It has been almost 10 years since I first got on the
internet. Yes, I distinctly remember the year 2005 because it brought into my
life someone who is now my husband and my affair with the internet started that
very year. Back then, computers were just making their way into the middle
class house. Mobile phones were just getting their color. Having a phone with a
camera was considered as a wastage. What could one do anyway with those low
resolution pictures? Our Orkut profile pictures mostly featured some prominent
actor or actress. We didn’t mind waiting for the e-mail to load, we still
depended on video parlors to watch a movie because downloading one was
unthinkable. Shopping happened in the known shops of the crowded lanes. Having
food in select restaurants was reserved for special occasions.
The world has changed in the past decade. We are the
generation that has seen it all. From black and white TVs to flat LED screens,
from the huge old computer to the sleek new laptop, from the good old landline
phone with a turning dial to the latest touch screen models. The revolution
that has brought about this drastic change in the lifestyle is the internet. The
internet has made it possible to sit in one corner of the world and go around
the globe in a matter of minutes. The world is at your fingertips.
I remember the days when I used to struggle with the internet
speed of snail’s pace. Video chatting was the test of all patience. It
definitely ensued a fight between me and the guy because it took forever for
the video to stream and another lifetime for the audio to reach the other end.
It was frustrating to say the least. How easy life is now!
During my college years, internet was slowly making its way
into mobile phones. Remember the GPRS that we tried out of curiosity and then
paid a heavy bill for? Airtel live was a thrill in itself because through phone
we could select ring tones, match our astrology, read a line or two of news. The
mere fact that it can be done on your mobile phone was enough to make us
excited. It is another story that we only came to know of the charges later.
Then came the 2G. The only app I used with 2G was WhatsApp.
Nothing else was worth the wait. We could do everything else on our computer.
Then came 3G and android had uses such as Facebook, twitter and Instagram. Life
was never the same again. Mobile phones quickly became the center of our
universe. It was everything packed into one!
I hardly used airtel 3G except for WhatsApp and Facebook. My
earlier office prohibited mobile phones and after getting back home, I had the
LAN connection. I started using my mobile internet only after joining the new
job. At home the Wi-Fi connectivity is unbelievable fast. Since I spent more
than 3 hours per day travelling to and fro work, most of my social networking
happens through mobile phone. I am a lazy person to keep hoping shops and
trying clothes. I prefer online shopping for everything. No wonder my mobile
has flipkart, jabong, myntra and I surf through them while travelling. Since I
am new to Bangalore, I also use zomato each time I plan to go to a restaurant.
My new found love for random tags and photographs has made Instagram all the
more enjoyable. The only huddle is the slow connectivity with 3G. Yes, the
internet speed is decent enough but the things that we do with it has made it
imperative for it be faster and more efficient. With Airtel 4G being launched, my troubles have found solution!
Since I am actively back to blogging, I have been trying to
log in through my phone into blogger but I am always scared of the slow speed
and connection issues. Recently I was so impressed by a blog post that I wrote
full 3 paragraphs of comment on the post but the comment took so long to
publish that I had already entered a no network zone. I wished the connection
was faster! I am waiting for my Airtel 4G connection so that I could blog in peace and comment to my heart’s
content!
I have the habit of going to google search to learn more
about anything I come across. A faster connection will make it easier to feed
the curious cat within me. From movie plots, to scandals, to history, to random
questions, I keep surfing the net till I get my answers. I can do it all while
on the move!
As for my craze for online shopping, it takes me at least 2
days to zero in on an outfit I want to buy. The collection is huge and the time
to surf through the apps is more. Often when I feel I should go back and buy
the outfit that I first liked, it is out of stock. A faster connection would
make sure I get what I want.
The book reader in me is dying a slow death due to lack of
time. The blog reading and online story reading keeps me going through the day.
Since that too has now become a luxury that is confined to my travelling and
free hours on weekend. I cannot keep a story down and restrict myself to short
stories that I can read online in less time. Of course finding a story would be
easier and save a lot of time with a faster connection.
Until my marriage, I had widely used public transport for
travelling. Out station journeys were meticulously planned and train tickets booked
in advance. Post marriage, lot of our outings have been spontaneously planned
and we have hit the road in wee hours of the morning with only the GPS as our
guide. On one such trip, we were on a very confusing road and since the map
showed our point at the right road we kept moving ahead. 5 minutes into that
way, we knew something was wrong. The map ridiculously showed us way off the
road! All due to slow internet connectivity; we wasted around an hour going
around that road as there was no turning back. 4G would be a real help on our
road trips.
I am wary of booking tickets through my mobile. Many times
the internet gives away making it a payment failure or transaction gets
cancelled due to the process taking longer than required time. I am hoping a
faster connection would make it convenient to make online bookings.
The world is moving at a fast pace and the internet needs to
be faster to keep track of these changes. In a competitive environment it is a
need to be constantly updated and curious about your field. You need to be fast
and curious and a fast internet connection is an aid that is indispensable. Now
you can have all that you need just by a click at the right place. A faster
connection will help you achieve a lot in no time! Thanks to Airtel 4G we can now hope to have it all!
