Computer Friends
In our ‘modern’ society, we’ve moved away from knowing the people around us.
Once, back in time, we lived in communities, close knit and small enough that we would know everybody we were likely to see. Depending on the circumstances, strangers were either welcome distractions or hostile presences needing to be removed soonest.
Now most of us hardly know our neighbours.- in fact, in the cities, it is more usual to know people across town than those on the other side of the wall. This might be a survival thing – if you get to know them and have a falling out, they are right there, a constant source of turmoil.
Now a growing number of relationships have gone a step further in closeness over distance. Internet relationships are an ever-increasing presence in the world. We can sit in our lounge or study and get to know people we normally have no chance of ever meeting.
Originally there were dangers in the extreme of meeting the person at the other end of the modem – now with webcams on most computers, we can get to see those with whom we speak. With Skype, Yahoo or MSN Messenger, we can talk to them while we view, offering a much better contact than previously and the chance to use our instincts.
That doesn’t mean we drop all caution and invite them to our homes, but it does mean we can be a little more confident that they are who they really are. And we can google them to find out more about them.
Opens up some new possibilities though – is it stalking to google someone and find out personal details?
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