It is really hard to believe how much time I spend on my laptop and how much I depend on my laptop. Today, for example, I’ve used my laptop non-stop since the moment I woke up. I have probably used at least 8 hours of today working on my laptop.
There are so many reasons why I use my laptop. I use it for school. The main form of communication between Guelph-Humber and myself is through my laptop and the internet. To select our classes, pay tuition, hand in assignments, receive additional information from lectures, get news, obtain my class schedule, get my grades, obtain important forms and documents, etc. Our whole university career depends on the fact that everyone has access to a computer.
I use my laptop for work. I communicate with co-workers, prepare schedules, design ads, prepare work plans, organize meetings, etc. Companies today would not be able to succeed without the help of a computer.
I also use my laptop for leisure. On this one machine, I can listen to music, watch television, watch movies, play video games, communicate with friends, organize and edit photos, etc.
The list of what you can do on a laptop is endless and new innovations everyday continue to expand this list. I have become so attached to my laptop that I feel like something is missing when I do not have it. Everyday before I go to school, I wake up and pack my laptop in my bag. The days that I forget my laptop I feel like I have lost something and therefore, I can’t get anything done. Do I really rely on my laptop that much?
Marshall McLuhan states that “technology is an extension of our own bodies” (www.columbia.edu). For example, a knife is an extension of a hand. Therefore, my laptop is an extension of my brain. We remain dependent on these technologies and therefore we rely on them to live our everyday lives.
Computers are a huge part of today’s culture. If I asked someone a few years ago, “Do you have an e-mail?” or “Did you see that video on Youtube?” or “Add me on Facebook”, you would have no idea what I was talking about. However, today 76% of the American population own a computer. All of these people would easily understand what I was saying.
My laptop is a huge part of my life and clearly I rely on it to function everyday. I would not be able to accomplish the tasks that are involved in my school or workplace without it. If I rely on this technology so much then all I can say is, thank God I have a battery for it if the power goes out!
Work Cited
The Playboy Interview. March 1969. Columbia University. 6 Oct. 2008.
[http://www.columbia.edu/~log2/mediablogs/McLuhanPBinterview.htm]
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