Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Technology

I'm sitting in my office in Delhi on a stupid Tuesday evening, waiting for a heavy ZIP file to get downloaded. The file contains around 50 photos which had been taken earlier in the afternoon in Hyderabad and I am now supposed to send it off to a journalist in New York, who needs them in his 'box by the time he wakes up. He'd sent me a text message before going to bed that he needed them urgently as the CD I'd given him earlier got corrupted. End to end - the files would have reached him within 6 hours of him calling me up for them.

Now Imagine the same scenario around ten years back. The guy in NY would have waited for me to get to office before telephoning me on my desk line that he needed the photos (by when it would have been time for him to sleep.) I would have then telephoned my Hyderabad colleague on his desk phone to pass on the request. Had he not been there, I would have waited for him. By the time, the message got to him, he it would have been lunch time. He would have gone out post lunch to click the photos and then taken the camera to the studio around seven in the evening. Most likely the studio would have closed by then so he would have waited the next day to hand over the film roll. Another day before the prints finally arrive. By the time the photos reach me (I have to vet the photos before sending) it would at least be another day (or four days had it been Post) before the courier arrives.

By the time, I choose the photos and find the nearest International Courier and filled his form and the declaration (that I am not sending across any porn, drugs or nuclear weapons) it would have been another half day and a minimum of 2-3 days before the good folks at Blue Dart would have shipped it off to the Big Apple. In this case at least a week between the time the I got the call from the journo and he got his photos.

So we all assume that technology makes our life more convenient right? WRONG !!

Ten years ago, I would not have been in office past five in the first place so where does the question of me getting the call arise. But today, I have a cell phone, so journos (the 24x7 news channel variety) call me at 4 in the morning to enquire how far can see you on the runway. I have a laptop with a wireless internet connection, so my boss expects me to send and receive emails while I am driving at 120 kmph down Haryana's highways. I also sit in office till 8 usually, because technology allows my colleague to click photos on his fancy digital camera, process them on his computer and mail all 50 of them in a jiffy, so that I can download them and send them to the journo in NYC pronto !! And while all this happens, technology also allows me to vent my feelings on this blog rather than my stupid diary which gathers dust in my bookshelf.

And now we shall ask five friends to tell how technology has changed their lives. The lucky winners are

Vrij

Shuunya

Aa

C

Sidhusaaheb

7 comments:

Sidhusaaheb said...

Aye aye sir!

I'll have to scratch my head a bit, but shall report back as soon as I can.

:D

Technology, like everything else in life, has its own positives and negatives.

Anonymous said...

:-))))

I agree tech has actually corrupted our life:_)))

But do u think that just the tech is key factor to force u sit late till 8, or come early morning....dnt u think....its more of the competition and we in effort to be in race with others thats forcing us to stay late and work like a donkey???

If u think the aboce scenario...tech has made our life more easy.....:-))))

And about the corruption we're talking about.... we have moved far from the real fun of life, today fun is more on internet, games,chatting...and what not...
real meeting... real fun...out door games.......tech has snatched these from us.....do u agree??
I m sure not:-)))

KEep FAith:-))
Chakoli:-)))

Vrijilesh Rai said...

Sirji.. why not take my current post itself as the tag?? Another one means takng a few extra steps towards baldness!!

PL said...

ehh!! u wanna change the way i think ;)

Cee Kay said...

Good one!

Morpheus said...

nice thinking..good job you are not wielding a Blackberry or other such like which means you can check email and be on call even in the loo! Technology sucks sometimes..I say bring back the Peeya Gaye rangoon wahaan se kiya hai Telephoon type of phones..

Sidhusaaheb said...

Er...ahem...Assignment completed and ready for inspection...

:D