Technological hesitations

Blogging. It became a phenomenon. Personally, I never gave much about vocalising my opinions to the broad public; fellow students usually are risk-averting (at least in the Netherlands) and frown upon questions that are intended to spark discussion. However, I do value other peoples insights and opinions. I have been a frequent reader of couple of blogs about one of my favorite computer games Eve Online for the best part of last year and the discussion that is sometimes sparked in the comments can be a very educating read. So, instead of stopping the thoughts that spur in my mind, I decided to try to get them in the open and have you, the people that read this, think them over and shoot at my rethoric. Hopefully, the jewels will be in the comments. The first question struck me while I was thinking about a topic to kick off with. Why did it take me so long to start a blog?

How technologically advanced people often think of me, I'm usually quite late when it comes to adopting new technological possibilities and tools. When the first mobile phone appeared in my vicinity I was very reluctant to accept them. It was late '90s when a girl in my class got one from her parents to be able to inform them in case of trouble; even then attending high school and the 4 kilometer bike journey to get there were frightening endeavours apparently. I thought of mobile phones as limiting factors to my freedom. Why would I succumb to the enduring terror of 24/7 availability when I saw most people I related with on a daily basis at school? It took three more years before I finally committed to mobile technology. Right now, I'm possibly too hooked on to my pocket sized computer which incidentally has the option to make a call too.

Much the same goes for YouTube. It took years for me to finally admit it to be an interesting tool. The insight that open sources as YouTube can be a magnificent addition my arsenal of references when I'm trying to learn new stuff only came to me last year. The free online school program Udacity uses YouTube as a platform to host a wide array of classes. Khanacademy is a very useful tool for everyone who studies math.

In this open source minded setting, the phenomenon of the blog is (or can be) a valuable addition to all other ways to interact and have discussions. In the coming weeks I will post various articles, some of which might not interest you, the reader, at all. Others might spark your passive interest while the rest (hopefully) will encourage you to write your own vision on the subject in the comments.

I'm looking forward to see where this blog will be in about a year time!

Regards,

Harm