Time Diary time.....

Let me start by saying, I didn't think I was this nerdy....The results of my time diary kind of astounded me. The fact that the restrictions mobile devices have given us to stay "connected" whilst on the move is a dramatic shift that only a product of this generation may seem normal.

I'm not going to tell you absolutely everything I did, though I was pretty much dabbling in some form of technology all day. I woke up via my mobile phone, preceded to trudge my body to my computer to check a daily ritual of websites (email, news, several blogs, weather, surfcheck) I got in my Car to go for a surf whilst listening to my ipod all the way. I arrived at my friends house, and needed to check my emails upon arrival. We went and looked at the surf. Even though this activity relies on no digital technology, it still worked its way in. We checked the tide, wind and swell directions on his iPhone whilst sitting in the car. Before I even put my toes in the water I'd been drenched in some form of digital artifact and it was only 8am. The day continued along as my introduction would have you assume. I was doing study at home so I was pretty much on the computer all day. Between that and my phone, which I use constantly, I was sucking in radiation and electricity all day. I realized however how I am not one to have the television, stereo, computer and so on active at the same time. I see only the need for one of those at a time and my "save the trees side" tells me to turn one off before I continue with another.

Now I say I'm not that dependent on technology, I do prefer to socialize face to face, and I'm pretty active; but I really do use a lot of electricity.

Time diaries give a researcher a good source of research upon, for example, habits that directly relate with time. This weeks reading by De Haan and Robinson, illustrated a use of time diaries and their application to the research into individuals devotion of time to different Information Technologies. For this research the method was a perfect process of research as it gave a clear indication of the intricacies of peoples day to day lives without having to observe their every step (as we know from before, maybe manipulating their activities.)

However in the analysis of time diaries one important factor in its success is, like content analysis, concise coding standards.