was introduced, Windows Surface RT has become a dog that no one wants.  So much so that even Asus, a prominent computer device manufacturer, recently announced that it was throwing in the towel on Windows Surface RT.

The explanations as to why Surface RT failed are varied – ranging from the design of Windows 8 to the inability of Surface RT to run regular Windows programs.  Accordingly, the pundits have been all over the place with the aforementioned explanations.  Also accordingly, and to the credit of the pundits, all of the reasons why RT failed have been right – except for one.  The one critical mistake Microsoft made was to try to push users into the “post-PC” zone.  The “post-PC” zone, much like “The Twilight Zone,” only exists in the minds of people that don’t want to deal with reality.  In the world of reality, there is no “post-PC” zone and there is no “one size fits all” when it comes to computing.

Microsoft, however, was not alone in this blunder as many of the pundits agreed with the tech giant in this assumption.  Indeed, even in light of Microsoft’s massive failure, there are pundits who still believe that a “post-PC” era is occurring.  And Microsoft is not the only tech giant who is now pushing the “post-PC” era as Canonical, Ubuntu’s parent company, is also beginning to steer into that zone as well.  Incidentally, IMO, this is a big mistake that Canonical is making, given the issues that Microsoft is experiencing with Surface RT.

In any case, Microsoft now has a lot of inventory in terms of unsold Surface RT tablets on its hands.  Which, I expect that there are going to be some deeply discounted or even free RT tablets going out the door as the tech giant tries to unload them.  Hopefully, in the process of unloading all those RT tablets, Microsoft will see the error of its ways – because again there is no “post-PC” era.

How do you feel about Surface RT in general?  And are you going to get a Surface RT device now that Microsoft has begun slashing prices on them?  Leave a comment.

News sources: Mashable, Windows IT Pro and ZDNet.
Photo source: PCWorld.

So this is the world we now live in

I assume by now that you’ve heard some news report about the NSA American spying scandal, the PRISM system and the now former Booz Allen Hamilton employee, Edward Snowden, who leaked all the sorted details.  Although the NSA has been doing what it’s doing for quite some time – the extent of the spying came as quite a shock to some.  Yet to others it seemed like a big deal being made over nothing.  For me, the news of the NSA spying on the American public put me in the middle of the road of being shocked and not shocked.

From the time of the 9/11 incident, there was a nagging feeling in the back of my mind that every American citizen was having their communications monitored.  And because one of my career paths is in Information Technology, the more I learned about the field — the more those feelings nagged me.  But since I wasn’t a criminal or a terrorist – I had always managed to brush aside those feelings.  That was until lately.

I don’t consider myself as a tin foil hat wearing, conspiracy theorist, demon behind every rock kind of person.  I am, however, one who gets concerned when certain government agencies get out of control.  Which, in this case the NSA is, in my opinion, out of control right now. Why? Because of the extensive, unnecessary data mining and surveillance that is being done to every member of the American public.

Consider this example: Right now, I am currently siting in a Starbucks as I write this blog post. Because of the way most POS systems work and the use of my Starbucks card – the NSA now knows what I drank at Starbucks. During the course of my work – I made a post to Facebook – which the NSA now knows about.  I also made a call to a friend about an out of town dinner appointment next week – which again, the NSA now knows about.  And incidentally, because of my Android smartphone with GPS – the NSA knows which Starbucks I’m sitting in – right down to a few meters.  I could go on and on – but you get the point – the NSA, because of systems like PRISM, possesses a lot of unnecessary data details about most American citizens.

This is where the “I’m not doing anything wrong – why should I worry” attitude and approach to things doesn’t cut it anymore. Just think about it, if you’re not completely off the grid – you are being data mined on almost every little detail of your life. You are being monitored, spied on everywhere you go.  In short, you are under surveillance so much — the NSA knows about your wazoo.  The other reason is that technology as well as people can go south – resulting in disastrous consequences.  Another way to put this is who monitors those who monitor the American public? Additionally, what checks and balances are in place when things get out of control?  I suspect none.

