Issue 25.14
I could just as easily say “… at the movies”, or “…. at the play, concert, etc.”, but to me the most striking change in what is acceptable has occurred at church. Even five years ago, if someone brought their laptop computer to church it would have been considered a distraction and “bad form”. Perhaps as part of an object lesson, a teacher might bring one, or to demonstrate some new thing in research, lesson planning or genealogy. Otherwise, it would have been at least a curiosity.
Fast forward to today. With the advent of smartphones, a majority of our congregation now carries a computer with them everywhere they go – even to church. The advantages are many, but so are the possible problems. On the one hand, it is wonderful that I can bring not only my scriptures, but a whole library of reference works, lesson ideas, videos, manuals and other tools that can help me teach and learn. I have responsibilities in my congregation and I can keep track of records, take notes and share ideas with other members and it all fits in my pocket or on a tablet if that is what I use.
On the other hand, if we are not careful and thoughtful of the decisions we make, using technical capabilities can actually impair or take us away from the purposes for which our time at church or the theatre or concert hall is intended. The temptation to ignore the things and people around us while we check our email or facebook or play games is a problem. Our phones or instant messages can interrupt our focus on the experiences we should be having. Even worse, our choices may infringe on others ability to enjoy their experience, especially if we forget to turn off the ringer on our phones or the alarms we have set for other things. I have actually had to give ultimatums to my children, letting them know that, if they continued to text and surf instead of listening and engaging in what we are there for, I would have to turn off their phone service and/or take away their tech toys. Sometimes they were actually texting each other instead of being involved in the meeting or concert. I believe in teaching before enforcing, but it was becoming a serious problem.
Finally, many public venues including churches have installed wi-fi capability so that the people in attendance can access the internet. I have been asked many times why, if we have the capability, the internet is so slow and unresponsive. Everyone needs to understand that the bandwidth (how much information can travel through a local area) is limited. If the bandwidth in your local building can serve 40 people at a time, but 200 people are trying to access it, the results will be less than satisfying for all concerned. It may actually run so slow that it is unusable. I recommend that if your internet device uses a cellular signal, that you turn off the wi-fi when in public places where this could be a problem. You will still get fairly good service from your cellular carrier and the number of people logged into the wi-fi will decrease, making the experience better for everyone. Better yet, you might consider carrying actual books with you in place of the technology. That solution won’t work for everyone, but it might help you as you try to enjoy and learn from the experiences you have at church or at the venues you visit.
This is just food for thought so take it with a grain of salt, but think about what you really want with these types of experiences – and be sure to always back up anything on your computer that is important to you.
Shaun McCausland has worked in the computer industry for over 32 years, 23 years of it locally with Bits ‘N’ Bytes and Musicomp and currently does in-home and on-site computer consultation, service, training and repair. If you have questions you can reach him at 435-668-7118 or shaun@musicomp.net.