As I write this post, I can
clearly see colorful dots in green, red and yellow. Do not be mistaken, for I
am not talking about traffic signals here- they change colors fast- yes, as
opposed to what most people believe or at least act like, they do not
indefinitely remain red! I’ve digressed
enough! These dots can be found preceding several of the known and unknown
names on almost all instant-messaging clients. These days, they have integrated
it with their e-mail systems- so, Gmail (okay…to sound impartial, let me also
name Yahoomail) is no longer just about e-mails: in fact, it now is less emails
and more chats. Invariably, you must have noticed people with characteristics familiar
to the following:
·
The
“always-Available” class: The green signal never dies, unless their
internet connection does. Of course, I am fully aware of the fact that using
the phone and the seamless connectivity (what? Is that even possible? Not even the
best commercial telephone network in the world provides that, I assure you)
that their operators claim to provide, make it easier. But you could save some
battery for an exigency, by not caring that some random person could remember
you while you are traveling to work, early in the morning! My experience with
these people is that they are slow in responding to pings, possibly because
they have a lot other chats to take care of, simultaneously. Possibly.
·
The
“always-Busy” class: For them, life is probably all about a bunch of people
born with the sole purpose of interrupting them and ruining their peace of
mind. To all those folks, here’s a message: close your browser, disconnect the
data service on your phone and enjoy the breeze in the balcony. Turn that
red-light on only when you are really busy forwarding important e-mails (like ‘forward
to 10 people or you end up in hell, having to share the room with
Osama-bin-Laden’!). Moreover, if you are eternally busy, one day, people will realize
that you are never really busy and only pretend to. So, they will ping you, without
caring if you were really busy forwarding that Rajnikant joke. In reality, most
people of this class will respond to your ping almost instantly, proving the
color of the signal wrong!
·
The
“always-Invisible” class: These people are not bad. In fact, they think
they could have been Mr. India
(my apologies to the womenfolk), if Anil Kapoor hadn’t opted for the role. Well,
they appear to use the e-mail server for e-mails and not chat. Mark my word:
“appear”. And that holds true till the time you get a ping from them. That
ghastly feeling of receiving an unexpected pop! So, they are not as innocent as
they make their case to be. These are the ones with enormous power: the power
to be able to disturb anyone as they please, without the fear of being
disturbed. These people would make good politicians, who, analogously, would
come to you begging for votes during the electoral campaign and once they
secure a cozy seat, reaching out to them is a futile effort. In reality, you
never know who all belong to this class since some might actually be offline
while others “invisible”. Fortunately, with time and experience, you’ll realize
who they are.
·
The “always-Away”
or “always-Idle” class: These people are just fond of being online. They
seem to be enjoying the fruits of technological advances, turning their green
bulb on, which turns yellow in a while, as every effort to reach out to them
goes in vain. Don’t ping them, for you’ll not receive a response. At least, don’t
try this too many times: you could as well be tagged “desperate”! Yes, they could
have other work and prefer to stay away from their computer. So they are really
busy people. Huh? Did I say “always- idle”? I should consider revising it. The
truth is: they might be doing anything that your wild mind can or cannot
imagine!
Folks, why don’t we use these ‘signals’
a little more judiciously? Red, yellow and green mean something. They SHOULD
change colors, like the traffic light. Times are when you should apply brake on
that “always-available” vehicle of yours, stop and relax while the red-light is
on, and watch other vehicles. You could be idling away but be prepared to
return and accelerate your vehicle. Remember, other vehicles are driving along
the cyber-road at varying paces. If you don’t stop when you should or don’t
move when you are expected to, your traffic sense is in question; so, be
prepared to be abused by a honking passer-by. The cyberspace is no longer just
for fun- the growing number of tales of love and hatred in it makes me
believe that you could actually be juggling balls of different emotions by
turning these lights on and off. Being online and being human.