Even if you have a “don’t worry, be happy” attitude about the whole NSA spying scandal – you should ask yourself these questions: Do you really want the NSA to know every little  detail about your life?  Furthermore, do you want to be monitored everywhere you go?  My personal answers to the aforementioned questions is no.

So again, this is the world that we now live in.  It is a world that far surpasses George Orwell’s “1984” both in technology and function.  It is also a world that be inconceivable even to George Orwell himself.

How do you feel about the NSA spying scandal — leave a comment.

News/photo source: The Guardian, UK.

Again, the PC is not dead…

A few days ago, the research firm IDC put out a forecast that 2013 would mark the second year of declining PC sales.  This dismal news came on the heels of a really bad first quarter overall down tick for the PC industry as a whole.  Consequently, the Net is all abuzz, again, with doomsday prognostications for the PC.

Even though the news is bad for the PC industry – it is not the end of it.  And those who are forecasting the end of the PC industry are wrong.  Which, there are some simple answers to why these prognostications are wrong.  First, the most obvious reason is that the tablet, the supposed successor to the PC, still cannot do what a PC can do horsepower wise.  Even tablets like the Windows Surface Pro are bested by a decent PC when it comes to horsepower.  Second, tablets do not offer the flexibility that PCs do.  For instance, most tablets come with a fixed memory size and limited storage options. PCs on the other hand offer better options both in terms of memory and storage.  Third, the PC runs circles around a tablet when it comes to display options – hands down.

But perhaps the most obvious reason why the PC industry is not dying is that the IDC forecast is based upon flawed data.  Indeed, PC sales are trailing off and conversely tablet sales are increasing, however the study that resulted in the IDC forecast did not take into account certain factors.  For instance, the IDC study did not go into detail as to why PC sales are down.  Which, some of those factors are the current economy, consumer dislike in terms of Windows 8 and consumers having to replace cheap tablets.  Starting with the economy, most consumers either don’t have the money to purchase new systems or don’t see the need to upgrade what they currently own.  Just like with the auto industry, consumers are hanging on to older PCs much longer because they still get the job done.  Moving on to Windows 8, Microsoft did a lot of harm to the PC industry when it created this OS. This is because consumers generally hate Windows 8 and are voting with their pocketbooks by not buying PCs with the loathsome OS.  Finally, the study did not cover the amount of cheap, off brand tablets which consumers had to replace due to premature failures, etc.  I could go on and on – but again, if one was to drill down and look at the underlying trends in the study – a completely different outlook would have been found.

In short, although sales are way down, the PC industry is not on it’s death bed.  Until a tablet can fully replace a PC in form and function – there will always be a need for the PC.  As well tablets are years away from replacing PCs – a fact which is hard to ignore.  And a fact that all the naysayers should take into consideration while rethinking their prognostications about the PC.

News source: WIRED.COM.

 

If ya don’t listen it will hurt you…

It’s fast approaching mid year and from the looks of it, the tech industry is experiencing at least two major epic flops this year.  What’s so unprecedented is that these two epic flops are from two major tech companies, Microsoft and Facebook.  More importantly, these two failures are perfect examples of how not listening to your users can cause big time trouble.

Microsoft’s epic fail is Windows 8, arguably the most bizarre and hated OS ever produced by the tech giant.  In Microsoft’s deluded view, Windows 8 represented a paradigm shift in the way users interacted with their computers.  But in reality, Windows 8 only gave users another reason to hate Microsoft.  And accordingly also sets the stage for a dichotomy of realities that the tech giant may not be able to overcome.

The problems with Windows 8 started early last year with its consumer preview.  Because the market is now flooded with tablets, Microsoft designed Windows 8 around a touch based interface.  This would be all well and good if the bulk of computing was done via tablets, which incidentally, it is not.  Despite the flood of tablets, computing is done on a wide range of devices that includes desktops and laptops.  Furthermore, there are still computing applications that tablets cannot perform and require the use of a desktop or a laptop.  Which brings us back to the dichotomy of realities that Microsoft now faces. Simply put, Windows 8 in it’s current form makes it hard for desktop use but easy for tablet use.  It is also this one sided OS approach that has angered a lot of Microsoft users.

