The Internet Kind Of Sucks.

Interesting post Les!

I tend to agree. Whilst the Internet has a lot of positives I feel they are vastly outweighed by the negatives. It's a failed experiment.

I was in the I.T. Business as an engineer right around the time it started getting popular. Good time to be in that industry. Not any longer and hasn't been for a while.

I use social media somewhat begrudgingly. Sure, the Internet has helped me as a musician, but....

If it all disappeared tomorrow I'd adapt pretty quick.

The world is full of idiots, narcissists, sycophants, criminals... The worst of humanity. Thankfully they are still held roughly in check by the majority of good folks. Regardless, the Internet brings them right into your home.

But, it's here to stay. Which means we're forever trying to find a nugget of gold in an ever growing ocean of sh1t!

This site is one of those nuggets though... So I'm thankful for that!
 
The internet does NOT suck. Youtube alone has had an enormously positive impact on my life. I learned half of the home improvement skills I have through youtube vids. I would have never known how to do a proper drywall tape joint or how to lay ceramic tile. I learned how to solder from a youtube vid. If I want to jam along to a blues backing track in Am, I can find about 30 on youtube. I buy home goods, tools, as well as guitars based on youtube demos.

Aside from that, I've met tons of women on internet dating sites that I normally wouldn't have met otherwise. The internet made it possible for me to search for and buy 2 homes. I am able to work from home with customers 1300 miles away because information is sent via internet now. I never would have been able to move to Florida otherwise. If I need to buy something like a carpet cleaner, I just go on Amazon and its on my doorstep 2 days later. If I need something in a pinch, I can use the internet to search for local store stock, whether it be Walmart, Home Depot, etc, so I don't have to drive around looking for the said item.

I could go on and on. Sure, the negative stuff on social media and on forums sucks. However, the internet is pretty much one of if not the greatest of mankinds achievements. Sure, landing on the moon was great. But, how did that advance us? The internet has united the world in ways never thought possible. From a business perspective alone, it has allowed the world to become a global marketplace.

One final thought.... y'all wouldn't have nearly as many PRS guitars if it wasn't for the constant GAS that the internet creates.
 
Drew said:
Sure, landing on the moon was great. But, how did that advance us?
Click to expand...

Oh, maybe a little more than your ability to fix your plumbing from YouTube vids and meet women has advanced humanity? ;)

Seriously, there's lots of convenience with the internet. No doubt, communication is easier. And you're right about GAS!

But is there anything you can do on the internet that you simply could not accomplish before? Did the internet advance mankind's knowledge? No. It advances mankind's ability to communicate knowledge; there's a substantial difference between advancing knowledge and communicating knowledge.

That's the question to answer when you talk about advancing humanity. I'm not sure that convenience makes it more than a communications/convenience tool like the telephone.

The telephone was a big tech advance in its day. But it didn't, for example, create a language, end wars, do anything to cure disease, usher in a new order of law, promote human understanding, etc. It was a new tool, and that's about it. Whether the world became a better place with the invention of the telephone I can't say. It certainly made dating, and talking to your grandma easier.

The internet is the same kind of deal, a communications tool. It's more powerful than the telephone. And it's an advance in that way. But what I'm getting at are the kinds of advances that take human knowledge farther, change our lives in a good way, beyond mere convenience.

The info you get on Youtube hasn't changed, there were videotapes and books for that pre-Internet. the method of delivery of the info changed. And things happen more quickly. But you could always learn how to fix your toilet. That hasn't changed.

No doubt meeting women is easier. Though there were matchmakers thousands of years ago who did the same thing. And Americans were importing brides from Europe in the 19th Century via matchmakers and newspaper ads. It was a slower process. But the concept hasn't changed, just the methodology and speed.

On the other hand, there are things that the space program has taught mankind that weren't known before, and these things advanced human knowledge. There are spin-off technologies in science, medicine, transportation, and so on, that are directly attributable to NASA programs. And we have indeed increased our knowledge of the universe via the Space Program. Whether that's something that helps you fix your toilet is of course another matter, but the medical spinoffs alone might save your life one day.

This is science fiction at present, but at the present rate of human reproduction, we might need to colonize another planet within the next few hundred years, or at least obtain resources from another planet. So it's a good idea to work on the ability to do those things.
 
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Drew said:
The internet does NOT suck. Youtube alone has had an enormously positive impact on my life. I learned half of the home improvement skills I have through youtube vids. I would have never known how to do a proper drywall tape joint or how to lay ceramic tile. I learned how to solder from a youtube vid. If I want to jam along to a blues backing track in Am, I can find about 30 on youtube. I buy home goods, tools, as well as guitars based on youtube demos.

