Digital downloads?

Dear gordon,

You may well be right about this. I don't know that human nature has declined, but the culture of sharing is fast disappearing. The culture of socialising, which starts in school is also going. Children walked home in groups. Now their parents all too often drive them to school in the illusiory safety of a car! [etc, etc, etc].

The more people have the more selfish they seem to become!

I am sounding like an old git! Quite possibly because I am one! But you are welcome here to play your music when you can on my 'ickle set! More than welcome.

ATB from George

Hi Voltaire

Interesting question. I share your concerns up to a point, but I don't think it's that simple. I grew up with vinyl, and, as a teenager, always listened to music alone. Partly because I lived in a small town, and knew no one who shared my tastes, but also because I sort of preferred it thay way. At university I met like minded people, and remember the excitement of listening to early Smiths singles on their day of release with a group of friends, but I still enjoyed listening on my own - preferably late at night.

Conversely, it could be argued that digitisation and the Internet have made it easier to share music than ever before, whether within virtual communities, united by a shared interest, or within closer-knit groups of friends, through MSN, personal websites, etc. Come to think of it, aren't we all sharing our enthusiasm for music on this very forum? What's missing, I guess, is gathering in the physical presence of friends to share the experience of musical communion - but I prefer to think that new technology doesn't prevent that, but just gives us additional options.

On balance, I don't see a great problem here - but that's exactly the answer you'd expect from a woolly-minded, liberal optimist like me, right?

I'm more concerned about the issue that George alludes to, of children growing up constantly under parental wings - how will they ever develop into responsible adults who can take care of themselves?

Very late, in some cases very painfully, and in very rare cases very badly indeed I imagine ...

ATB from George

With the growing of digital downloads (legal or illegal) i noticed a reduction of CDs prices.
This is another case of disputable but somehow useful invention.
Actually compression formats' quality makes me stay on CDs but many said the same thing when CDs appeared on the market to conquer vinyl printings and still they do.
What's important to me is the choice at a human price.
I would say that internet and digital formats give a public space even to those that makes their music in their own sitting rooms and this is good.
If we want to talk about the social importance of music as a moment to stay together you are probably right but we should talk about all the different approaches to music.
Btw if people like to get retarded with those playstations i can't stop them alone.
That's a matter of historical recurrences.