I Don't Live In My Basement With My Mom....

You hear a lot of crap out there about how people that spend a lot of time online are, by definition, anti social and somehow addicted to the internet.  I spend a lot of time online, I like twitter, facebook, G+ etc.  I listen to a number of podcasts, and produce a few as well.  I play online games on xBox Live and the PSN.  I comment on blogs now and then, and even have this blog here where I apparently think you want to listen to my rants...

I am, however, also plugged in to my family, my job and all of that other normal stuff.  

My online life is no different than my offline one.  Indeed, I find it hard to separate them in my mind.  I use the 'net for work a great deal and for play.  Ken, Me, the Dude and Tom at PAB 2010, photo credit Bob Goyetche

I get really pissed off when I hear people say 'you should get out more' or 'this is anti social'.  That is pure bullshit.  I have met people through online interactions that are real friends of mine.  I now consider people that I have met through this medium to be friends.  I mean real actual friends, not just people I know.  Indeed, I feel more oh, let's go with kinship, with people like Bob, Mark, the Dude and Tom than I do with many people that I see every day (I typically see these guys once a year for 2.5 days, and for all I know, they can't stand me....)  

These are people I never would have met without the internet.  OK, maybe with some weird sort of pen pal thing like we used to do in school when I was little, but that seems unlikely...

A couple of months back a person I know only through their username on wikipedia announced on his talk page that he was ill.  This was pretty shocking.  Many people on there announced their hopes for him, some even said they would pray (which was a joke of sorts, as he is an atheist).  He came back on a few weeks, perhaps oh 2 months, later and announced he was in ICU, but doing ok.  I was really happy with this.  I have never met this person, I have no idea what his actual name is, but I cared enough that it made me damned happy to see an update.  Is that anti social?  

Oh and for the record, I sort of do live in my basement, as that is where the family room is and where my beer fridge lives....

Comments

[Dan Scott]

That's right, Dave, _I_ live in the basement with your Mom. OH YEAH!

I totally concur. The time I've spent on IRC with people with whom I actually share interests (not many free software fanatic / system librarians in these parts) has helped keep me sane. When we do get the chance to hang out together (usually at conferences), it's a natural continuation / extension of the relationship we've formed online.

[merelyjim]

Last night, I went out to our local sport bar to watch the Dallas Cowboy's season opener game.

The place was packed. Everybody, except me, was wearing a Cowboy's jersey. They yelled and screamed when a play went right, and yelled and screamed when a play went wrong. These are normal people who get animated, passionate, and zealous about... a game.

A huge glut of time, effort, and money is spent in the pursuit of this game, and lots of money is made as a result. But, let's face it, these aren't the guys who are going to cure cancer. They've made a career out of playing... a game.

My on-line life, filled with Linux Hippies, podcasts, twitter, and blogs is at least as fulfilling as what the football team gets from watching our local team, and the least I can do is appear interested from time to time, because my friends have to put up with me going a bit nuts over the latest release of the Linux Kernel.

But, with my on-line life, I've made friends in England, Canada, South America, Russia... just about everywhere. Because we talk about things other than just the basics, I get exposed to news and topics that I'd never get just sticking to the local stuff. I feel I'm a better person for it.

Oh, and just because they're Cowboy's fans, I yelled "Go, Habs, Go" at one point. The two who noticed were very confused...