Aside from that, I've met tons of women on internet dating sites that I normally wouldn't have met otherwise. The internet made it possible for me to search for and buy 2 homes. I am able to work from home with customers 1300 miles away because information is sent via internet now. I never would have been able to move to Florida otherwise. If I need to buy something like a carpet cleaner, I just go on Amazon and its on my doorstep 2 days later. If I need something in a pinch, I can use the internet to search for local store stock, whether it be Walmart, Home Depot, etc, so I don't have to drive around looking for the said item.

I could go on and on. Sure, the negative stuff on social media and on forums sucks. However, the internet is pretty much one of if not the greatest of mankinds achievements. Sure, landing on the moon was great. But, how did that advance us? The internet has united the world in ways never thought possible. From a business perspective alone, it has allowed the world to become a global marketplace.

One final thought.... y'all wouldn't have nearly as many PRS guitars if it wasn't for the constant GAS that the internet creates.
Click to expand...


Man, what a sickeningly postive outlook you have! You tryin' to spoil the mood in here? :D

Good post. I guess the internet doesn't suck as much as people do... ;-)
 
LSchefman said:
Oh, maybe a little more than your ability to fix your plumbing from YouTube vids and meet women has advanced humanity? ;)

Seriously, there's lots of convenience with the internet. No doubt, communication is easier. And you're right about GAS!

But is there anything you can do on the internet that you simply could not accomplish before? Did the internet advance mankind's knowledge? No. It advances mankind's ability to communicate knowledge; there's a substantial difference between advancing knowledge and communicating knowledge.

That's the question to answer when you talk about advancing humanity. I'm not sure that convenience makes it more than a communications/convenience tool like the telephone.

The telephone was a big tech advance in its day. But it didn't, for example, create a language, end wars, do anything to cure disease, usher in a new order of law, promote human understanding, etc. It was a new tool, and that's about it. Whether the world became a better place with the invention of the telephone I can't say. It certainly made dating and talking to your grandma easier.

The internet is the same kind of deal, a communications tool. It's more powerful than the telephone. And it's an advance in that way. But what I'm getting at are the kinds of advances that take human knowledge farther, change our lives in a good way, beyond mere convenience.

The info you get on Youtube hasn't changed, there were videotapes and books for that pre-Internet. the method of delivery of the info changed. And things happen more quickly. But you could always learn how to fix your toilet. That hasn't changed.

No doubt meeting women is easier. Though there were matchmakers thousands of years ago who did the same thing. And Americans were importing brides from Europe in the 19th Century via matchmakers and newspaper ads. It was a slower process. But the concept hasn't changed, just the methodology and speed.

On the other hand, there are things that the space program has taught mankind that weren't known before, and these things advanced human knowledge. There are spin-off technologies in science, medicine, transportation, and so on, that are directly attributable to NASA programs. And we have indeed increased our knowledge of the universe via the Space Program. Whether that's something that helps you fix your toilet is of course another matter, but the medical spinoffs alone might save your life one day.
Click to expand...


I'd say that the internet has indeed advanced humanity in some ways - many people in less fortunate parts of the world have access to information and communication they wouldn't have otherwise. It's also made interaction across the entire world feasible (sure, some people abuse that; but I think it also leads to greater understanding across cultures, arseholes notwithstanding).

Also - what do you mean the telephone made dating your grandma easier...? If that's what the telephone brought about, I'd say that in contrast the internet dating sites definitely advances humanity in the most literal sense of the word :D
 
Michael_DK said:
Also - what do you mean the telephone made dating your grandma easier...? If that's what the telephone brought about, I'd say that in contrast the internet dating sites definitely advances humanity in the most literal sense of the word :D
Click to expand...

I meant that it makes dating easier, and talking to your grandma easier. Not, um, dating your grandma. :eek:

Sadly, my grandmas have been dead since before 1980. So no one's dating them at the moment. Uh...in this plane of existence anyway.
 
Me? I've been involved with computers in one shape or another since the late 60's, mainly tape controlled machine tools and then on to full CNC as we know it today. After playing with BBC's and Dragons etc. for a while, I had my first 'proper' PC in 1982 (a 5150) thanks to a friend of mine who worked for IBM, so and on and so forth until now. Personally, as a man of increasing age who forgets stuff, I find the internet (in my neck of the woods colloquially 't'interweb') an amazing source of information at my fingertips. For example: Google what is "alma mater"? As a Brit I didn't know but I do now, I didn't have to ask anybody I found out myself:)

I tend to look at the internet as a tool to be used as and when you need it like a tyre wrench or a truss rod spanner;)

t'interweb rools!
 
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Being on the internet too much is like sitting on the toilet all day: It'll eventually make your butt hurt.
 
The Internet is what we make it, no more, no less. There are tons of people contributing in astonishing, meaningful ways.

