We’ve just returned from a weekend camping. Setting ourselves free from the routine lifestyles we live in the town. What better way to relax than to head to the country? Until you realise that you have next to know signal on your mobile phone and start stressing that you can’t access Facebook every 10 minutes. What starts off as tranquility turns into mobile phone anxiety!
10 years ago I joined the iPhone gang.
Its daft that I can remember the time period that I got my first iPhone, but I feel that it was a major step in my life. The ability to access the internet while being mobile. Although at this point I didn’t really know why. At that time the signal wasn’t great and if I’m honest I didn’t know what to use it for.
While out with some friends I used it to show some one where I lived. “If you follow the river down here, I live just… here. We’re the Blue dot on this map and I live there”. What I thought was impressive, was lost as the elaboration of a rough area description.
It was also around this time that I got into using eBay. A global market place for new and used items. How amazing was this? A few years earlier I’d been buying “collectible” CD’s from a company via mail order. Once a month I would receive a photocopied listing of review them on trip advisor. Ebay transformed that into a more instant itinerary stock check.
Websites that review and advise
I can remember a handful of websites that I used to visit often for, the latest news and reviews or topics that interested me. At the time I was a huge Disneyland Paris fan. However that was more about spreading news and information than personal view points. Obviously blogging is older that the past ten years, but it’s direction seems to have changed so much in that time period.
Where once upon a time a persons blog would be about releasing a public version of a diary. Now the emphasis seems to be on reviewing a product, location or experience. When once upon a time if you were looking to buy a bassinet you’d ask advice in the shop that sold it. Now you’d visit a website like wifeknows.com and study the information before hand.
Trip Advisor has been around for over 15 years, but even that wasn’t as popular as it is now. Maybe it was the surge of the smart phone that seemed to take it everywhere. Years ago the most a restaurant wanted as a review was “Is everything alright for you?” halfway through your meal. Now as you pay the bill they ask you to review them on trip advisor.
Youtube for videos and education
Eight years ago Youtube for me was a totally different experience. It was a pacifier for Imogen while we were out at a restaurant. Instead of the twisting and squeaking between throwing the toys on the floor. A quick search brought up episodes of Peppa Pig and we could eat in peace.
Now Youtube is more about quality home-made productions. Videos that inform and review or review them on trip advisor. The expectation of watching something on there now is so much higher than before. Which is due to the fact that the video quality is so much better. For me video has replaced instruction books so many times over. Its easier to see the solution than trying to imagine it via words.
Bringing it back to the camping trip!
If it wasn’t for the vast amounts of information online, we wouldn’t have been able to research the campsites in the Lake District. Then once we’d chosen a location, I spent a few nights viewing satellite maps and area maps to see what was around the area. Now that I’m happy with my choice I can then see other people’s opinions of the campsite from their experiences. Remembering that not everyone has the same expectations or experiences.
Finally as we drove from Newcastle to the Lakes, our car air blower fan started to rattle. It got louder and louder. The first thing I wanted to do when I pitched up was find a video and see the solution to fix it. Then this was when I realised the signal wasn’t great…. And Relax!?!
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