If you could flip this switch would you?

[CloudsInMyFrap]

If you could flip a switch and everything in the world was the same except the internet didn’t exist, would you?

Don’t bother saying “my job wouldn’t exist then so blablabla” - you’d obviously have a different job.

So. No email. No smartphones, just mobile phones. No google, no Wikipedia, everything done by telephone and post and catalogue.

I think I would! Can’t even justify it, but I feel I would welcome a simpler way of living.

Yes, because the internet is ruining children and men (and mostly leaving the women to pick up the pieces and suffer the consequences)!

God alone knows where we'll be in another decade's time...

Yes!

No, think of the cold war days, satellite imagery being days behind, ect various industries affected, then their is satellites in space ect, bottom line for better or worse, the world needs technological advances.

No, I like the web. My Mum was housebound and only had the tv and the newspaper, in the late 90's, she'd have loved to have a laptop for internet shopping and email etc.

I would. I'm in 20s so I never lived adult life without it. Obviously I've seen it grow loads and was probably the first generation to use social media; myspace, bebo, early Facebook etc.
While the Internet can be good for many things I'd love to experience not having it and am a little jealous of those who lived that way before!!! As a comprise I think perhaps we should keep the Internet but just get rid of social media, as I think that's where the toxicity lies (and yes I am aware mumsnet is social media!!!)

No. It's a huge leveller - everyone with internet access can get their hands on resources that were once reserved for the rich and well connected, regardless of their health or wealth.

Yes it has enabled some terrible things, but it has also connected many groups that would never have met in real life and massively improved their lives, whether it's bringing together people with an illness, a disability, or a craft that they help each other with.

Technology is just a tool - people are the same as they ever were. Socrates also complained about 'the youth' and moral decline.

I wouldn't want to get rid of the internet. I love being able to look anything up at the touch of a button, the wealth of information and knowledge out there is brilliant. But I would get rid of social media if I could.

But how could I watch TikToks of Bucky Barnes in Falcon and the Winter Soldier?!?

I am also very ancient and lived in the time before t'internet was everywhere. Got my first computer at 24 (it was HUGE - took up the entire desk and the monitor took 2 people to lift!) and it changed my life. I ended up with friends from all over the UK that I met up with in real life and for a fairly sheltered nerd this was massive.

Now I am old and decrepit, I absolutely wish there were things we could block from the internet as other PPs have listed, but weighed up against the freedom of having information to hand, of being able to connect with people you wouldn't ordinarily meet, of having your mind expanded - nope, I wouldn't flip the switch.

Also Netflix 😏

Oh, 1 million per cent!

I’m a teacher and this ‘iPad generation’ coming through the schools now, in line with where the internet came out and then became really accessible and child-friendly, just so happens to be the exact line of where children suddenly have zero respect for adults, they are unable to be bored for even a second and demand things at the drop of a hat. There are an unprecedented number of teachers running for the hills and I am one of them. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve been assaulted at work.

I now have a child of my own and the way that it’s completely normalised to have your baby watching tv or things on the iPad just blows my mind 🤷🏼‍♀️ Of course, I’m not going to put a sheet over the tv it it’s on so he can’t see it but it’s just fully expected that you’ll be raising your child the same way as everyone else. It even boils my blood when I see the big padded children’s iPad cases. When I was at uni I studied child development and having access to any screens before age 3 literally alters the structure of a child’s brain causing, essentially, brain damage to an extent. I don’t even think most adults are aware of this because a) they’re so addicted to the internet themselves, they just see it as ‘normal’ and b) it’s more hassle not to use the live-in babysitting service of an iPad.

My friend had her newborn watching baby tv the other day like it was somehow an essential for her. My other friend was then asking if my little boy likes watching Peppa Pig on tv. He’s 8 months old, no he doesn’t like watching Peppa Pig, he’s a baby who likes baby toys ffs 🙈 It’s just become such an integral part of society, children NEVER go for dinner now and sit quietly colouring in. I don’t even think restaurants bother making the colouring in sheets now. I remember thinking I was sooo lucky if I got that while out for dinner and if I finished it, guess what, I’d sit quietly and be bored while my mum and dad ate. I didn’t ‘need’ an iPad.

