What We're Obsessed With Now: On Technology
Before our summer break, the editors get into the weeds about technology and the digital tools they use (or don’t use) day to day.
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In this week’s episode, the TW staff get together to share their current technological obsessions. We discuss everything from software to hardware and everything in between. We share the tools that make our daily lives so much easier and complain about the planned obsolescence that seems to be ingrained in every new piece of tech we buy today.
Neva Talladen is a writer and book editor on a mission to break the mystique of publishing by connecting and writing in the community. She’s a literary editor and resource strategist for authors as well as the community manager for the Talking Writing podcast and lead editor for Spirit Bound Press. Check out her website Otherwordy for more information on her editorial and consulting services.
Neva shares how she’s stepping away from the usual customer relationship management (CRM) software and started collecting and keeping her own records on Notion. She’s worried that, if a crash were to occur, all bets would be off, and she’d lose this invaluable information. Depending on one large company to store all data is something to be wary of.
John Vogel is the creative director for Talking Writing and a multimedia artist living in Philadelphia. Since the early 2000s, he’s been making solo music as well as playing in bands such as Grandchildren and Rad Racket. For more information on his latest work, check out Weird Music on the Talking Writing Substack page and other examples of his music and multimedia work on his Eddie Sids Vimeo page. You can also follow him on Instagram.
John shares his obsession with found technological objects and how he uses them in his music. He finds DVD players, projectors, and old iMac computers to create and perform weird music. It allows him to make use of the “junk” you would find in your basement as well as release some of the dependency that comes with new iPhone drops every year.
Jess Barnett has served as a copy editor, proofreader, and editor for 20 years in various fields. Her current clients include Digitas Health, for which she is a freelance senior copy editor, as well as HCPro/Simplify Compliance, Cognella, the AFL-CIO, and Solomon Admissions Consulting. She is also a self-taught artist and has shown her artwork in various locations throughout New England.
Jess discusses her use of Google Docs and Microsoft Word. She and Neva talk about how strange it is that Word has such a monopoly over word processors. Google Docs is functional but leaves out so many features that it often doesn’t translate everything they’ve done in a Word document into a Google Doc. Sarah also brings up the fact that data collection practices in huge tech companies could take ownership of all their users’ work.
Sarah Tulloch is a podcast production manager and the proud founder of CCST (Content Creation With Sarah Tulloch). CCST is a one-stop shop for all things podcasting. In three years, Sarah has produced podcast episodes, copy, and social media materials for more than 15 podcasts worldwide. Explore Sarah’s full range of services and get to know her better on her website.
Sarah discusses her new Bose—QuietComfort Ultra Wireless Noise-Canceling Over-the-Ear Headphones she received on Valentine’s Day. As a podcast production manager, it’s important for her to be able to hear every detail as she works. The audio on these headphones is super detailed and allows her to work with a fine-toothed comb. They are also good at blocking out other noises in the room. As Sarah claims that she has trouble staying focused, these headphones her stay on task and keep her head in the game.
Tune in to this episode of the Talking Writing podcast to hear more about our current technological obsessions and comment below any thoughts or feelings you have about them!
Interesting topic. Looking forward to giving it a listen. Thanks for this.