Gear

Sound of Silence

Putting Social Media on a Time-Out

UD - Anti-Social Not again.
 
A 2am tweet. This time from DeVito. He’s gotten himself into a high-stakes poker game and needs you to Rain Man him out of trouble again.
 
So you drop everything, put off that white paper you were writing on North Korea’s carbon footprint and head into the night.
 
If it weren’t for the Internet, you’d never have regrets.
 
It’s got to stop. Fortunately, we’ve found a way...
 
Your Internet exit plan: Anti-Social, a groundbreaking piece of software that blocks your computer’s access to the Internet’s most notorious distractions while still allowing you to benefit from the wealth of knowledge the World Wide Web has to offer.

Think of this new innovation as your 21st-century Walden Pond—a chance to free yourself from the shackles of online popularity and immerse yourself in a few hours of Thoreau-like self-reflection. And maybe get a little research done for Friday’s treasury hearing.
 
You’ll choose an allotment of time for Anti-Social to block your access to sites like Twitter, Facebook, Digg and whatever else you deem distracting (LOLdawgz.org), decide whether you’ll need access to your email, and then start the fade to black (click “OK”). Up to eight hours later, you’ll emerge from your cocoon level-headed and ready to make the world a better place.

And if you find yourself in a Trainspotting-ian vicious cycle of withdrawal and self-loathing, you can abort your self-imposed social exile by rebooting your computer.
 
But really, DeVito can wait.

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