Ask HN: Internet-free household?

[kcovia]

I've been kicking around the idea of canceling my Internet connection at home. The primary reason is to have a "disconnected" place where I'm not distracted by devices. I'm hoping that I'll get more reading and relaxing done.

Crazy or stupid?

[ColinCera]

I have done this for short stretches, 2-4 weeks at a time, by giving my cable modem to a friend with strict orders not to give it back until a specified date.

It made a huge difference in my productivity and my overall well-being when I didn't have internet access.

When I sat down at the computer, I got right to work, since there was nothing else to do — no email, HN, reddit, etc. (I'm not a gamer, at all; that might be a distraction for others.)

When I was burned out working for the day, I turned the computer off and did other things like reading and relaxing. No aimless web surfing, useless forum opining, etc.

When something came up that I needed to research or do on the web, I wrote it down in a Word doc, and once or twice a week I'd go to McDonald's and use their wifi for an hour or two, knocking out all the specific web tasks on my list.

At present, I am a programmer and I work remotely on software that runs in the cloud, so it's very nearly impossible for me to go without internet at home.

That's a bummer, because my past experience tells me my life and my productivity are both immensely better without it.

I urge you to give it a try. If you don't want to cancel it right away, consider giving your modem to somebody to keep for a month. (One time I mailed it to my mom, and then she wouldn't send it back, for my own good, she said — I had to buy a new one — so... don't trust your mother.)

[kfcm]

Not crazy or stupid at all.

With 27 years of Internet access of one form or another under my belt, the same thought has been entering my mind the past couple of years. The first 11 years weren't bad, with dedicated access only in college computing labs or at work. Home was dial-up only, so restricted to e-mail, usenet, etc. Lots of time for reading.

But since broadband (DSL and cable) started becoming widely available in '98, my home-based non-connected leisure time has diminished. An inverse relationship with broadband speed, one could say.

Although I don't own a smartphone, their introduction and the cutting of the Internet wires has only exacerbated the distraction problem. Which is one of the two reasons I don't have one.

If I didn't run my business from home, I'd probably drop my connection too. And probably will the day I retire.

[viraptor]

Depends if you want to go through the pain of not having easy access to other services. Most government forms? You need to go to the office. Paying bills? Get on the phone / go to the bank. Contacting your phone company? I hope you saved the piece of paper with their phone number. Need a local plumber? Pay extra for calling number information service / get someone random without seeing any previous feedback.

Internet makes a lot of things in life so much easier. I'm probably going offline for a while soon. But that means disabling mobile data unless I really need it. Internet can still be treated like a utility - just don't use it if you don't have to.

[kfcm]

US-centric:

Paying bills? Crazy little pieces of paper called checks.

Contacting your phone company? Paper bills, or just write it down. Or, wonder of wonders, dial 611.

Need a plumber? They still have these wonderful books called The Yellow Pages.

How in the world did we ever survive prior to the Internet becoming more mainstream just 12-14 years ago? Now sit down and let me tell you about the prehistoric times called the 1970s and 1980s...

And get off my lawn.

[viraptor]

Yes, all of those things were possible before. But now they're easier and having internet access simply saves you hours and real money on the tasks like you listed. OP asked about it to limit distractions - but I'm guessing he'd be ok with having distractions if he had more even more free time for the reading and relaxing.

So the question is what's the goal? Forcing yourself to have less distractions, because you can't control yourself otherwise? Or having more free time? Using internet only when you need to saves you a lot of time.

Your response was an exaggeration - of course we survived before. But I'd rather make my live easier and just power off the devices when not used.