5 ms·

I obliterated one of my smartphones last year after dropping it on concrete while getting off the bus. I freaked out, had no clue what to do since I was low inc

I obliterated one of my smartphones last year after dropping it on concrete while getting off the bus. I freaked out, had no clue what to do since I was low income and couldn't afford anything for quite awhile. For a few days it was like I was an addict, constantly feeling my back pocket vibrating, constantly reaching to check my phone. After a few more days, I felt very liberated. I felt very free. I started enjoying life more. I started noticing how much the world (at least USA) depends on their phones for everything. I would go out to Reddit meetups without my phone and notice times where everyone would have their heads down, checking various social media platforms and not talking to each other. People would ask how I lived without a phone. I noticed how dangerous the distraction is with people doing simple things like walking crosswalks with their heads down staring at their phones. I noticed a lot of the time the entire bus full of people were looking down at their phones, most doing nothing of any real meaning. After a week or so I learned how to cope without. I would look up directions and bus routes on my computer before I left. I would check my bank account before I left to do anything that cost money. I brought a notebook with me to keep notes of things I thought about and wanted to look further into when I got home. I noticed new things I've never noticed and learned more about the city I live in, especially the streets and landmarks so I could get around without GPS. It noticeably helped my anxiety and gave me a viewpoint of the world that I feel I hadn't been a part of since the first iPhone was released. I'm not saying smartphones aren't useful, but I strongly recommend to anyone to take a break from their phone. It really is eye opening in very beneficial ways.

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
boterock 8y ago
that reminded me of how I decided to play Zelda BoTW. Zelda has a 'Pro' mode where it hides all UI but the health. I was fully decided on using it through the whole game and I think it is the best way to play the game. The absence of minimap is the biggest change. When you have your minimap is like when you drive with gps. You only wait til the map says you to turn, and after some turns staring at the minimap you get to your destination missing all that was in between. If you don't have the minimap you actually need to understand the map, know more or less where you are, where the landmarks are, and how to get through to your destination. In the end, the absence of minimap makes you learn better the world and the map, instead of relying on the digested info that the minimap gives you.
- Baeocystin 8y ago
  That is how I accidentally played the first 20-odd hours of Oblivion. I thought the compass at the bottom of the screen was it for nav, and didn't look at the keymappings and notice the 'map' key until well in to the game. And after the initial wave of feeling dumb passed once I noticed my mistake, I also realized that I was actually having quite a lot of fun playing it that way. Although navigation was confusing at first, I learned my way around the map quite well, and by being forced to just look around instead of relying on, as you put it, GPS nav (a very apt analogy) I had a more immersive, enjoyable experience. There were times walking around where I would just stop and think, 'wow, this is really pretty'. And I am not completely sure I would have had that thought if I hadn't been forced to actually pay attention to where I was going in those early hours of play.
- fbnlsr 8y ago
  Woah, considering the "exploration" aspect of BoTW, this makes me want to play this game even more.
- ajuc 8y ago
  That's the only good way of playing The Witcher 3. They put lots of ui customization, but the defaults are overbearing, you watch ui not the world. At least disable the "?" signs on unexplored areas and the path to next quest objective, game is much more enjoyable without them and not too inconvenient.
  - jibreel 8y ago
    I quit playing the game 4 hours into the game, because i felt i was just staring into the map most of the time and not being engaged with the game. I might give it another go, how did you go on about it ? did you just disable most UI stuff ? and is it still acutally playable ?
    - ajuc 8y ago
      I left most stuff on, just disabled quest compass (arrows on minimap), gps (paths on minimap), and the question marks on the map/minimap (IMHO it's the most obviously bad setting - it changes exploration from "this looks interesting I go there" to "there's a question mark, let's see what's it about, oh just another smugglers' cache"). When I get a new quest phase I look it up on the fullscreen map and then just go there, it's playable enough. The dialogs describe places where you need to go usually, but not always well enough to get there without looking at the map at all. I've seen people play with all ui disabled, even the health bar, but it wasn't convenient for me. The game is very heavy on plot and characters, it has small tutorial in the castle, and then like 10 hours long bigger tutorial area before the world opens up for real, and you have to understand what's happening and who's who at least a little to enjoy it. Game introduces characters reasonably well, but there's so many of them it's easy to lose track. Also, bonus tip - in some update few months after the premiere they added "alternative movement controls" - be sure to enable that in the settings if you play with keyboard and mouse. It's much more convenient than the default. It makes the animation of movement look less natural, but much more responsive (you can turn instantly instead of making a circle for example).
onion2k 8y ago
My first question to anyone who says they can live without a smartphone: what do you use for two factor auth?
- freeflight 8y ago
  Depending on the service you are talking about there are quite a few non-smartphone reliant options like SMS or email.
  - krageon 8y ago
    SMS is like having someone shout your second factor off of a rooftop a few streets away, loud enough that you can hear it. There is 0 security on it and anyone with even a modicum of motivation can intercept it without you noticing (ever). This is bad advice. Email is bad for similar reasons (although slightly less in terms of exposure if you use a good provider).
    - davchana 8y ago
      I thought bad guys could get your SMS only if they manage to clone your SIM or call provider to change the SIM by social engineering. In both cases service on my SIM will stop. Unless they are state sponsored, in which case they can just arm twist telecom provider to give them texts. Could you please tell how they can sniff SMS without user ever noticing?
    - grkvlt 8y ago
      SMS interception is hardly a low bar for attackers. If you are being targeted by someone with these capabilities then there is a lot more you have to worry about. Many other 2FA mechanisms would be similarly vulnerable to an attacker with that amount of money and technology...
- mikkelam 8y ago
  There are lots of ways, how about a Yubikey
kwhitefoot 8y ago
I had the same experience years ago when I had to scrap my car. Felt lost without it for a week or two. But then I felt free. It was no longer my responsibility to ensure that a vehicle had fuel, that the tyres were inflated, oil filled. No one could ask me to run an errand that needed a car. I walked more and got more exercise, took the bus more and took a nap on the way home.

