There's a passage I like, quoting Witold Lutoslawski, on being asked if he considers the symphony orchestra to be becoming obsolete: "I say the same! But do you have to replace it? Electronics is a new art, a different art, but not replacing (traditional) music,... I love traditional instruments, though of course they are anachronisms. Satellites run around our planet, but we still play bassoons." I have one of Kurzweil's fantastic machines (actually, more then one: the Midiboard, all but forgotten, is one of the few synthesizers capable of polyphonic pressure, which is great for string patches). And I too find joy in playing my anachronisms, and would feel a huge sense of loss if they were entirely obsoleted. I don't Twitter. I let my phone go to voicemail, and my IM is generally set to Away. My IRC client is always open, but I am generally idle. I abandoned my personal blog after I felt that it contolled me more than I controlled it; I may return with something slower-paced, but it's more satisfying to work on collaborative project. I always feel myself compelled to check my email and messages, though, and I think I am the worse for it; if I want to do any sort of writing I have to turn off the data feed... and even then I wonder what I am missing. I don't know that I have the discipline to go a weekend without email regularly, but perhaps I should.