Instead of taking the “listen to users” approach – Microsoft took the “suck up and do it our way” approach when designing Windows 8.  Had Microsoft listened to users early last year – and made the changes that they are currently scrambling to make – the whole Windows 8 debacle would never had happened.  And as Microsoft is now discovering angry consumers are a hard bunch to deal with – no matter what tactic (like using Internet trolls to combat complainers) you try to use on them.

Facebook’s epic fail is Facebook Home and is another example of why tech companies should listen to users.  Instead of improving upon current apps that run under Android – Facebook Home is designed to take control of a user’s phone.  This is because in the deluded minds of Mark Zuckerberg and his software developers, users want a total Facebook experience.  So much so, that in conjunction with the Facebook Home’s release for Android – HTC (a prominent smartphone manufacturer) also began producing the HTC First, a smartphone based totally on the aforementioned software.  Which, all of this would have been great if it was what users wanted.

As it turns out Facebook Home is not what users wanted. Indeed, had Mark Zuckerberg and his software developers listened to FB users, they would have found that users just wanted a stable bug free app.  They did not want a smartphone that was totally controlled by Facebook because the devices are used for other purposes – like making calls.  But for Zuckerberg and FB home – it’s now too late.  As it stands right now, just a few weeks after it’s megalithic, Saturn Five fanfare launch – Facebook Home is now burning up in the atmosphere of user dislike.  As well the HTC First is being pulled out of production due to abysmally poor sales.

Again, these failures are so startling because both companies chose to employ an arrogant “we know what you want” attitude towards their users.  If Microsoft and Facebook had simply listened to their users in the first place, both companies would not be going through a world of hurt and embarrassment  right now.  Simply put it pays to listen to your users – and that’s the bottom line…

Who shot the PC industry?

There has been a lot of buzz lately about the PC industry and how near to the death bed it is. Indeed, in the view of some pundits the PC industry is on life support, just waiting for someone to “pull the plug” so to speak.  And just like the infamous “Who Shot J.R.,” Dallas episode – people are wondering who shot the PC industry?

First, let me say that the PC industry is not dead and I don’t think it will be dead for a long time to come.  There will always be a need for PCs (desktops and laptops) because of the power and flexibility they still offer.  But to be real about things, the PC industry is in serious decline due to numerous issues.

The first issue is the economy which is affecting not just the PC industry but all sectors of manufacturing.  Because of the poor economy, there is now an overall tendency with consumers to hold onto items longer rather than replace them on a regular basis.  For instance, consumers are generally holding on to old cars for longer durations (in some cases up to 10 years) instead of purchasing new cars.  The same can be said with the PC industry – consumers are holding onto old PC gear for longer periods and just not purchasing new units as often.

The second issue is the tablet PC and how it’s being positioned as a traditional PC replacement.  Which, for some consumers the tablet PC can suffice as their primary computing device – while for other consumers it definitely cannot.  And it is this dichotomy of need where many PC manufacturers are making a tremendous mistake.  As it stands right now, a tablet PC cannot replace a traditional PC because of what it cannot do effectively.  Traditional PCs are better at multitasking, crunching numbers, video editing, programming as well as other intensive applications that require both computing horsepower and screen real estate.  Yet, PC manufacturers have focused so heavily on tablets that the traditional PC has begun to lag.  Apple, for instance, has not offered a significant upgrade to its Mac Pro line, a mainstay in professional imaging applications, in quite some time.  Again, this is a serious mistake on the part of manufacturers because there are still a lot of users (both professional and non-professional alike) who need traditional PC’s and laptops.

The third issue and perhaps the most critical is the desktops that traditional PCs run.  Right now there is a general trend (across all OS platforms, Linux, OS-X, Windows) towards a simplified desktop.  Although some would cite the introduction of tablets with the move towards a simplified desktop – it was actually Apple’s move from OS-9 to OS-X that started the trend – well before the introduction of the iPad.  Other notable simplified desktop moves came from the K desktop Environment (KDE), Canonical (Ubuntu) with its Unity desktop, Gnome with it’s 3.x series desktop and lastly Microsoft with its Windows 8 Modern UI.

