Downsides to Intrafamily IM? 514
Frisky070802 writes "The NY Times has run a column on how many families now use instant messaging within a household, for instance to ask what someone wants for dinner. This is especially popular as whole houses get wired (or wireless) and computers are scattered throughout the house. This is the case at my house but I tend to be the only one who stays on AIM reliably. Can Slashdotters offer some personal experience, pro/con, with being instantly and constantly accessible to one's spouse and children? Does this tend to break down your 'personal time'?"
this is stupid (Score:5, Funny)
I have a simple paging protocol... (Score:5, Funny)
It usually involves me yelling at the top of my voice. I envy those who have a house so large that my voice does not provide adequate coverage.
My problem (Score:1, Funny)
Okay, this is going to far. (Score:5, Funny)
Step away from the keyboard and nobody gets hurt.
Now go out and interact with people. They're in the same friggin house with you fer chrissakes.
Intrafamily IM (Score:5, Funny)
LittleBro33: cool
OlderSis53137: i dont lik 2 eat im 2 fat
DadInCharge98324: shut it oldersis youl eat wut ur mom telz u 2 eat and like it 2 lol
LittleBro33: lolololol haha u got n trubl
OlderSis53137: shut up il run aimnuke on u
*LittleBro33 has disconnected
HotMamma24242: its not nice to aimnuke ur brothr
DadInCharge98324: ur gonna get a spankin
OlderSis53137: no1 n this famly understands me i h8 u all
HotMamma24242: but i made teriaki chikn
Personal time? (Score:5, Funny)
Good way to stay in touch (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Personal time between spouses (Score:3, Funny)
Not like your keeping her around for her 'fab' shoe collection are you?
Ahhh older technology.... (Score:5, Funny)
The old-fashioned wireless communications method - very nice!
To the newer geeks: The above post is referring to the old wireless technology that utilized a unique QOS priority technique. Messages were encoded using higher and higher DB levels that really worked well - the louder the scream the faster people responded....
I'd rather just use IRC anyway (Score:4, Funny)
Kid: Nope. They're gross.
Dad: (Goes to computer) +b #tvroom
Kid: NOOOOOOOO!!!! BUT DAAAADDDDD!!!!
Re:this is stupid (Score:4, Funny)
Also, as us geeks make money we tend to get bigger houses where yelling between floors isn't as easy as it used to be (at least that's the case at my place) and sometimes the IMs I get are along the lines of
'Come Downstairs and start the grill please'
"Come downstairs and start the grill - i'm hungry'
'When are you going to come downstairs and start the grill'
'If you don't start the grill I'm going to cook the steaks on a broiler!'
She started it, and she's the normal person of the house.
No Family (Score:1, Funny)
I think I'll IM myself to ask myself what I want for dinner.
Re:Intrafamily IM (Score:5, Funny)
OlderSis531357: Hey OffcrDibbl cum rnd n arest my dad, he sez hes gonna sxuly abuse me
OffcrDibble4193: Do you have any evidence of that mam ?
OlderSis531357: Yeah luk at this:
DadInCharge98324: ur gonna get a spankin
OlderSis53137: no1 n this famly understands me i h8 u all
OffcrDibble4193: OK, we'll be right around
Re:beats bellowing down the stairs (Score:5, Funny)
"How's the weather in the living room dear?"
"Just peachy snookums, let's go to www.pizzahut.com for dinner!"
"Great idea pooky... let me just finish up my orders at www.peapod.com and www.netflix.com"
Re:Ahhh older technology.... (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Intrafamily IM (Score:5, Funny)
Loss Of Personal Time (Score:3, Funny)
No more than having a cell phone on your hip when you go to the toilet:
"Hello?! Uh... I'm busy... Doing... stuff. Nevermind that sound, what do you want!!?"
Sheesh, that's the worst.
Re:I have a simple paging protocol... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:this is stupid (Score:5, Funny)
Problem: (Score:3, Funny)
gran1922: okay
kewkid: fuck i thought you were melissa. sorry gran
gran: dont stop...!
Re:beats bellowing down the stairs (Score:2, Funny)
I love IM, and I hate it (Score:5, Funny)
wife> you'll never guess who called
me> can it wait? I'm working here.
wife> oh it'll just take a sec...
wife> blah blah blah
me> *insert random emoticons to make it appear that I am actually paying attention*
wife> ok, so when will you be home?
me> soon, I just got to finish this one last thing...which I will get done as soon as we quit talking.
wife> ok bye
* a couple of minutes pass *
wife> guess what happened on *insert dumb soap opera here*
and so on. Once I put her on my blocked list but she figured that out and really got pissed.
I'm reading this topic with much interest and interested on how other people deal with IM. I like it and hate it at the same time!
-Pat
Get off the keyboard and walk into Junior's room.. (Score:4, Funny)
As if the threat of going blind wasn't enough...
Re:Sometimes this is the only way. (Score:2, Funny)
Wow, your family must live in an enormous house.
Re:Non-Indentured Servitude link (Score:4, Funny)
Well, I for one don't enjoy tossing my information about willy-nilly just to read an article
Psssst...don't tell anyone I told you this, but...you don't have to use your real information.
Re:this is stupid (Score:3, Funny)
"Son, I know you didnt notice me come in but could you jerk off to net porn after i've finished checking my email?"
Re:this is stupid (Score:5, Funny)
'Come Downstairs and start the grill please'
What kind of weird kinky game are you playing that involves a grill at 2AM? : )
Re:Ahhh older technology.... (Score:5, Funny)
I sniffed this very conversation over Christmas time while visiting family ( I removed the destination address for privacy concerns: )
Mother: Dinner time, go wash up.
Sibling in college: blank stare at computer screen
Grandfather: continues watching tv
Mother: DINNER TIME
Sibling in college: blank stare at computer screen
Grandfather: When is dinner?
Mother is forced to use hardware extensions to alert grandfather and sibling through sequential pinging and alerts.
Re:I love IM, and I hate it (Score:5, Funny)
ntalk -o $WIFE | eliza | ntalk -i $WIFE
Parenting in the Digital Age (Score:3, Funny)
True Story
With technology has come a multitude of conveniences, time savers, and capabilities of which our primitive ancestors could never have conceived. Take for example, the instant message. It is instantaneous, travels at the speed of light to its intended recipient, delivering important potentially critical information at the click of a button. It can be sent across the world, around the block, or to the next room.
Toxic waste disposal emergencies such as the one above could have not been addressed with such efficiency before the days of IM. Thank the Lord!
Actually... (Score:4, Funny)
It was called collision avoidance. When your old man was communicating you avoided interrupting him otherwise there would have been a collision between you and him...
star trek! (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Non-Indentured Servitude link (Score:3, Funny)
How about tossing it around pell-mell? Helter-skelter? Higgledy-piggledy?
Re:instant messangers (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Congratulations (Score:3, Funny)
I'd like to thank all the little people who made this possible.
What about bots? (Score:2, Funny)
mom:wow, you really don't eat much for lunch. I'll get it ready
(translation: kid is doing weed with his friends and getting the munchies)
mom: are you ready for dinner?
dad (autoreply): don't bother me for 30 minutes in the bedroom, I've got a videoconference
(reality dad's screwing the babysitter)
Once mom gets her own bot figured out this family will really be f'd up
Re:I love IM, and I hate it (Score:3, Funny)
bash: eliza: command not found