Life today is hectic. Life today is crazy. I have happily lived in my own little world of being perfectly competent at web searching and email. I have never desired to learn how to program a computer or create a website. What would I DO with a website? I've never wanted a blog, either--evidenced by the fact that I had to poke around this website for awhile before I realized that "New Post" was the link I needed to put my assignment online, hehe.
I never wanted a Facebook page. My boyfriend set it up because he (used to) live on Facebook, and wanted a usable link for my name under "Relationship Status". And as I've explored Facebook these past few months, and was required to be on the Emporia student listserv and, this semester, the Records Management Listserv, I have become increasingly distressed with the amount of information thrown at me every day through my new ties. I have 20 new friend requests per week, more than that many "invitations", and my inbox (which I carefully keep emptied of everything but messages I haven't responded to) shoots to over 50 every day from listserv messages. It's stressful to even open my gmail account!!!
How, I think in mounting frustration, does anyone MANAGE ALL OF THIS INFORMATION? As one listserv user complained about the huge influx of emails she gets daily now, I sympathized heavily. Then one librarian wrote back: We are the librarians! If we can't do it, what are we doing?There are of course, options like setting up different folders that emails which certain keywords wil automatically be sent to. But people's lives are moving more and more online. My friends don't live on Facebook as part of their lives, their lives are moving onto Facebook: it's where they spend all of their time, posting pictures, playing games, socializing, putting all daily events on their calendars, constantly updating their statusi.
So I was intrigued by a book entitled Organize Your Digital Life by Aimee Baldridge, mentioned on the listserv just last week. She warns about how fragile hard drives and dics are and the need to document things properly. I have heard this, but it already seems a problem of the past. Nothing is getting saved onto discs: everything is online. But still, it needs to be organized.
In thinking about it, it occurs to me that a good dose of organization theory is what the email/archiving of a digital life department needs. There are lots of theories out there, but no answers. I believe Resource Dependency Theory can explain it (just look at Facebook a few weeks ago and how the consumers took charge to demand that the organization back off on owning peoples' photos). The consumers (the environment) will here demand more and more ways to socialize and keep information, and organizations in general will have to come up with new ones. As we mentioned in class, since parents are now getting onto Facebook, kids will have to find a new way to do things. The high rate of change and serious dependence on the environment of what will work--highly influenced by word of mouth--lead one to serious questions about the future.
1 comment:
Krista,
I agree with your statement “how …does anyone manage all of this information?” There doesn’t appear to be any type of organization to the madness. I’m sure it’s because I am new to the digital phenomenon and haven’t learned all the tricks of the trade. I too, would argue that there is evidence of the Resource dependence theory at work in this digital organization. Clearly, from the Facebook example provided (Facebook attempts to take ownership of individuals information) the environment dictated the organization. The individuals said “No” and the organization listened. Although I do wonder how long it will be before this issue resurfaces.
In this digital world it often feels like there are no boundaries. The digital world consumes you. You become addicted to it. It dictates you. Krista your description conceptualizes my thoughts perfectly. You stated, “people’s lives are moving more and more on-line, my friends don’t live on Facebook as part of their lives, their lives are moving onto Facebook.” Being consumed does have a price; one must constantly police their information in an attempt to prevent its misuse by others. Once you are consumed you generally fail to recognize the warning signs of revealing “TMI” too much info. It’s just considered a part of the digital world.
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