"Conclusions" by the Suburban Hick (D'Arcy)
Yep, this is the point in my highly informal, totally "messed up" essay where I give you the summation of my thoughts, feelings, and ideas concerning the New Age of Writing that has come upon us via the Computer and the Internet.
I'm sure that plenty of ideas have been bandied about here, more than perhaps I imagined, while others have been left behind to gather dust as ignominous clods. I'm sure some of those clods could have served a purpose, but they, as unanswered questions, will prove to be fodder for others to expound upon.
Won't that be nice? I'm providing a service.
Forgive my "witticism," or lack thereof, but I feel like I can be comfortable with an audience I'll never meet or even hear from. That IS odd.
Back to the Conclusion...
I would like to say that there are no conclusions. That there ARE no answers. But, if that was so, why would I attempt to write an essay with a debatable issue? We are in an age where technology is expanding at an ever increasing pace, ever trying to catch up with the edges of the universe itself. Both are on voyages that no one can determine. I feel intense grief at the potential loss of books as a common medium, but I also think that they will never entirely vanish. No, not so. Not solely because of the materialistic value, but because we need them. We need the written word. We need to read to experience other's thoughts and feelings and lives. We are hungry for information, for living. Whether or not books, as solid bound-paper editions, will continue to exist...I, like my character Doomsayer, can only say "I don't know." Computers seem to be the new technology, the new BIGGER BETTER deal that everyone should get their hot little hands on.
But I don't think so. No. Computers are just too...well...inconvenient. At least for now. They're big, bulky, expensive. I can buy a book for about $6, and a good computer (monitor, computer, printer) for $1000+. A book I can carry about in my purse or backpack. A computer?? Even a portable one needs a briefcase-sized bag to carry it, its connectors, and who-knows-what else.
And, I like the fact that I can read a book, and it won't give me a headache (unless I'm reading in the car), while a monitor will blind me with its solid light glare.
Servers go down. Computers crash. How can we call this New Age a better one, if it really can't even keep itself stable? My book will be sitting beside me, solid and dependable.
Before you say it, I'll say it--anything is variable by the weather. Fire will kill practically anything, after all.
or choose from these:
Established: Dec. 15, 1998; Last updated: Dec. 16, 1998