We are
living in a world which has large platforms to connect with large networks.
There is Yahoo! Messenger, Skype, Google Hangout, Facebook Messenger, Twitter,
Blackberry Messenger and not to be missed WhatsApp. Using all this almost makes
one run of things to say but not the desire to talk. A few typical
conversations:
WhatsApp.
He: Hi
Me: Oh hi, nice to hear from you after
a long time – how are you?
He: All good
Me: (silence) How are you? (Question
repeated)
He: Good.
(Last seen at 3:22 PM)
Me: (more silence) ok, Bye.
He: Bye.
Remember it was he who told me hello
first.
Skype. (on an incoming call)
He: Hey, you there?
Me: Yes. What time is it there?
He: 11:30 PM
Me: Oh – it is 7:30 AM here. How come
so late at night?
He: I saw you on line.
Me: Oh oh – emoticon of raised
eyebrows!!!!
He: Ok – I need to go to sleep
Me: Good night
He: Good-day!!!!!
Facebook. (a ping)
He: Hey, are you in Office?
Me: No, I am not.
He: Cool!!!
Me: No, it's Hot!! It's 32 °C – ha ha.
He: Emoticon of Like!. Have fun – bye.
Me: Bye.
Initially I used to get irritated by this banter because of the lack of content
of conversation. But I now realize that there is a pattern here. Our lives are
so open and documented that give out details of what we do, what we eat, where
we are, with whom we are – all unwanted information that we choose to give. We
may speak the truth but not necessarily the whole truth.
The more distributed our lives are, the more diminished is the need for
personal communication. We still seem to reach out, using a variety of
platforms just to say hello, even when we have nothing to say. I call this an
“Always On” syndrome.
The empty ping has now become a thing of the day. In the early days of the cell
phone, when incoming calls were still being charged, a missed call (message
without any content) was a code between friends about where to meet, when to
meet or a message that you are missed. The empty ping is the later avatar of
the missed call – in a world where we are always online but not always
connected; constantly together but spatially and emotionally alone (notice how
2 persons are together but each on their own cell phones).
The missed ping remains the human touch in the digital space that reassures us
that on the other side of that seductive interface and the buzzing gadget, is
somebody we can say hello to.