Although all aforementioned desktops were met with some angst upon their introduction – it is the Windows 8 MUI that has received the most vitriolic criticism to date.  What’s even worse for Microsoft is that the Windows 8 MUI is being called a detriment to the PC industry because the desktop fails miserably when it comes to usability.  Which,  generally, I do agree with this assessment due to the Windows 8 MUI being illogical in its layout.  Another critical failure is that the MUI is also a touch based desktop environment which is more conducive to tablets rather than traditional PCs.  Again, even though there was considerable user angst against other new simplified desktop environments such as Unity, that angst abated about a year or so.  This was because desktops like Unity were logically laid out and therefore did not suffer from the usability problems that the MUI has.  As well, the angst and overall condemnation of Windows 8 and its MUI doesn’t appear to be abating but rather increasing.

All in all there are multiple strikes against the traditional PC at this moment – but nevertheless, the PC is still a viable instrument in the field of computing.  And although the PC industry has been shot several times – it can, just like J.R. Ewing, recover from its injuries and continue on with life.

Don’t count the mouse out – not just yet

Because of the incursion of touch or gesture based devices the traditional pointer device (AKA mouse) has been under siege. And as with the PC, prognosticators have been predicting the doom filled end of the mouse. To a degree, those predictions may be right – but the death of the mouse is not imminent.

The traditional pointing device, whether it be a mouse or a track pad, will be around for a long time because people still need and want them. As well, there will also be a long term technological need for both wired and wireless traditional pointing devices. Think about it – there are many corporations, businesses and common everyday folk that still prefer to use mice. This is even with the explosion of touch based laptops, desktop computers, tablets and so forth. Yes, it is true, some users are fully going the touch route while not looking back – yet, others are sticking with traditional pointing devices. The explanation of the latter may be simply due to the fact that the traditional pointing device, even with all it’s antiquity, may be more comfortable to use. Especially in the case of desktop PCs or laptops.

Again, think about it – even with the most advanced gesture based pointer control – there’s a limit to how much you can hold your hand in the air comfortably. Now admittedly, I do find the latest and greatest innovations in pointer control devices to be quite cool. Particularly, those that use just hand or eye motion to operate – yes, indeed, quite cool. But while my geek, gotta have it, cool meter has gone off scale – the practical side of me shouts out comfort. Which, when my practical side begins to compete with my geek side – questions tend to arise. Such as, what would it be like to go through long computing sessions (which I have been lately) with a PC with just a touch screen and no mouse. I don’t know about you – but I think my right (left, if you’re a southpaw) hand and arm would be mighty tired after such a session.

On a more serious note, there is the specter of the type of injuries which will result due to newer pointing technologies just now coming onto the market. As with traditional keyboards and pointing devices, there is bound to be a wholly different set of injuries that result because of newer pointing technologies. Although this may be mere speculation on my part – I have no doubt that it will happen – making traditional pointing devices viable into the near future.

So even though my geek, gotta have it, cool meter is off scale because of new pointing technologies – I still haven’t dumped my mice. Furthermore, I don’t plan to do so for a long while – and you shouldn’t either.

The PC is not going to die – not yet at least…

Ever since the onslaught of tablets (whatever your flavor, Android, iPad or Surface) a lot of prognosticators have been predicting the end of the traditional PC. Indeed, these predictions have been so dire that they rival the 2012 Mayan catastrophic end of the world calendar event. But just as the end of the world didn’t occur – life will go on for the traditional PC.

The reason why traditional PCs will not die is short, sweet and simple. There are just too many users and applications that need them. On the user side of things, it ranges from professional (IT or otherwise), gamers, businesses and to the most casual user. The same goes for the applications that run on PCs – anything from the most advanced database out there to again the most simple of applications. Put it this way, you may be able to access a database from a tablet – but you sure can’t use a tablet as a database server. Nor can you use a tablet as a home media server which has all of your favorite movies stored on it. I could go on and on – but when you take an objective look at things – there are a lot of things a PC can do that a tablet cannot.

