My friend emails me this past weekend telling me to download LiveProfile - a new instant messaging app for my BlackBerry. Do I need another way to host multiple conversations on my mobile? No.
Our generation has a crazy appetite for instant messaging and it does not seem satisfied, demonstrated by the introduction of yet another cross-platform app. On March 25th, this latest version surged to one million users just 5 days after launching an app for BlackBerry users. It has already been readily available for Android and Apple users.
I am having enough trouble keeping up with the various ways to connect with people now; BBM, SMS, Gmail chat, Facebook, Skype, LinkedIn, Twitter, email and of course the actual phone.
The pressure to keep up with the rapid changes in technology diminishes our ability to nurture meaningful relationships. Blackberries and cell phones are an intrusive third wheel at the dinner table and everyone scans status updates and online photo albums instead of planning face-to-face catch-up sessions. People check them in meetings, while driving, in the bathroom, will it ever stop?
Maintaining a constant stream of texts, bbim messages, pins, tweets and posts don't really seem like networking anymore, it just seems like work.
