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I don't feel like you need much to "be happy" in the tech sense. For the past 5 years I've been using Linux, reading HN and RSS for news and using an Android sm

I don't feel like you need much to "be happy" in the tech sense. For the past 5 years I've been using Linux, reading HN and RSS for news and using an Android smartphone without debilitating social side effects. I don't scroll feeds, I wait to read texts until respectful times and I have a Gmail that has a few thousand marketing emails I never read. Some nights I watch a couple hours of YouTube (gasp!). A lot of solutions to the harm tech causes can be remediated by figuring out how these things affect you. Obsessing over the news makes me upset - when I realize this, I divert my attention to other things. If you can't foster the willpower to resist these ills on your own, you're not prepared to use devices with a healthy mindset in the first place.

purple-leafy 2y ago
I don't think one can use a smart phone without being affected by advertising, the media, or social media, or other agents of manipulation/negativity/control. Our devices are perfectly engineered slot-machines. I've tried many times to overcome their effects through willpower alone. Doesn't work long term. Look around you next time you're outdoors. People are glued to their phones. I think its crazy that people don't realise this or work to mitigate access to such devices. And no news is good news, no point staying informed about all the nasty shit in the world. What good is knowing?