Are you a high tech or low tech person? Do you enjoy all the bells and whistles of modern technology—or does it make you run for the hills?
Mary Jo here: Because the Word Wench site is transitioning to a new platform and there has been much flailing and some howling behind the scenes, tech has been much on Wenchly minds so this seemed like a good time to talk about it.
Technology, specifically the personal computer, literally changed my life. I bought a Leading Edge, an early PC, to do copywriting and billing for my small freelance design business. The Mayhem Consultant showed me how to use word processing–and very shortly after I realized that here was a great tool for writing down the stories in my head because when you fix the typos, they stay fixed!!! Three months later I was offered a contract for Signet Regencies and the rest is history.
Clearly I owe tech a lot, but that said, I’m a tech minimalist. I love communicating with friends all over the world, my desk top
computer is set up just the way I like it and I must admit that I like my iPhone for various reasons, including the ability to take quick pictures, such as this one of Riley the Wrecker and do of his Egyptian pals.
But I loathe upgrades, which usually make things worse, not better. I have to be dragged, hissing and snapping, into new tech. I have software that is a couple of decades out of date because I don’t want to waste time and brain space learning something new that I’ll probably like less. Put me on the island with the Tech Dinos!