What a distraction the internet is!

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Well strictly speaking I mean the worldwide web, but I’m sure you know what I mean. Most times that I turn the computer on, I open a web browser thinking I will quickly check my emails, or just have a quick look at what’s going on in the world, or what the weather forecast is, or whether so-and-so has posted anything interesting recently… and the next thing I know at least half an hour, or even an hour has passed, and I haven’t even started work yet. And then once I realise and actually get started, almost all the time that I’m working, I have a web browser window open. In many ways this is so useful, because I can easily look up an obscure medical term, or download a reference paper, or find ideas for an alternative way to express something - but often when I click on the browser window I get distracted by reading something else and sometimes completely forget what I was supposed to be looking for! In theory, modern technology saves me loads of time, but I’m starting to wonder if it really does. Sure it’s much quicker to download an electronic version of a publication than to cycle all the way across town to the library and photocopy the paper version as I would have had to do 15 years ago, but if I then fritter away an hour or so reading about Trump’s latest doings or watching videos of kittens, then I haven’t saved the time at all and I would have been better off getting some exercise out in the fresh air! To really benefit from the time-saving aspects of the web I have to be incredibly strict with myself. Are you better at this than I am? I haven't got a suitable picture so here is a nice fresh-air scene instead! All rights reserved. © Text and image copyright Fleur 2018.