Right now I am attempting to detox or strictly limit online activity by disconnecting my Internet for 2 whole months. I have downloaded what I could to pad the time and have gotten around more to do things I kept putting off.
So far, what I am not liking about it, is that the only way I have internet now is mobile since my phone has a plan. I. hate. the. mobile. experience. There is a reason I have always treated all of my phones as just communication devices as meant to be and not just for browsing.
The keyboard interface sucks, keys are too close which are prone for you to make many typing mistakes unless you have autocorrect. And we all know how autocorrect can be. Sometimes things will randomly zip you away from what you are doing like, in the middle of making this, something made my browser get yanked down and I was on the home screen.
Most if not all UIs for websites are shit in mobile. If things act up, welp! You are in for a world of frustration! Being on mobile is really like you are going down a narrow corridor, just trying to get to places and do things. But for every few paces, you have a series of booby traps to deal with and they all fuck you up and leave you pissed off as you try resuming. It’s a fucking trap in of itself.
The plus side of no net? Keeps the social media noise down.
I miss when things were slower.
Want to know about the Hittites? That’s a trip to the library – encyclopedia volume H. While you’re out, maybe your bud tried to call. Best check the answering machine when you get home. Lost? Better pull out that atlas from the car door. Don’t mind the mysterious stain.
Having lived it, I understand the urge. We’re not built for this.
I still use paper atlases. I see no reason to change.
Instant 4k streaming without taking up any permanent local space is neat.
Having time to read? Also neat.
What sucks about having no internet? Everything.
What is great about it? Nothing, it sucks.
The internet is on par with all utilities. It is required for existence.
Every time I’m at home without Internet I think “whatever, I’ll just read something or work on some project” and then immediately realise that I have to look up something and I would need Internet for that…
I usually leave my phone at home when I go out. If I have it with me, everything but the phone ringtone is in silent mode. So unless I get a call I’m not notified on anything. I’ll look for message etc whenever I feel like it.
Nothing sucks. Sure, modern life seems to be build around them, but there often is another way. We managed many many decades without them.
It’s great living your day just here and now with whatever surrounds you at the moment.
The keyboard interface sucks
I’m not sure if you’re going to see this if you’re avoiding social media for two months, but…while I don’t personally see much gain from using a phone rather than a PC for Internet access for two months, if it’s enough of a pain and it doesn’t violate whatever rules you’re setting for yourself, you can connect a keyboard. There are a bunch of Bluetooth keyboards aimed at Android devices, some of which fold and are themselves phone-sized for portability.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=folding+keyboard
You can also get USB-C hubs with pass-through charging, stuff like this that will give you some USB-A ports to plug wired keyboards into, if you’re using the phone at a desk.
Android won’t show the on-screen keyboard if you have a connected physical keyboard, so you also get a lot more screen space while doing text entry.
Most if not all UIs for websites are shit in mobile.
Firefox (and probably other browsers, but I use Firefox) can request the desktop version of websites. Tap the menu button in the lower-right, and then choose “Desktop site”.
Now, the desktop site may not work well on a small screen either, but you will have access to it.
