My Name is Jim and I'm a Luddite

When people ask what I do for a living, I tell them that I'm a Bit Mover. While this is generally met with a blank stare, it's as close as I can get to a simple answer. For fifty years now, I've been moving bits from one place to another. During that time, the basic process of moving these bits has hardly changed at all. However, their impact on society has caused a paradigm shift in our evolution as we transform from Homo sapiens into Homo iphonus.

But is this really a good thing?

Professionally, I work with some of the latest and greatest technology that is available. Personally, I tend to eschew any technological solution that already has a simple non-tech solution. For example, a light switch is a reliable and cheap means by which to turn a light on or off. It doesn't require a battery nor does it require a bluetooth or WiFi connection to function and a smartphone app to control everything. While I don't have a smartphone, I think that the ability to make a call from almost anywhere is a Good Thing and I use an old flip-style cell phone for that purpose. It doesn't have email, a browser, or any apps, but it doesn't track my location either. Call me paranoid, but I know first-hand what our new world of IoT is capable of doing and I worry about all of the information people inadvertently reveal about themselves. Or knowingly reveal, for that matter.

Like this blog, for example ;)

Ned Ludd wanted to tear down technology and stop it in its tracks. I have no such desire, but don't see any of this leading us to a Happy Ending. For several years now, we have been migrating our collective lives into The Cloud; when it all evaporates, there will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth (plus a lot of other sh*t going down, as well).

And the paranoid part of me keeps whispering, "It's not a matter of if, but only a matter of when."