Are HiFi and Forums healthy?

I spend far too much time on here. But with my course I am on the computer all the time at home and I have broadband connection so its so easy to get addicted to the forums. I do have a life outside the internet some times. But that exists purely on buses, in pubs and clubs etc. But I study the internet and use it so I am addicted .

Hifi is more of a passion rather than an addiction, and I think most people are probably addicted to music.

 

Obviously you dont have much of an understanding of the IT industry Merlin, it plays a very big role in some peoples jobs.

 

he's obvioulsy just trying to wind us up and get some kind of reaction I'd say...

 

Quite cool about it Mike, I do get out and about a fair bit, Saturday afternoon at Cheltenham races, (in the beggers box), taking my son to castle combe to see the mini racing, last week to the Rca rally, usually freqent a well know ale house in the wolds from time to time the odd spot of cooking, the good lady & I do the pickkys 2 or 3 times a month, plus all those great school involvment days and tinkering with the odd italain rust bucket oh and Omiga audio sometime
I think people make of it what they will, maybe the jobs are mundane or high pressure shite. But I would agree about the solitare thang, a lot of posters are single, maybe it's man thang' you know T.

 

For me it's work first definately,i work a minimum of 10 hours at day vertually non stop and thats only because its winter and it get dark at 6pm a buisness i started at 17 and have managed to keep it going for 17 years on foriegn soil.

So for me to come on the forums and net is to relax,have a giggle at some peoples immaturity,and is the cheapest way to keep in contact with my Puerto Rican friend who lives in the states.

Forums do have thier benefits to learn,and get a more rounded opinion on a product,good or bad instead of being mislead by magazine reviews,but i think also it does its unhealty aspect in that it leads many to become discontent with there kit and have the urge to upgrade and to be never satified.

I guess its not normal to live in front of a screen, when on the planet there is so much to see,learn,appreciate,people to meet different cultures etc,so much more valuable.

 

yea, guess i came across a tad abrupt there:shame:

 

don't worry, I was talking about merlin!

 

Spot on Mr P, I don't. But then I would struggle to understand an industry that employed people who spent hours of company time browsing the net and discussing their hobbies with mates. It doesn't seem right somehow to me!

Tony makes some good points, and I am of the opinion that guys who are in long term relationships or who have family around them, have a certain balance in life. Single guys however who trawl the net and post on forums are however at far greater risk I feel of losing perspective!

 

so merlin what is normal anyway? - give your definition please.

surely talking on an internet forum at work is just a geekyer way of wasting your employers time? look at the 'normal' ways... smoke breaks, gossiping by the coffee machine / water cooler. hanging out in the workshy managers office talkign shite, and many others for the experienced work dodger.

imho normal is balancing obligations against enjoyment. who cares if you are wasting 7 out of 8 hours at work if the tasks you are assigned are getting done in a timely manner and your idleness isn;t effecting others? the problems only start if your shirking is causing work to slip or negatively impacting others , at that point you need to reassess your priorities and sort it out either with less work and less pay or with more effort.

as for an interest in hi-fi being unhealthy i'm sure it compares favourably to any hobby involving trains. i think the real question is are we interested in hi-fi or just interested in arguing about it?

cheers

julian

 

Merlin regarding your comments earlier.

I work in general a 10-11 hour day in a busy and demanding environment. When I get home I like to play music and browse the web (or watch eastenders) or in general do f**k all.

I fail to see how that makes me a social recluse or idle bastard?

I just enjoy using the web (not just forums BTW)

You raised the question, do you feel you have a problem?

with regards top HIFI, I am not a tweaker i just put a CD in and play it.

 

Two parts to that Merlin.
Like i said, i can browse with the aproval of my manager, i know im lucky and i also have to buckle down when needed.
For some people where i work the net is an invaluble tool, but then obviously they are useing it for work and not personal use.

does 7 years count as long term?:MILD:
I have balanced it a lot better than i use to, and what we enjoy the most is a nice meal together, or listening to some music together.
We also get out at least once a week, Fridays are our night out to catch up with mates and general good time. We normally cook food for friends at the weekend aswell, so maybe one day in a weekend we spend together, lazing or DIYing, but we tend to get on and enjoy.
Unfortunately we cant do all that we want, no holiday for the last 5 years. But that is due to looking after a disabled relative and cant be avoided. I feel i have nearly reached a good balance now, but i do understand what you are getting at. For a long time i was engrossed in the net at the expense of my relationship.

I agree that it is different for single guys, im damn sure if i was single i would be out most nights like i did before settling down wit Mrs Penance. I can see that it could lead to a reclusive generation that may well be lacking in social communications skill.

The net is both a very powerful tool and a social killing trap.

 

I probably spend about 3 hours a day on forums or other sites...

