I am young professional and I have been graduated from EMU since August 2008. I have never really cared about having a laptop I have a desk top and I was happy. Until Startup Weekend Detroit I never realized just how important two things can be. A laptop or netbook are essential to business today.
I am hard core note taker with a notebook and I am rethinking my paper calander for organization. With out Internet service you can not research and it is even harder to create a social marketing platform.
I am active in the social space and I believe in creating opportunities but with out technology you can not participate and this makes life complicated. My team leader, even though I was frustrated, still considered me part of the team. I was kind of shocked but he let me participate.
With out a smart phone like an iphone I can not even help my friend Henry Balanon by purchasing his Iphone applications like the Toastmasters Timer for speeches! I never realized just how important an Iphone can be. With out a laptop I could have participated by using an Iphone.
Over the years, I have never been much on the technology side. Last year was the first time I burned a CD. Through networking, I now believe you can not truly participate unless you have the tools to allow you to excel. The problem is the cost.
I do not have the money to obtain these things right now. I am young in my career and I am working part time jobs that play minimum wage which often conflicts with networking times.
I am an optimist and I believe things will. I am not buying into what the so called experts are saying. I believe in creating your own life and only you can make changes. I am hoping change comes soon.
Its funny, I don’t own an iPhone or Blackberry, because I know just how connected I am now and how connected I would become if I did own that piece of equipment. That being said, there is a fine line between need and want with these things and it is becomming increasingly evident that we need to be connected.
Wonder if the divide is truly invisible.
If you do not own either one… Then you are in trouble and you can not communicate or get work done. If I had an Iphone then I could have still researched and updated Web pages.
So an investment in a smart phone or a netbook would have made it able to work. I could not be a strong contributor with out access to the Internet.
The Divide is there because with out either device you can not contribute as much as you could if you had one or both devices.
Check out Dell’s Mini-9 and Mini-12 netbooks. They’re pretty inexpensive and even their basic setups should be enough for what you need. Dell offers their own financing as well and you’d be surprised who they will approve.
If I didn’t have my laptop I wouldn’t be able to do any of the jobs I have (3 currently). The only drawback is that I went and bought a monster of a laptop with a 17″ screen. The thing weighs a ton! Luckily I don’t have to carry it around much but it does go everywhere I go and its necessary for the graphic work that I enjoy doing so much.
I’m looking at getting a smartphone this summer to enhance my Twittering and social media participation but luckily one of the companies I work for has offered assistance with that. Until then I think I’m doing well with my lappy and I’m looking at those Mini-9 & 12s more and more for events like First Fridays at TechTown…but I suspect the smartphone would cover what I need there.