Now you may counter my aforementioned premise with the advent of cloud computing – which negates the need for localized storage – thus again kicking the PC to the eventual curb. But let me counter your cloud argument with this major fact – cloud computing is not entirely safe. Furthermore, it will never, ever be entirely safe. Yes it may seem great to have access to your files anywhere because they’re on a “safe” cloud server somewhere in the world. And yes, it may seem great that you can access these files with just a mobile device like a tablet – again from anywhere in the world. Let me, however, remove the silver lining from the cloud so to speak with just one word – hacking. To even further disperse the cloud – here’s another word – outage. Now do you get the picture? Don’t get me wrong – I’m not totally against cloud computing – what I am against is the notion that it’s an entirely safe alternative to having localized storage.

You may still want to argue that the user interface or OS is trending away from being conducive to PC use and more for mobile devices like tablets. And I would agree with you while at the same time I also consider it to be a dumb move on the part of software manufacturers. Again, plain and simple – there are a lot of users that still need a traditional desktop for their work. You may not have noticed, but there is a serious backlash among users against the dumbed down UI. Right now, Microsoft is getting a lot of heat from users because of Windows 8 and the now infamous Metro UI. A lot of the angst against Windows 8 are a result of the OS being so bizarre that users generally hate it. Another issue with Windows 8 is that Microsoft decided to prioritize the touch interface of the OS over that of traditional pointing devices – making the OS more difficult to use with mice, track pads, etc. Microsoft, however, is not alone in simple UI backlash, Canonical, which produces Ubuntu Linux, has been also taking heat for its Unity UI, for example.

You may still refuse to concede to the traditional PC being around for a while because of the social networking craze. Again, I would agree with you that mobile devices such as tablets do allow one to do social networking on the run better than PCs – but this is a feeble argument at best. Sure Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+ may be all the rage right now – but what of the future? Let me put things in this context by asking you another question: do you remember Geocities or Myspace for that matter? If you don’t remember Geocities or Myspace – they were the social networking fads of their time which have now faded away into Internet history. Given time, the same thing will happen to – dare I say it – Facebook as well.

The traditional PC will most likely go through vast evolutionary changes – but it will never completely disappear. The prognosticators who predict otherwise are wrong and that’s the bottom line.

Do you work for Yahoo – then no telecommuting for you…

Marissa Mayer, Yahoo’s new CEO has effectively turned off the spigot when it comes to telecommuting at the company.  This move most likely has enraged a lot of Yahoo workers and also sent chills down the spine of every telecommuter around the world.  Mayer’s premise on doing away with telecommuting is that it would promote better teamwork. Which, I would consider Mayer’s premise to be correct – if it was 1993.

If Yahoo or any other company (web based or not) had to deal with 1993 era technology – then yes, telecommuting would not be a sensible thing to do.  Instead of broadband connectivity – you’d be plugging along at about 2400 baud (9600 if you could afford it) using a Procomm Plus VT100 or whatever terminal emulation.  There would be no options for video conferencing, collaborative application management or any other technological convenience that makes remote work easy.  Back then the best way to have effective teamwork was to bring everybody into the office – because you had to.

But alas, this is 2013 – not 1993 and because of vast improvements in technology, software as well as communications infrastructure – telecommuting is the sensible thing to do.  By its very nature, telecommuting can save both the company and the employee time, money, etc while increasing efficiency at the same time. And contrary to Mayer’s opinion about telecommuting not fostering teamwork – any manager worth their salt would know that effective worker collaboration can be accomplished regardless of the employee’s location.

I think Marissa Mayer is dead wrong on the issue of telecommuting because again it is not 1993, it is 2013.  The teamwork issues that Yahoo is experiencing have nothing to do with telecommuting – they are due to poor overall management.  Additionally, to state that Yahoo – a web based company whose business relies on the Internet – cannot accomplish good teamwork because of telecommuting is in itself ludicrous.

