Could you live without the internet?
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Sandy_123
Scope Member Posts: 63,123 Championing
Most of us here, like myself, were bought up without the internet. To send a message, I had to go to the persons house or wait until I saw them. Look up things in a library or just didn't know, no search engines. Now that we have it at our finger tips, could you live without it again? Me, no.
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What an interesting question @Sandy_123
Having grown up during the time the internet was really growing fast, it's hard to think back to a time when it didn't exist.
I think during lockdown the internet became both a blessing and a curse in some ways! I had quite a fun time writing proper paper letters to friends, because it somehow felt appropriate. Life as we knew it had changed so much, so why not change how we communicate, I thought.
It was different, and took much longer, but I thought a lot more about what I wanted to say, and what I wanted to discuss.
The way the world is now, I don't think it would be possible to live without the internet. But I think we can try something different every now and then, as we might not know when we'll need alternatives most!0 -
Things were simple when I was growing up, looking back, going to the phone box to make a call with 2p and 5p, house phones didn't come to our home until I was a teenager, then it had a lock on it, also if were allowed to make a call, you had someone in background timing you. No privacy, no mobiles.
I couldn't live without it now, I can spend a few hours on Google earth, reading articles I knew nothing about.
Would I be more proactive with out it? I guess I'd have to go to the library again. Maybe see people more. I would be bored with out it I think now.0 -
Trouble is society forces us to use it in many cases eg universal credit is all online and that's not the only example
Its the people who can't use it I feel for and sometimes myself I find it very frustrating that you can't actually talk to a 0erson in some situations
I did my divorce online and was at times frustrating as queries by email had a long response time
There are occasions you just need an answer there and then rather than online query forms etc0 -
Yeah someone I know doesn't use the Internet and never has, on universal credit, she has to go to the library to use their computers. It seems everything is on line now, its good for some people tho, if there in doors alot.0
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I would deff miss it - never bothered me before but found it great when pandemic hit x0
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Bare with me on this but although I couldn’t live without the internet as absolutely everything is set up for it, I also think my life would be so much greatly improved if it didn’t exist!0
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I could happily live with out as I have been doing now and then I have a look on scope to busy theses days working looking after mum getting some me time lol0
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I agree that as everything is online these days we actually are forced to have the internet, which I really resent. I never used to sit around reading for long years ago before the internet, I used to be far more active and things got done out of boredom, ie cleaning, decorating, gardening etc. These days I can sit all day reading online content and frankly I have to ask myself if I really need to know most of the stuff I read. Years ago I’m sure I was happier not knowing some of this stuff, especially the news which I tend to read umpteen times a day.
id love to get rid of my dependence on the internet to allay boredom. I truly hate the constantly rising cost of internet provision and feel helpless to be able to avoid it. There’s no way I want to rely on the local library for internet access especially for sensitive uses such as online banking though.
I think were all being pushed towards having smartphones too, we definitely have been herded towards having a mobile of some sort and ideally it should be on constantly too. Another cost we can all do without in my opinion. I personally have a cheap ten pound pay as you go one from Tesco’s and I rarely use it, just take it out in case the car breaks down or something. But others really do expect you to have a smartphone. Even some restaurants now have those weird square patterns to enable you to pay through the smartphone or something. Last time I came across this I told,them I couldn’t oblige so they, poor things, had to take my order by writing it down on a paper pad and then have me pay by debit card, such a hassle for them!
And don’t even start on our being forced towards being a cashless society!
Slow deep breaths and rant over. 🙂1 -
Loving the responses, do you remember dialled up lol
Or if someone was on the house phone it cut net off, I'm kinda sounding like I was here in the 🦕 era.0 -
Yes I remember the MSN chat groups and orange chat.0
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My dad was into modern technology and so we had a telephone when I was very young, circa 1957, I remember it well because it was hanging off the wall and made of bacolite. I still have a bacolite blotter, ie you have blotting paper on it and roll it gently over wet writing ink.
Just reminded me of the noise of bombs falling that the starlings used to make, they very gradually stopped that whistle over the next twenty five years or so. Remarkable really.1 -
I remember the days where i had to walk to knock at a friends door. Also the days of the old phone boxes but they really did stink.
I spent my childhood outside with friends with roller skates, skipping, climbing trees, marbles and we even made a den with rugs and furniture that people no longer wanted. Ahh those really were the days!Yes, i remember dial up internet, this is what i had when i first had a desk top computer about 19 years ago. In fact, where i lived at the time that was the only internet available lol. Haha the sound it made each time you signed in. It was amazing when the faster internet came to the area i lived.Could i live without it now, simple answer is no. Internet banking, shopping online and so many other reasons.0 -
Yep I can remember them phone box's woodbine, but i can't remember why ha ha0
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Yeah nor me, sadly the phone boxes by me have been removed. A thing of the past. I mean I don't have a house phone as its all scam calls, j pay for ghe phone line for the net, if I plugged a phone in I'd have 1 to use. But I don't even own a house phone to plug in. So if my mobile stopped working and had an emergency the phone box has gone is the point lol.0
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With the rollout of full fibre it appears that the days of house phones using copper wires may also now be approaching the end, instead VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) will be used. That means that if the power goes and you lose the internet it will not be possible to make a landline phone call.0
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That's a scary thought with also telephone boxes disappearing. The nearest one to me is......I don't think there is 1.0
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Hi @Sandy_123! 😊 I don’t think I could live without using the internet. I’m not addicted to my phone like some young people, but I need it for Google maps, online shopping and staying in touch with people.0
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I think I preferred life without the internet, but now that it’s here to stay, and everyone else is using it, I feel like I need to use it, for a few reasons such as so as to not be at a disadvantage.
I don’t know whether that makes sense but it does in my mind.
I was trying to think of something else I feel the same way about but couldn’t. I guess cars are sort of an example - perhaps the world would be a better place without them but in a world where everyone is using them - and society/infrastructure is built around them - you need one yourself so as to be on a level playing field?0 -
It does make sense @66Mustang, for some thing the internet really is a necessity!1
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Me? No!1
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