And there are just as many, if not more, that contribute nothing but grief and detract from the accomplishments of the above.

Current peeves:
morons - it's hard to have a meaningful conversation with the dim.
spam - keeps me pretty busy, especially each morning.
trolls - I mean, really. Can't you just . . . let . . . . . . . . it . . . . . . . . . go?
 
rugerpc said:
The Internet is what we make it, no more, no less.
Click to expand...

"O Mighty and Exalted One! We have news from planet Earth!"

"Yes, what is it? You've taken years to travel back here from your voyage to that unsophisticated planet that even the great gods have forsaken."

"They have invented a thing called Internet, and have a trove of the Universe's finest porn."

"Naked humans do not interest me. Their bodies are bloated, they aren't gray-skinned with gigantic eyes like we are. It's completely disgusting to see a human at all, let alone a naked one. I know; I served in our expeditionary forces when we were still flying disc-shaped machines, and sat in on a few medical probing experiments."

"But Mighty and Exalted One, I don't mean that kind of porn. I mean their guitar porn! They have a site called The PRS Forum that unofficially requires all NGDs and NADs to be accompanied by photographs of the tastiest gear! You are going to be astounded by these PRS guitars! And Mighty and Exalted One, we have brought one back for you from all these parsecs and light years away, to own and play!"

"Let me see it, Grand Admiral Lesteban."

"Here it is, O Mighty and Exalted One." [opens guitar case to gasps from assembled courtiers from all over the galaxy]

"This...[looks it over, strums the guitar] why, everyone in the universe would recognize this! It is The Hammer Of The Gods! You have brought our royal Hammer! This is magic. You have done well, Grand Admiral. What else have you brought back from this Internet?"

"Nothing really, the rest of the Internet kind of sucks. I ordered a few tools and some articles of clothing, met some females of their species, picked up a few songs, there's a band called Partybaby I like, and I learned how to fix a toilet."

"Hmm...I've always wondered how to do that, but of course now I have peeps who do that for me."
 
Internet or no you still get people asking stupid questions on websites, bulletin boards and social media when they can just as easily do their own research and get the answer straight away without having to wait for someone to do it for them and reply. There's a woman in work who constantly asks "where is so and so" (looking for a town) and "what's so and so" and I just shout "GOOGLE!!" and I get derided for it but why should I do the research? It's just plain lazy IMO.
 
LSchefman said:
I was a knowledgeable and sophisticated guy who got a postgraduate doctorate, had a profession, and traveled the world long before the internet existed. I knew how to do research in a library and didn't need Wikipedia.

I can't say the internet has made my life better.

I can say it has given me a somewhat viable alternative to television. ;)
Click to expand...
But searching on your phone saves gas/time driving to the library! Plus you don't need to deal with real people, who are mostly a$$holes - then you get into a physical altercation and end up in jail! So you're saving gas AND staying outta jail...I don't know Les, internet seems like a win/win to me.;):D
 
LSchefman said:
But is there anything you can do on the internet that you simply could not accomplish before?
Click to expand...
Yes loads. I have my own website and domain (not used for much these days) where I can store my digital imagery. I can shop, buy and sell without raising my fat backside out of the chair. Also, I have free unlimited communication with my friends and family abroad. Plus, I've learned much much more musically because of the internet than I ever could have buying sheet music like I used to back in the dark ages.

The FAX is dead, long live the internet.
 
Seems to me that disliking the "internet" because you don't like the content is like disliking libraries because they house some stinky books.

The internet is a global connection of individual computer networks that communicate using a particular standard. I'm guessing that what most people complain about isn't really the internet.

It's probably the World Wide Web, and the associated ease with which information can be stored and retrieved using browsers that people complain about...mainly because it gives the riff-raff a way to be heard in ways that they couldn't before.
 
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Mixstar said:
Yes loads. I have my own website and domain (not used for much these days) where I can store my digital imagery. I can shop, buy and sell without raising my fat backside out of the chair. Also, I have free unlimited communication with my friends and family abroad. Plus, I've learned much much more musically because of the internet than I ever could have buying sheet music like I used to back in the dark ages.

The FAX is dead, long live the internet.
Click to expand...

As I said, that's just convenience and speed stuff. You could have photo albums before, they were just physical, or you could have them on a computer, You could shop, buy and sell before. You could order from stores that delivered or shipped without raising your backside from a chair, as you say.
 
aristotle said:
Seems to me that disliking the "internet" because you don't like the content is like disliking libraries because they house some stinky books..
Click to expand...

Actually, you can probably tell by the title "kind of sucks" that this thread is partly tongue in cheek.

Libraries are at least curated collections. The internet is the wild West. That's not all bad, and it's not all good. So I said, "kind of sucks."
 
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