FINISHINGTHEINTERNET

After wasting a whole hour online that would have been better spent studying or relaxing, I reach the end of the internet. It is a simple popup describing how I had just clicked on the final link on the final page and it recommended that I step away from the computer.

Although it is never quite as dire as the situation above, I have certainly wasted quite a bit of time online. You know the problem well. You’ve just sat down at your computer for the day’s important online activities such as work, assignments and other things. An hour later, you find yourself at an obscure page about cat health and have completely forgotten why you were on the computer in the first place.

Here’s a tip that I have found very helpful. First things first, turn off your computer (well, hold on until you’ve finished the article). After you’ve turned it off, find a piece of paper and a pen and sit down somewhere away from your computer. The things you needed to do will start coming back to you now that you’ve stepped away from the machine. After your list is complete, go back to the computer (and this will require a touch of willpower) and don’t stop working until you’ve crossed of everything on your list.

It’s a simple method that has helped me get through my work when I know that all it would take to burn my time is a single click.

Go, what are you waiting for?

  1. I reached the end of the internet once, but that involved a geocities page with lots of animated .gifs randomly positioned on the screen, some wayward opinions about “mi kute kitti” and “mi best frends” interspersed throughout, and an oddly consistent recurrence of the letters “lol”. No, wait, that was just the beginning of the end.

    Dylan

    Feb 15, 09:59 PM #

  2. When you get that warning, better take it. I didn’t and fell off the end. Fell for days and days until finally doing a soft landing here, where ever here is. Haven’t found my way back yet. Please say hello to my family and friends if you run into them…

    Winston

    Feb 15, 10:01 PM #

  3. Dylan: Haha, I actually had someone recently request that I “design” a site similar to the one you described. They actually pointed me to a geocities page and asked how much I would charge to do something like it. Somtimes it’s just hopeless…

    Winston: Will do. There’s no place like home… click click

    Thame

    Feb 16, 07:58 PM #

  4. If only it were that simple. I often find myself online and totally bored, refreshing my RSS reader and various forums waiting for something interesting to pop up – all the while having something better to do, be it studying or just reading a book or something. The internet is so addictive.

    rob

    Mar 2, 11:07 AM #

  5. I hear ya rob.

    Luckily, I do almost all of my computer stuff on a laptop so whenever I feel like I’m starting to waste time, I can just slam down the lid.

    It’s been a lifesaver.

    Thame

    Mar 2, 07:39 PM #

Add a Comment

Phrase modifiers:

_emphasis_
*strong*
__italic__
**bold**
??citation??
-deleted text-
@code@

Block modifiers:

bq. Blockquote
p. Paragraph

Links:

"linktext":http://example.com


Show Articles By:

You can show articles by time or category.

  • 260.

    Conscious Conversation: Philosophy

    Daniel Black, author of Erectlocution, was kind enough to chat with me one day and we had a great discussion – have a listen.

    Read More

  • 260.

    The Stuff in Between

    I’m actually almost normal when not agonizing over robot production details, and quite a bit has happened since I last wrote an update. First, I’ve finally graduated. I had a bit of a...

    Read More

  • 260.

    The Ethics of AI: Part Three

    Is it ethical (or possible) to constrain intelligent life? This part of the argument involves what we think it means to be human, and whether creating and adjusting those criteria in an AI affects...

    Read More

  • 260.

    The Ethics of AI: Part Two

    Is it ethical to allow humanity to continue, or to replace our species with machines? This is getting tougher. Why does humanity deserve to exist? The recorded history of the experiences of Homo...

    Read More

  • 260.

    The Ethics of AI: Part One

    Is it ethical to create consciousness? In this discussion, I will make the assumption that we can be assured these beings are “personally” intelligent (i.e. just like us). As we see in nature,...

    Read More

  • 260.

    The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence

    I am beginning a series exploring some ethical concerns associated with the development of artificial intelligence. Neurobiological evidence points firmly to the brain as the source of human...

    Read More

  • 260.

    The Atheist's Purpose

    As a lot of the content on this site suggests, I’m an atheist. Being an atheist can be a bit contentious, as many find the lack of an explicit purpose or codified moral laws wrong. So, I’d like...

    Read More

  • 260.

    Conscious Conversation: Computation

    Dr. Rapaport is an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University at Buffalo with research interests in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence,...

    Read More