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Learn to seperate tools from garbage. Maps is a tool (actually i still like navigation without it). Social media is a garbage. all push notifications are garbag

Learn to seperate tools from garbage. Maps is a tool (actually i still like navigation without it). Social media is a garbage. all push notifications are garbage. Messaging is a tool without push notifications. Banking is a tool. Most phone games are garbage. Many apps are garbage because any hint of adult content is banned. And guess what: I’m an adult.

netjiro 5y ago
Concur. Once you get rid of annoying disruptions and bloat a modern magic tile is actually useful and can even be a net positive. Disable all notifications. Don't publish your phone numbers. Be careful who you give out your contact information to. Separate channels, e.g: dependants, friends, work1, work2. Mute as needed. Teach your connections to stop and think before they ping you. Get them to limit it to important stuff. For me this has required several chats which can be uncomfortable to some, so keep it friendly. Learn Discipline. Just because it sits in your backpack does not mean you have to look at it.
arthur_ooo 5y ago
100% agree, from past experience, the phone itself isn't the issue and there are many aspects through which phones are gamechangers compared to c.15 years ago. Maps + GPS are a great example, but generally any usage through which the phone gives you access to information in the right context (as opposed ti having to look up everything asynchronously from a computer) is invaluable. Being able to read email on the go to find an info (address, meeting time, previous interaction with someone, that time XX mentioned YY in an email, etc.), to check reviews on the quality purchases from the store (e.g. am I buying the right book books), to adapt and find a kid's playground/restaurant/transportation when travelling after having deviated from plans, etc. It seems to me there is little debate in the fundamental benefits smartphones bring to the table, and what we need to work on is our relationship to the phone: querying it for info when we need it, and not letting it push useless info to us, as well put by the parent comment. Also, under that premise, any sort of entertainment should be avoided (it's just screentime with all it's negatives). Not sure how I'd classify Hacker News :)
- amelius 5y ago
  > Not sure how I'd classify Hacker News :) HN is pushing information to us. You typically don't visit HN to solve a specific problem. Compare to visiting Maps to find a route.
elcapitan 5y ago
This. - remove social media apps, only use via browser, if at all - deactivate all but the most relevant notifications - remove all games and other addictive crap - use daily time-limits for undirected "inspiration" sources like HN The remaining phone is a tool and still very useful (or useful again).
FrostKiwi 5y ago
I took me a decade to develop a healthy relationship with my phone and this is my personal insight: It's really good at delivering anything mind numbing, repetitive, low effort. Anything that fits those criterias can bring out the good from the smartphone. Memorization fits this perfectly. Learning vocabulary of a new language with an App like Anki, which tracks and gamifies your progress was a tangible improvement in my life. Anki is like an addictive mobile game to me now. Always a tap away. But the result of the interaction with that addictive app is a positive one. Memorizing, passing exams. If my mind is foggy and in no condition to do anything productive, clicking "mindlessly" in Anki is a time filling, low-effort, yet positive task, with data backing up that I actually am memorizing and recalling new things. I am not proud of the 4 digit hours I spend in counter strike on steam, but I am in the 3 digit hours I spend doing vocab. Paradoxily I look forward to long waits in the train station or at the doctors office, because I get more time in this positive feedback loop.
ovalanche 5y ago
When I get a new phone, I plan to keep my old one for all the “garbage.” And have a clean phone for everyday use, with only the essentials. Also, I have been training myself to do st least some things phone-free. Such as taking walks or running errands without my phone. It’s crazy how in just a few short years, it feels impossible to leave home without a phone!

netjiro 5y ago

Concur. Once you get rid of annoying disruptions and bloat a modern magic tile is actually useful and can even be a net positive. Disable all notifications. Don't publish your phone numbers. Be careful who you give out your contact information to. Separate channels, e.g: dependants, friends, work1, work2. Mute as needed. Teach your connections to stop and think before they ping you. Get them to limit it to important stuff. For me this has required several chats which can be uncomfortable to some, so keep it friendly. Learn Discipline. Just because it sits in your backpack does not mean you have to look at it.

arthur_ooo 5y ago

100% agree, from past experience, the phone itself isn't the issue and there are many aspects through which phones are gamechangers compared to c.15 years ago. Maps + GPS are a great example, but generally any usage through which the phone gives you access to information in the right context (as opposed ti having to look up everything asynchronously from a computer) is invaluable. Being able to read email on the go to find an info (address, meeting time, previous interaction with someone, that time XX mentioned YY in an email, etc.), to check reviews on the quality purchases from the store (e.g. am I buying the right book books), to adapt and find a kid's playground/restaurant/transportation when travelling after having deviated from plans, etc. It seems to me there is little debate in the fundamental benefits smartphones bring to the table, and what we need to work on is our relationship to the phone: querying it for info when we need it, and not letting it push useless info to us, as well put by the parent comment. Also, under that premise, any sort of entertainment should be avoided (it's just screentime with all it's negatives). Not sure how I'd classify Hacker News :)

amelius 5y ago
> Not sure how I'd classify Hacker News :) HN is pushing information to us. You typically don't visit HN to solve a specific problem. Compare to visiting Maps to find a route.

elcapitan 5y ago

This. - remove social media apps, only use via browser, if at all - deactivate all but the most relevant notifications - remove all games and other addictive crap - use daily time-limits for undirected "inspiration" sources like HN The remaining phone is a tool and still very useful (or useful again).

FrostKiwi 5y ago

I took me a decade to develop a healthy relationship with my phone and this is my personal insight: It's really good at delivering anything mind numbing, repetitive, low effort. Anything that fits those criterias can bring out the good from the smartphone. Memorization fits this perfectly. Learning vocabulary of a new language with an App like Anki, which tracks and gamifies your progress was a tangible improvement in my life. Anki is like an addictive mobile game to me now. Always a tap away. But the result of the interaction with that addictive app is a positive one. Memorizing, passing exams. If my mind is foggy and in no condition to do anything productive, clicking "mindlessly" in Anki is a time filling, low-effort, yet positive task, with data backing up that I actually am memorizing and recalling new things. I am not proud of the 4 digit hours I spend in counter strike on steam, but I am in the 3 digit hours I spend doing vocab. Paradoxily I look forward to long waits in the train station or at the doctors office, because I get more time in this positive feedback loop.

ovalanche 5y ago

When I get a new phone, I plan to keep my old one for all the “garbage.” And have a clean phone for everyday use, with only the essentials. Also, I have been training myself to do st least some things phone-free. Such as taking walks or running errands without my phone. It’s crazy how in just a few short years, it feels impossible to leave home without a phone!