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i don't have a problem with the navigation stuff, but i DO have a problem with people trying to click/surf/scroll/type on their dashboard electrics whilst attempting to not mow people down. my aunt has a very fancy onboard computer but she can't drive in a straight line while trying to locate her favorite XM station or populate a new route home on GPS. very scary stuff!

i also despise those bluetooth ear pieces and wish they weren't so small and unnoticeable. i want them to be noticeable so i know when to stop saying "what? are you talking to me? excuse me? huh? what? oh, sorry, you're on the phone..." and i DO miss the actual schizos of nyc...where did they all go?!?

i also despise cellphones in general. ringtones are Teh Suck.

Ban GPS devices? How utterly ridiculous. I do agree with the Bluetooth headset though.

I hate speakerphones/nextel etc.!!!! I don't want to hear one end of your converation in public let alone both! Plus, sometimes I fear the other person has no idea they're on speakerphone and I often hear things I'd really never want to know. The worst are those who use a cell, especially a speakerphone, not just in the public restroom but in the stall!

Yes, because the "romanticism" of holding a book in our hands will always triumph over the convenience of having a book everywhere we go on our iPhone or Kindle. Give me a break.

ugh. bluetooth headsets are the bane of my existence.

Speaking as an ex-Lit Theory grad (god help me), I never really understood the whole "book romanticism" thing.

...setting that aside, it's an odd premise for an article. Common, but still odd. Technology isn't antisocial, people are.

But hey, let's do it right, get to the root of things and ban the wheel & all forms of assisted transportation. Transport allows people to get where they're going without walking, and without having to hire a dozen porters. Think about all the conversations that would ensue if everyone had to carry everything by hand!

Really now, what's more sociable -- one isolated guy in a truck with ten thousand pounds of tomatoes, or a hundred guys carrying boxes? One guy in a truck disrespects the community at large; a hundred guys tromping down the street means all manner of conversations, work songs, and human interaction.

The wheel: antisocial technology par excellence.

Don't even get me started on the evils of fire.

I personally find bluetooth headsets very convenient. However I do remove mine and turn it off in social situations as it is a distraction. I also find custom ringtones interesting. I do not own an e-book but once they have one that the screen would not bother me reading for a longer period of time, I will probably own one.

I don't see anything wrong with GPS devices. I moved across the country three months ago, to a very large city that's easy to get lost in - should I just drive around aimlessly every time I want to go somewhere new? Or worse, try to follow a printed map while driving? Having my GPS verbally tell me where to go gets me there without distraction or confusion.

However, I do hate Bluetooth headsets. I don't mind them so much in private, because for a long phone call it is nice to avoid having your hand fall asleep holding up the phone for so long (I say this because when I call my mom from 3000 miles away, we tend to have very long conversations), but in public they're extremely annoying. It always just seems like people are walking around with them in public to seem important, like they could receive a call of utmost importance at ANY time! And then they just use it to argue with their girlfriends...

I think TVs built into cars, or at least the dashboard of cars should be banned. When driving back from Tahoe, you can see every other car is full of flashing TVs. While I understand the need to keep kids busy for a long ride it seems like the tv in the car thing has gone way too far.

Etiquette Rules for these Gadgets

I don't mind all of the things on the list... if people would use them politely. I think bluetooth headsets can be great, hands free in the car or if you need to talk and use your hands at the same time. However, sadly a lot of people seem to like NEVER taking them off. Once I was at a movie and a guy in front of me had is on the entire movie (the damn light kept blinking).

I used to hate custom ring tones, but I've gotten more used to them. Though, some people still pick really bad/annoying songs that a way too loud.

I love GPS Navs, e-books and speakerphones (well, not when speakerphones are used in public places...).

Disliking eBooks is so silly to me as well. Did people freak out like this when the telephone was invented, that we would lose the romanticism of talking to each other in person?

There's also no reason the Kindle or Sony's eBook reader or iPhone app will replace books entirely anyway! They will just allow you to not break your back because you want to read Harry Potter on hardback on the train, or let college students save on texts and also not have to lug a million books to class.

I actually don't think there is any problem with the bluetooth headsets if a person is driving. However, it does make sense to take it off when not driving.

Everything else is fine. It would seem the wired author is just flaming these products because he had a bad experience with them.