Wed - November 5, 2003

Don't get me wrong; I'm no Unabomber want-to-be. My inner geek covets a shiny new toy to complement my three computers, two PDAs, and more cell phones than I have working numbers for. In this case, my nerdiness is simply battling an instinct for self-preservation. Because I've seen how Blackberries can destroy the human mind.

I'll bet you've seen it too. I'll be you've experienced first-hand how the remarkable technologies that can seamlessly connect us all through email, instant messaging, and voice over IP also seem to foster an addiction to constant stimulation that closely resembles a gambling habit.

When was the last time you chatted one-on-one with a colleague at work where they weren't reflexively checking their email, answering instant messages, or otherwise performing a half dozen other tasks while supposedly conversing with you? For that matter, when was the last time—before they became commonplace—that you wished that your cell phone came loaded with video games and a digital camera? Did you dream of phoning and driving all at once, and did you expect to combine the two so often?

My working life swims in a digital sea of pop up windows, each demanding immediate attention. Although I would love a device that could unify these communications in one place, I'm afraid that the promise of gaining greater control over my life through the Blackberry would merely mask a higher truth: That instead of granting me power, the device would take it; that instead of gaining efficiencies, I would become a chronic multitasker with the attention span of a gnat.

That's too great a price to pay for a shiny new toy.