Phew
Mon 7 May 2007, 4:35 pm
So according to the Pew Internets Quiz, I’m a “Connector.” Whatever. Walt Crawford is a “Lackluster Veteran,” and the more I think about that, the funnier it gets. Give me one word to describe Walt, and I would chose “lustrous.” True. (Though I guess it is Michael Porter showing the most “lust” in this photo. But I digress.)
I don’t have much to say about this (cf. “Whatever” above), except I did find question number nine interesting:
How much, if at all, have these communication and information devices improved…
A. The way you pursue your hobbies or interests
B. Your ability to do your job
C. Your ability to learn new things
D. Your ability to keep in touch with friends and family
E. Your ability to share your ideas and creations with others
F. Your ability to work with others in your community or in groups you belong to
“Improved?” I have to ask “compared to what?” I have never done my job without a computer (in fact, I seriously wonder how librarians spent their days before they had the internets on the desktop). I have been “learning new things” with the help of computers for many years. For D, E, and F I can sort of imagine what life would be like without email, etc. but I have had email more or less continuously since 1989, so, again, it’s hard to say.

Ah, that’s the advantage we grizzled–er–lackluster veterans have. I have done *a* job without a computer (not my current job, to be sure). In fact, my first automated system didn’t involve anything you’d recognize as a computer… So yes, I’m deeply appreciative of what these things can do–but apparently not enough so to please the Pew folk.
Comment by walt crawford — May 7, 2007 @ 4:59 pm
[...] has a quick quiz to help you figure out where you fit in with other Internet users. Thanks Steve for pointing it out for [...]
Pingback by What I Learned Today… » Blog Archive » Where do you fit? — May 7, 2007 @ 6:22 pm
Huh. I just took the quiz and ended up “omnivore” even though I would have put myself several layers below that just looking at the chart. I kinda don’t want to be an “omnivore”… It feels somehow… borg-ish or pampered (not that those two things are even remotely similar). I don’t actually have a lot of gadgets, and I don’t really want them.
But if they can call Walt “Lackluster,” then I guess they can call me an omnivore. Clearly something’s wonky with their categories. (Note my reasoning style: I don’t like the answer – therefore their categories are wrong. It works every time.)
Comment by Iris — May 7, 2007 @ 7:12 pm
Geez, I just realized I missed a great cross-meme opportunity to title this post “Everyone is Miscellaneous.”
I am slightly curious (though not curious enough to go back and try and game the quiz) as to what would tip me over from “Connector” to “1337 0mniv0r3″ status. Was it just my lack of MP3 player? (Both my iPods are broken, and I won’t get fooled again there.) Lack of text messaging? Because going by “attitude” questions alone, I was pretty gung-ho on the tech. And I speak 1337.
Comment by Steve Lawson — May 7, 2007 @ 8:37 pm
Now that’s a good question, Steve, because I don’t own an MP3 player, but according to the quiz, I’m a Technology Velociraptor Omnivore. Maybe there’s one degree of difference between Connector you and Omnivore me.
Comment by joshua m. neff — May 7, 2007 @ 9:49 pm
(Here’s an interesting thing: in the comment’s Live Preview, the tag for strikethrough works, but when I actually submitted the comment, the tag didn’t do anything. In the previous comment, “Velociraptor” is meant to be struck out. Oh, well.)
Comment by joshua m. neff — May 7, 2007 @ 9:51 pm
I like “Technology Velociraptor Omnivore” better anyway.
Funny thing about the allowed XHTML elements: I’m shooting for “strict,” which wouldn’t allow
<strike> <b>or<i>anyway. But it isn’t obvious to me how to change that stuff.Comment by Steve Lawson — May 7, 2007 @ 10:21 pm
If you aren’t allowing those tags, then you should take them out of the “You can use these tags” section of your comment box, methinks.
Comment by Iris — May 8, 2007 @ 7:30 am
Iris, that’s part of what isn’t obvious to me how to change. :(
I’m pretty sure I need to modify wp-includes/kses.php, but I’m not sure exactly what to do. If anyone out there knows, please throw me a bone.
Comment by Steve Lawson — May 8, 2007 @ 10:02 am
<del> should give you a strikeout effect. Let’s see if it works!
Comment by Dorothea Salo — May 8, 2007 @ 12:19 pm
Nope. No luck. Oh, well.
Comment by Dorothea Salo — May 8, 2007 @ 12:20 pm