I don't consider myself to be the most technology-savvy person going around, because, quite frankly, I'm not. I am a 21 year old male, who has grown up with computers, and the internet, yet more often than not, if I want to install a new program, or do anything outside of what I normally do on a computer, I need to ask a friend for help. However, while I am not perhaps as down-with-it, as I might like to be, there are people I know who are completely out-of-it, when it comes to keeping up with technology.
The technical term for these people is "old people". I don't mean to be rude, but from my experiences, everyone over, say, 70 years of age, is relatively incompetent, when it comes to dealing with even the simplest technological devices, eg, turning on a computer.
Several weeks ago, I found myself in a neighbour's house. This lady is about 80 years old, and has become a family friend of sorts over the years. If she has any questions about technology, I'm the one she comes to. These questions aren't along the lines of "How do I install the new Windows Vista?", as she doesn't have a computer. They're more like "Can you change the time on my alarm clock? I turned it off at the switch by accident, and now it's just flashing 12:00".
You get the idea.
Anyway, as we were talking, she began telling me a story of how she had been wanting to watch Rod Stewart perform "Tonight's the night" on a talk-show many years ago, but her husband had turned off the television, as he wasn't keen on her watching a "lair". This happened about 20 years ago, and she still regrets missing the performance.
My response was "You could probably watch it on the internet", to which she replied "Do you think?"
This got me thinking about what it must be like, to live without the internet, or without any of the technology we take for granted today. As she doesn't have the internet, or a computer, she may never get to see that footage.
I'm a supporter of the Essendon Football Club, and, emotionally, am still coming to grips with the retirement of James Hird. I realise that I may never see an Essendon player of his calibre ever again. What keeps me going though, other than the many replayed football games I get my girlfriend to record, off channel 72, is the youtube clips.
There are many criticisms of websites such as "youtube", such as the fact that it has made several people celebrities of sorts, who perhaps shouldn't have been. The "chk-chk boom" girl, was one example that springs to mind. But I'm not interested in debating the social issues that come from a website such as youtube. Any website that allows me to view videos of my favourite footballer, for free, whenever I want, gets the tick in my books.
There may be a lot of crap on youtube, or on the internet in general, but amongst all the crap, there are definitely some gems. If you know what you're looking for, and are lucky enough to find it, it won't matter to you how many people idolised "Corey, the partyboy" from Narre Warren. It is up to each of us to use these websites the way we want to. For perhaps the first time ever, there is a medium that the uses and gratifications model fits with. It is the internet, and social media. As we get to choose what we upload, as well as view on youtube, we have a choice to use this media form in just about any way we want to.
It's amazing to think that as I write this, there are those living around me who are a little older, don't interact with new forms of media such as youtube, and subsequently, don't have access to videos, photos, or information that they might desire. Next time my neighbour comes around, I might just see if I can find that Rod Stewart video for her.
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