Getting older does have a few benefits. One of them, if you are fortunate enough to embrace the concept, is a degree of self awareness and the ability to be honest with yourself. Over the years I have tried to adjust my technological habits but ultimately I am a creature of habit. My use of technology and consumption of content has been determined by the decades I grew up in. Therefore, I am a PC user and prefer to sit in my office where I write, play games and peruse the internet. I have my desk set up in a way that suits my needs and I can go about my business in comfort. When away from my office, I rely heavily on my phone as an alternative platform. In some instances phone based apps offer a superior experience to the desktop or browser based PC alternatives. Banking being one example. For better or for worse this is how I do things and I am comfortable with these choices.

In my lifetime technology has always been promoted as something that improves our lives, especially at a domestic level. The VCR in the eighties is a prime example of this. It liberated us from having to watch TV at a specific time and place. Then there the personal computer, which brought into our own homes tools, that until that point, had been exclusive to the office. And for all the ill that it brings, the internet has certainly made the world demonstrably smaller. It’s revolutionised shopping and has improved the administration of services. So overall, I still feel that technology is a force for good. However there have been changes. In recent years technology on a domestic level has ceased to be quite as transformative and become more of a disposable commodity. Tech is now a fashion accessory, with a distinct lifecycle and upgrade treadmill. It is fast becoming just another form of superfluous crap to fill your home with.

My relationship with technology has changed over the years and my enthusiasm has tempered greatly. Having worked in the IT field for 25 years (up until 2016), I have been immersed in technological advancement and due to my age have seen a great deal change. I was at one time an early adopter of anything I considered to be potentially beneficial to me and at times have been guilty of acquiring something “new and shiny” simply for its own sake. I have even flirted with that dubious notion of tech as a fashion accessory. But sometimes age does bring wisdom, so nowadays, I’m a firm believer in finding the sweet spot between “the right tool for the job” and “if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it”. Subsequently, 2018 has not seem me acquire a great deal of new technology. However, what I have bought this year or started using has been well received and useful.