Sorry, a yes/no answer was all you were looking for I’m sure but I just feel like we’re on a downward spiral now with it all 🙈

Absolutely no , and I was around before we had smartphones etc , cannot fathom why anyone would want to move backwards .

Maybe, but I would flip the switch on mobile phones too if I was going to do it. It's more to do with the home not being a sanctuary from outside influences for me. If pcs, mobiles etc weren't at home and on 24/7 I don't think the problems with the technology would be such an issue. Going to the library to do the Internet stuff, the same way we went to research with books could still be great. Just don't need to have all this connection at home all the time. To me it seems that car phones were the beginning of the end and sms was the first nail in the coffin.

I say this as someone that has always used the Internet and loved it. However, I realise how much gaming took from me and how much more I do now I don't game. I miss gaming and the satisfaction it brings but it doesn't really bring anything tangible and brings a lot of stress sometimes. Same with social media, even though I'm less drawn to that rabbit hole.

No. I was am adult pre Internet but I prefer life with it. I can find information at the touch of a button, no more scouring through books. Although for my interests I did and still do enjoy my books its just easier if I need the answer sooner. I like social media in a way that I can keep upto date with family and friends that I didn't have before. I have actually made life long friends via Facebook. My best friend and I met on a housekeeping page and our young teens have grown up together and even though we live a few hours away we meet up regularly. Yes there's downsides, I've been sucked in to the Instagram lifestyle and felt rubbish when I wasn't living upto what I thought was normal. Didn't take me long to adjust my thinking. Anyway I'm happy to keep it x

Yes 100%

Absolutely not! I've found long lost relatives, enjoyed finding special music, and films, and learned a lot of things I wouldn't have known about otherwise. Keepsies for me, please!

Yes.

I would have to say no.

My 14 year old son has severe autism and is non-verbal,one of his main forms of communication is through a speech app on his iPad.
Without this I don’t think his communication skills would be anywhere near where they are now

without the internet I wouldn’t access to basic things like toothpaste that is allergen free.. I wouldn’t be able to connect with other people with my medical condition. I wouldn’t be able to get things delivered, keeping me out of shops where I am likely to have an allergic reaction. My life that seems somewhat difficult now would be almost impossible. The internet is my lifeline.

The internet opened up a whole world to people with some disabilities. Admittedly It did complicate things for people with other disabilities, but well designed sites help mitigate those issues.

Yes!! Where is the switch?!! I'm in my 30s, I loved the simplicity of life before Internet

Yes, I would flip that switch.

My retired husband spends nearly all of his free hours on Facebook, or other social media. That is when we are not watching the TV, which we do for about a maximum of about 3 hours a day - unless his particular favourite sport is on. If it is he will spend about an extra 5 hours over a weekend watching the TV, then back to sitting with his head buried into his phone...

Many times a day he doesn't hear me if I say something to him, or if I have something like a nasty coughing fit he often just ignores it. He does have some very good points, but day to day life is pretty miserable. Sorry but I can't explain why I don't go out on my own, or do my own thing, as it would be too outing.

But if you ever find that switch OP, please tell me where it is!

I'm a heartbeat, 100% yes and I really wish we could.

Nope, I love the internet.

I talk very frequently with my 92 year old great aunt who lives in New York. We would have normally spent time together a couple of times a year and I've been desperately worried about her over the various lockdowns.

I also talk to other relatives far more frequently than I would pre-social media days. I love hearing about the everyday life of my extended family, whether it is cat pics,pregnancy updates or wordle grids.

I used ancestry to track down biological relatives and solve an adoption mystery. I've been able to connect with several members of my bio family.

The negatives are that I have become more hermit like since I don't need to physically socialise as much. I am autistic and have always struggled with social anxiety but I need to widen my horizons again.

I would ban parents/ carers from scrolling their phones when they are meant to be paying attention to their kids. In a cafe I saw a mum sitting engrossed in her phone while her 6 year old sat patiently in silence.

On another cafe trip the brothers (about 10 or 11) were both on tablets, mindlesly eating what was put in front of them and not interacting with each other, their gran or the environment.

The Internet has been around since 1983, and in active, general use since the early to mid 1990s.

If you are in your 30s, you really don't remember a time before the Internet!

Yes. It obviously has it’s good points but it can be so addictive and a massive time waster.