Disconnected?
Monday, October 13th, 2008 
Something bad happened a few weeks ago. My desktop died. But, here is the surprising part:
I haven’t replaced it yet.
Yep. Dave Morgan, hyperconnected geek extraordinaire does not have a permanent presence online. Not gunna lie, at first it was scary. I had my addiction, and I thought for sure my life would be less fulfilling if I lacked my technology.
I was wrong. Sort of. I adapted.
The truth is, my desktop really didn’t serve much of a purpose. I called it my “social box”. It was a machine that was constantly on, was always running Pidgin, twhirl and my e-mail clients. I don’t need my desktop to get my work done.
Of course, I have seen use of my iPod touch go up at least five-fold. The touch has become my new “social box”. If I am anywhere near a wifi point I am constantly checking twitter and my e-mail. My laptop has become the new home of the instant messaging, but I occasionally use the touch for that as well.
So, am I less connected? No. Sure, my day to day life has changed a little bit. I lack the “always on” connection that my desktop provided, but at the same time I now have developed a deeper mobility in my tech life. I have adapted such that I no longer need to be sitting at my desk to do any work. Period. Most of my “play” tasks get accomplished on my iPod touch, and serious work will be done on my laptop.
I don’t think I’ll be in a rush to replace my desktop. Eventually I will, but, for now I don’t mind. When I do replace it, I will likely give it a new purpose (I have been toying with the idea of using it more like a media PC). The mobility is refreshing. I am disconnected physically from the wall, but I don’t think I’ll ever be disconnected from the internet.
Besides, now I can claim I am doing my part to save the planet by consuming less energy. Yep. I’ve gone green.
