The highlight of my technological life was getting email to download onto my PalmPilot some five years ago. The technological lowlight was realizing thereafter that I didn't really care to access email while on vacation.
Last year a friend in the carpet importing business showed me his brandnew Treo 600. He had resisted PalmPilot-like devices until then. But this one combines scheudling with cell phone with email with .... He told me of his amzement at receiving a page from his hometown (in Western Canada) -- while in a small Bangladeshi village.
"Makes you want to throw away that thing, eh?" I remarked, and he agreed.
And now it seems that most business travellers agree, partially. RCR News reports, "a recent worldwide survey from IDC Insight and SMS.ac found that only 11 percent of 50,000 respondents said they are in favor of cell-phone use for voice calls on planes, but 64 percent of respondents approved of in-flight mobile-phone use for activities other than voice calls."
Let's have some peace and quiet, is probably the reason. Cell phone conversations are sort of like smoking: smoke if you must, but don't impose your noise/smell on me.
OTOH, the study was partially funded by the Association of Flight Attendants and the Communications Workers of America, who would have only released the results if they agreed with their predetermined viewpoint. I wonder what it is about in-flight cell phone conversations that stewards and stewardesses object to? After all, most airplane already have omni-present sky phones in seatbacks.
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