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

boterock 8y ago

that reminded me of how I decided to play Zelda BoTW. Zelda has a 'Pro' mode where it hides all UI but the health. I was fully decided on using it through the whole game and I think it is the best way to play the game. The absence of minimap is the biggest change. When you have your minimap is like when you drive with gps. You only wait til the map says you to turn, and after some turns staring at the minimap you get to your destination missing all that was in between. If you don't have the minimap you actually need to understand the map, know more or less where you are, where the landmarks are, and how to get through to your destination. In the end, the absence of minimap makes you learn better the world and the map, instead of relying on the digested info that the minimap gives you.

Baeocystin 8y ago
That is how I accidentally played the first 20-odd hours of Oblivion. I thought the compass at the bottom of the screen was it for nav, and didn't look at the keymappings and notice the 'map' key until well in to the game. And after the initial wave of feeling dumb passed once I noticed my mistake, I also realized that I was actually having quite a lot of fun playing it that way. Although navigation was confusing at first, I learned my way around the map quite well, and by being forced to just look around instead of relying on, as you put it, GPS nav (a very apt analogy) I had a more immersive, enjoyable experience. There were times walking around where I would just stop and think, 'wow, this is really pretty'. And I am not completely sure I would have had that thought if I hadn't been forced to actually pay attention to where I was going in those early hours of play.
fbnlsr 8y ago
Woah, considering the "exploration" aspect of BoTW, this makes me want to play this game even more.
ajuc 8y ago
That's the only good way of playing The Witcher 3. They put lots of ui customization, but the defaults are overbearing, you watch ui not the world. At least disable the "?" signs on unexplored areas and the path to next quest objective, game is much more enjoyable without them and not too inconvenient.
- jibreel 8y ago
  I quit playing the game 4 hours into the game, because i felt i was just staring into the map most of the time and not being engaged with the game. I might give it another go, how did you go on about it ? did you just disable most UI stuff ? and is it still acutally playable ?
  - ajuc 8y ago
    I left most stuff on, just disabled quest compass (arrows on minimap), gps (paths on minimap), and the question marks on the map/minimap (IMHO it's the most obviously bad setting - it changes exploration from "this looks interesting I go there" to "there's a question mark, let's see what's it about, oh just another smugglers' cache"). When I get a new quest phase I look it up on the fullscreen map and then just go there, it's playable enough. The dialogs describe places where you need to go usually, but not always well enough to get there without looking at the map at all. I've seen people play with all ui disabled, even the health bar, but it wasn't convenient for me. The game is very heavy on plot and characters, it has small tutorial in the castle, and then like 10 hours long bigger tutorial area before the world opens up for real, and you have to understand what's happening and who's who at least a little to enjoy it. Game introduces characters reasonably well, but there's so many of them it's easy to lose track. Also, bonus tip - in some update few months after the premiere they added "alternative movement controls" - be sure to enable that in the settings if you play with keyboard and mouse. It's much more convenient than the default. It makes the animation of movement look less natural, but much more responsive (you can turn instantly instead of making a circle for example).

onion2k 8y ago

My first question to anyone who says they can live without a smartphone: what do you use for two factor auth?

freeflight 8y ago
Depending on the service you are talking about there are quite a few non-smartphone reliant options like SMS or email.
- krageon 8y ago
  SMS is like having someone shout your second factor off of a rooftop a few streets away, loud enough that you can hear it. There is 0 security on it and anyone with even a modicum of motivation can intercept it without you noticing (ever). This is bad advice. Email is bad for similar reasons (although slightly less in terms of exposure if you use a good provider).
  - davchana 8y ago
    I thought bad guys could get your SMS only if they manage to clone your SIM or call provider to change the SIM by social engineering. In both cases service on my SIM will stop. Unless they are state sponsored, in which case they can just arm twist telecom provider to give them texts. Could you please tell how they can sniff SMS without user ever noticing?
  - grkvlt 8y ago
    SMS interception is hardly a low bar for attackers. If you are being targeted by someone with these capabilities then there is a lot more you have to worry about. Many other 2FA mechanisms would be similarly vulnerable to an attacker with that amount of money and technology...
mikkelam 8y ago
There are lots of ways, how about a Yubikey

kwhitefoot 8y ago

I had the same experience years ago when I had to scrap my car. Felt lost without it for a week or two. But then I felt free. It was no longer my responsibility to ensure that a vehicle had fuel, that the tyres were inflated, oil filled. No one could ask me to run an errand that needed a car. I walked more and got more exercise, took the bus more and took a nap on the way home.