Journal Entry 9/23

Callum Copley

Immediately I was overwhelmed. But I was surprised how much it did feel like having multiple group chats and side conversations happening on my phone. Very well relatable.

Basically impossible to read until it’s all typed out. However this part is dissimilar to a text chain because those require responses and can run for hours.

1. “Whereas a truly instant messenger would display each and every keystroke in real time…” The idea of texts being shown as they are typed as opposed to when they are sent is as intriguing as it is scary. Thinking of the number of times I retype texts, never send them, or pause in the middle to think. I think it opens much much more vulnerability than the current viewing after sending.

2. “In the realm of person-to-person interaction, however, the rules appear to change. Boredom is often replaced by anticipation.” Dot dot dot was my favorite of the pieces because it is something I think about often, how we are all so readily available to each other now. There is a much greater expectation for immediacy with the use of texting and emails or letters, etc.

3. “The online economy is one of attention, in which human communication is transformed into profit.” This feels reminiscent of the last conversation we had about the commercial web and the market on attention.

4. “The dispersal of attention across a range of platforms which are all increasingly potential sites for work and social communication means that the compulsion to check them all constantly is compounded.” I really relate to this. The number of times I feel “done” with an app just to go open the next one for updates is numerous and cyclical. Additionally, the buzz of my phone notifications give an instant compulsion to pick it up regardless of what I was doing before.

5. “A homogenization of features amongst the leading platforms displays an obvious intention to dominate the market.” I have always used Instagram for exactly this reason. I never got tumblr or twitter or facebook or tiktok or reddit or whatever… because Instagram was just everything wrapped up in one. It functions almost like a collection of other apps. I feel there is rarely instagram specific content, almost only reposts from other platforms.

6. “...counteract the emerging culture in which workers are obliged to feel ‘always on’.” This is exactly what I said in the 2nd point. With instant text messaging so common, work related transactions have become expected to be instantaneous.

7. “... interaction at all costs is the aim.” This feels like an excellent last line for this site as it sort of sums up each section well and yet all in different ways.