That's not exactly healthy I know! But to be honest in the day I am at college doing sound engineering (thou not at the moment 'coz the music-tech course at Dartford college is shit and I'm looking for a better one. Don't go there!), I don't watch T.V, I'm too young to go to the pub and I really don't like clubs because the music is shite and the quality is baaad! So what else am I to do?

Sure I will normally go out to a friends, have some fun with my girlfriend or go to the cinema or something 2 days a week or so, but apart from that I'm at home with my music and the internet! Anyway, I like to have time to myself! Why do you need to be surrounded by other people just so society can tag you healthy?

Another point I would like to make is that on the other end of the scale, allot of the people I know who ALWAYS want to be around people or go out places actually feel that way because they are mentally un-healthy! Being around other people and always having something to do keeps them from thinking about how their life really is, or getting in touch with themselves. When they are on their own in a quiet comfortable place they are forced to concentrate on what their lives are really like and how they feel.

Besides… eating too much fast food, drinking too much, smoking skunk, going to a club and taking E or whatever is far worse health wise than browsing internet too much!!! And you are at least helping other people in some small way.

But you never know perhaps I have everything all backwards!

 

I have ZG permanently on in the background 12 hrs a day when i am at work.

It doesn't affect my job in any way, as i am payed to just sit in a chair, which is hard to get wrong.

When i am not browsing the net, i'll be reading a book, going for a smoke, or listening to my walkman.

I rarely use the PC when i am not at work.

I don't think going to 'work' is healthy.

 

I think you can definitely get "addicted" to net forums and I have spent too much time on them in the past.

Now pretty much the only forum I visit regularly is this one, for obvious reasons

Whether I use it "at work" depends on whether I'm here in London (as now) or at home in Portugal. When I'm working from home it's very tempting to spend all day on the forum and do very little work but if I really have something to do then I'll do it.

Here in London I generally don't access the forum as much during working hours as everyone can see I'm doing it but a little bit here and there is no problem. There are many other things that people do that "waste" as much time (fag breaks, idle banter about last night's TV with your colleagues, flicking through the paper, general surfing) and they're all OK in moderation.

Dino - you must let me know which gold vault you gaurd so I can raid it whilst you're reading ZG

Michael.

 

Any vacancies there mate?

 

You'd get bored, Michael!

 

Normal ?........Define normal,I think age has a huge bearing on the subject, if your 18/30, normal is partying,holidays, and shagging anything with a pulse......spending time on the net, well its geeky

30/50.......grown up a bit,no need,or stamina to get pissed /laid every night.......so time on your hands and other less extreme interests to persue.

I enjoy reading what others think about various equipment
enjoy the entertaining banter, and musings from the regulars

At my age point, yes I,d say I,m normal..........

 

hey
steady with the age assumptions, my girlfiend and i are 36 and 33 respectively, and what you mean no stamina?
is every day not enough??

 

As with most things, I have high periods and low periods for forum use, and sometimes I do OD in an unhealthy way (I'd say I'm currently on the way to forum overdose. ) But it's mostly related to what else is going on in my life. Right now I'm a bum (in the American sense ) in that I'm a university graduate with no "proper" job. I've started a business with a friend of mine but it's just getting started and the little work we had to start with has dried up - currently trying to find more work, but it's slow going, so I really don't have a lot to do. That's when the forums beckon. :JPS:

Oh, I'm also in the middle of a big speaker swichover, but it's a bit of a waiting game ATM so I need to get my hifi fix somehow until I get my shiny new toys!

Overall I'd say an hour or two's forum use per day is reasonable. Anything over two hours and it starts to get unhealthy... That said, I don't know that it's such a bad thing, socially. A lot of people just aren't comfortable in social situations, and the internet allows them to be social in ways they're comfortable with.

Me, on the other hand, I just like spending time to myself. I'm very much an introvert, and get annoyed when I can't get a significant portion of time to msyelf. That said, I also crave social interaction after too long a period spent doing the introvert thang, and for that I have a circle of friends with whom I spend a lot of time (mostly gaming, in one form or another, as a lot of them are averse to alcohol, so pubs are sadly out of the picture...)

Dunc

 

Only just got access to the internet at work. Its also been set to a timer so only certain people can access it all day. The rest of the staff can have access during the tea and lunch breaks, then it gets blocked again. Sometimes if its pissing down with rain then I'll stay in and browse round the net, other times if its nice (hah!) or at least dry I'll take meself outside and do a couple of circuits of the building to get some exercise and to get me away from the screen.

In the evenings I generally do an hour or so on the computer when I get in, then take a break for half an hour or so. Then sometimes its an online game with friends from work, or take a break entirely for the rest of the evening and read a book/watch a film etc.

Its also good to be able to communicate if your disabled and pretty much housebound whilst not at work (holidays or whatever. Im fortunate in that I can cycle short distances so I can at least get out the house, but I do know some people in wheelchairs who obviously use the net more.