Would you vote to switch off the WWW?

[HenaLorne]

Just a lighthearted thread based on a dream I had..

..but if there was a worldwide referendum where everyone was polled if they wanted the internet and all IP technology/WiFi permanently switched off/destroyed forever which way would you vote?

Perhaps in my naivety I have this idea that it would drive people back to interacting more and lead to less social isolation. Nothing would have to be pre-booked online. Libraries would be more important. No more young children watching endless YouTube.

Of course it would slow down useful collaboration in many areas and limit communication in other ways.

It's a mad though but ..
would you vote ON or OFF?

50s? Really?

Sorry, I was born in the 60s and had a very good early life (up to 1990 when we got our first computer) coping perfectly well without the www.

It was different, sure but certainly not 1950s!!

@HenaLorne my daughter likes KFC.
To go and collect one would involve a 10 - 15 minute bus ride there and the same back.
Plus waiting for bus time. So it could be half an hour before we get home.
The motorbike delivery folks deliver it in about 5 minutes. I order online so you don't get mistakes like you do when if you have to phone (staff member miss hearing for example).
Yes my daughter could survive without KFC.
But she likes it and the online ordering system is incredibly convenient.

That's a tough question, I would welcome a slower pace to life and the end of the expectation to be on alert 24hrs a day. However, the global systems (shipping, global trade, energy production, transportation etc) which are now supported by the internet wouldn't be able to function in the same way and we wouldn't be able to sustain life as it is now. The reality of this would likely mean shortages and suffering of basic resources for many people, regression in development for many countries and subsequently much higher death rates. Ultimately, this would be fantastic for the environment but it would be hideous to live through.

On but I wouldn’t mind a set hour when it was off.

It's a forum. They existed before SM like FB

On. I'd never find my way anywhere without Google maps and I keep in touch with my friends through email and instagram.

100% on.

I wonder how many of the people saying "off" work from home or live rurally, or run businesses that depend on the internet to survive and pay the bills.

On, I’d lose my job without it, I self taught for that job using completely online resources, I live rurally and I have disability that means I struggle a lot in person, so socially, banking and entertainment wise it’s a lifeline, I’d be genuinely destroyed without it

If it was off then me and others I care about would find purchasing certain items difficult/expensive/impossible. It would mean the need for more physical travel, which isn't really possible. Unless they made Ubers totally free. Oh, sorry not Ubers. We'd need a minicab...
So I think I'd keep it on.
If me and my family were not disabled in any way and never would become so, then I'd say I'd switch it off though. I do think a lot of social interaction irl would improve if it disappeared.

I do think life was easier not having to remember passwords, reset stuff, wire things up, use apps etc.

But then I recall having to go into town to pay bills, and spending so much time waiting around for people and things.

My MIL has finally conceded to telephone banking. At Christmas she rang them with the sort codes and account numbers of 11 people she wanted to send spends to. Took an hour. What the young call centre lad must have thought is anyone’s guess.

I think I just wish it had never happened.

ON mainly because of the original design and intended use of the internet

On. I have a disability and it allows me to work, order groceries etc. Met my boyfriend and some of my closest friends online. It wouldn't make me interact more - I am introverted and anti social.

On. I couldn’t do my job without it. And I like my work.

On.

How else would I be able to tell random women they are being unreasonable? Shout through their letterbox? Not with these knees!

Off because I think it is destroying people.
There is more bad than good that comes from access to the internet.

Things I'd be happy to kiss goodbye to:

Instagram influencers and bloggers.
Online gambling.
Self-service tills in supermarkets.
Teenagers walking through the streets not looking where they are going or interacting with the other teenagers they are actually with, but communicating only via a thing in their hand.
Spam emails at work.
The instant availability of unsavoury content online.
Fugly cars that all look the same because they've been designed by a computer.

Things I'd be less happy to welcome back:

Having to print out every single document at work, which would use enormous quantities of paper.
No debit cards where you just wave the thing at the machine to pay.
The lack of real-time information on natural disasters and extreme weather events.

Things I'd be delighted to see back:

Banks having to re-open their branches and offer a counter service.
Not being forced by GPs, councils and whoever else to use only their online system, because it wouldn't exist.
More jobs for people in customer service roles, who were actually able to do their job and take decisions without having to run it past their computer system first.
Proper tickets to events that you could save as a memento of the occasion.
A total lack of inconsiderate arseholes using their phones in the theatre during performances.
Children being taught using pen, paper and books again.
Bonanza time for stamp collectors.

Get rid of social media. Keep the rest. In a heartbeat.

Off.
To be fair I can't imagine life without it now but seeing its effects on children and especially (just my view) on the health of ND children, I just think it's massively dangerous. I got through life without it til my mid 20s and none of us keeled over from the lack of it, too!

On

But with restrictions
Social media would be in the bin for a start.

On. I wouldn’t have a job without it

It would be sad not to be able to FaceTime our family on the other side of the world. Or send photos. Internet has made it possible to keep in contact and have some sort of relationship with grandparents etc.

How'd yoi figure the 50s? Surely 80s or 90s?

Mine (accounts) would be much, MUCH busier without!

Mumsnet would take a lot longer by post

On.

There is a lot of bad stuff but there is an equal amount of good stuff.

Google maps for example. I find that very useful to route plan to places unfamiliar. I like that I can easily share and store photos. I like that I can find things out easily when I need to and I like the social element. Two of my best friends were made in the early days of the internet when I joined a forum around an authors books and has lead to trips abroad to stay with them. I like being able to do online supermarket delivery.

The bad stuff - it is at a point where you aren't always sure what is true or false because of the way information and images can be manipulated. It has contributed to the decay of the high street shops and physical cash and banking. It is distracting and stops interaction with people you are present with. You are always contactable.