That’s Mathew Ingram in his piece on digital etiquette, which is a reaction to Nick Bilton’s piece on digital etiquette in yesterday’s NY Times.
Ingram is talking about synchronous vs. asynchronous communication (ie: phone vs. e-mail or text) and how the proliferation of different kinds of communication technology has allowed people to develop different affinities for communication etiquette (depending on age/industry/how connected you are).
Both are interesting reads. The bottom line is that people have different preferences and we need to keep that in mind when we communicate with each other. Bilton, for example, writes of his distaste for communication that wastes your time (ie: leaving a voicemail when you can just send a text). Ingram, in a similar-but-different example, writes of the patience we need to develop for those who might not be at the same technological level we are (ie: don’t expect your parents to text you if they are just getting used to e-mail).
Sort of Related: Our recent post on How to Tweet Like a Buddha. It’s essentially a list of tips on how to be mindful on Twitter. How to remember that behind the screen is human being with a particular set of values, habits, preferences, and a particular level of knowledge, tech literacy and access to communication. So, in the same way we are mindful of how the person in front of us is receiving the information we convey, it’s worth being mindful of the person behind the screen. It’s an important mindfulness, I believe, that is sorely lacking in our attempts to navigate the technological literacy divides of our time.—Jihii
(via futurejournalismproject)
> Ok, but isn’t there something particularly nauseating about phone conversation? I mean, you miss the multitasking part of asynchronous conversation, but you also miss the eye contact and body language and real human connection thing of in-person conversation. It’s like miss-miss. Also, PSA: please don’t call me to talk about this. I hate (HATE HATE) talking on the phone.