Sherry Levine- Fantasy, Reality, and Addiction

In what ways has building and communicating through online profiles changed you personally?

Do you think that online communities and role play have helped us more (in terms of self reflection and growing) or hurt us more (in terms of addiction to fantasy and disconnect from reality)?

My experience with online profiles and internet communication and roleplay devices over the past few years have been significant. The experimentation the internet offers has really allowed me to learn more about myself and meet like minded people. I eventually met these people and maintain real world in person relationships alongside our internet communication. I think ultimately this is the benefit Sherry wanted to see happen with the internet. I think that some of the issues she warned about with MPD and the reality disconnect really manifested themselves as the internet became mainstream and we started to casually forgo in person communication even more for devices.

From what I gather from her many interviews she seems to be more about warning the harm that our connected selves is causing to society, culture, introspection, communication, and concepts of reality and privacy. She really has put emphasis on the issue of privacy, which like communication, has radically changed especially in recent years. We volunteer much more information to everyone than ever before, but even worse is the loads more specific data gathered without (or at least ignorant of) our knowledge. She said 'facebook is not free, we pay for it by volunteering our privacy' With the creation of face book connect and other applications that continue to integrate the internet into one insular circle. A lot of the creative expression and opportunity that comes with anonymity will disappear, and more importantly it will become more and more natural for us to communicate everything we do (online and off) to everyone we know. Sherry warns now we are losing two very important aspects of our humanity, the intimacy of privacy and in person communication.

As far as this question goes, I would say for all the opportunities the internet has presented in networking, we have lost quite a bit in serious human relationships. I personally know I take it too far, I communicate and meet with people primarily online, with the exception of my fellow students I've primarily reserved contact with friends in person to the weekend only. When Sherry talks about taking a step back and re-evaluating what the machines are for before we get too sucked in, it is all to relevant to geek culture. We have seen time and time again that geek culture in usually the predecessor to mainstream, and this very issue of further disconnectedness is spreading to regular people. I think she wants us to view all the new communication technology as a means to an end, instead of the end to a means.