iLife and Human Cyberization

Posted on December 18, 2007
Filed Under Fake Culture, Society |

It’s a fact that we are becoming more and more ‘plugged in’. The old sci-fi shows got it wrong – cyberization of the human being hasn’t required replacing body parts with mechanical limbs, instead it has been a far more subtle process.
It all revolves around the technology we use. When cell phones first hit the mass-markets they were little more than devices which allowed you to make calls. They were often marketed as an extension from the home phone; “take your phone with you”, and all that.

Of course now the story is very different, cell phones have become an extension of not just the phone, but also the diary, the calendar, the camera, sending letters by post, and to an extent the computer. As such, for many people, cell phones have become seamlessly integrated into their lives.

It’s a step-by-step process, where each addition was slowly added into the device as the technology allowed. Back in the mid 90’s there was a vision of sorts; people would in just a few years be able to carry with them a mobile computer device, upon which they would depend. Currently that technology is just under halfway to where it is actually heading.

The iLife phenomenon is part of the same process; a technological accessory for every moment, which through clever marketing has become a part of many lifestyles. What works so well here is the implied seamlessness of the technology, you have what you want, when you want. You create your own content, and the technology merely provides the means.

This technological evolution is a guided process; we are actually drip-fed this technology step-by-step. As we adopt each stage, the next is slowly trickled our way. Firstly this is the natural law of capitalism; you don’t sell the goose, when you can sell the golden eggs! Secondly and far more interestingly; it is a process of education.

When you actually watch the technology in this context its guided evolution becomes very clear. With each step the user becomes more closely integrated with the experience of the technology. Simple calls from a cell phone gave way to the total all encompassing communicative experience of modern cell phones. The knowledge base of the Internet is giving way to the full interaction of so called ‘Web 2.0’.

With each step our relationship with the technology becomes increasingly blurred. But let’s not forget where this technology comes from, and why we have it. Put simply, it is about profit. The corporations that sell us this technology don’t do so out of the kindness of their hearts. Yet that presents another issue: What happens to a person’s relationship with corporations, once the individual is fully integrated with the corporate products?

That’s where we are heading, and you can bet your bottom dollar it isn’t accidental.