 So no, telecommuting is not dead, useless or whatever else Marissa Mayer thinks it is.  And note to any other CEO considering getting rid of telecommuting: don’t – because in the long run you will regret that decision – as I’m sure Melissa Mayer will find out – the hard way.

Library oddities

Often times when I have a lot of busyness going in my life I end up feeling like my mind has gotten to the state where it’s been placed in a high powered Cuisinart blender. Which is basically what I’ve been going through lately with all the work I’m currently doing along with trying to start a new business. When things get like this for me, I try to hang out in a nice quiet location like the beach to get back in focus. The only problem with this for me is that I live in a tourist trap which makes areas like beaches unavailable until the off seasons. Up until recently, I had thought that the only solution to my issue was the library but alas even that’s out. Here’s why.

First things first – the library is no longer the haven of quiet that it used to be. You can thank computers, WiFi, cell phones, MP3 players and insipid changes in library policies which make quiet passe. Secondly, there are a lot of odd people who hang out at the library. Let me state right here that I know because of my geek nature, I seem odd to people. But it’s somewhat disconcerting to me when I find people who are odder than me. Here are some examples by category of what I’ve been running into at the library in terms of oddness.

The bionic typist – library computer user. More bizarre than odd. These people can type faster than a YF22 Raptor can fly. And they want everyone to know this by making that keyboard chatter like a woodpecker on crack. On a good day, I can manage about 80 wpm – the bionic typist far exceeds this at 550 wpm – minimum.

The KIRF (keeping it real fake) business type – library computer user. Odd and very loud. In short these guys are slicker than 10W30 engine oil. To their clients, it seems like they’re dealing with the CEO of a multinational corporation – who is sitting in a plush corner office on the 15th floor of an office tower. In actuality, the KIRF business type is also keeping it real simple – all they need is one of the library’s computers and a cell phone to look stellar to their clients.

The mad scientist – library computer user. Very odd and very scary. Never mind that they have 40 computers hooked together in a neural net back at the lab. Never mind that they have another 24 computers linked into the lab’s neural net via 5 T1s from their home. They need as much free computational power as they can get their maniacal hands on. For a mad scientist looking for additional computers to assimilate into their work, the library, with its free computing resources, is often a tempting and easy target. Why you ask? Because they’re trying to do something strange – like open a doorway into another dimension. So the next time you’re using a computer at the library and that Internet connection suddenly drops dead – it’s not a system problem – it’s that mad scientist sitting in the corner cubicle.

The bunch together for no reasons crowd – all library users. Generally odd and sometimes strange. One thing that I’ve noticed on my recent trips to the library is the propensity for people to bunch together for no reason. For example, I tend to arrive at the library somewhat early in an effort to find a nice quiet location to sit at – alone. Generally, when I arrive there are plenty of locations to choose from because no one’s around. Sweet – maybe not! Consider this experience from my last trip to the library: Arrival time about 9:00 AM – I find a nice location to sit at, set up my laptop and immediately get to work. About ten minutes into my work indulgence, I hear a thunk at the table where I’m sitting. I look up and there’s a woman setting up her laptop at the very same table. I try to ignore her as she chats away on her cell phone with her BFF about her new car. Another two minutes and another thunk. This time it’s a college student at the table right next to mine. Although he’s studying for a physics exam, I know right away he’s into Reggae. This is because the volume on his iPod is turned up so loud – it’s almost as if I’m right there on the stage with Bob Marley. Another five minutes go by and I hear snoring from the couch behind me. Seems that the guy on the couch couldn’t make it through the first chapter of Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” before passing out. And it escalates from there. In no less than an hour, without fail, I find my self surrounded by 15 or more people – all within very close proximity to me – for no reason.

Before you accuse me of being anti-social – let me state that I do try to “just get along” with others. Also, let me pose these two questions to you. Why would people bunch together for no logical reason when there is plenty of space available? And why would they do such a thing at a library – a facility which is not conducive to people bunching together? Makes no sense to me…

Alas again, looks like I’ll have to give up on the library as a place to get away from things and clear my head. Just too many distractions – and too many people that are odder than me! My quest continues…