Tech Perception

One of the first design considerations for a product regardless of the field is what is the target demographic?  It seems like a reasonable question, especially when considering the finances, since a designer or investor wants to make sure someone will spend their hard earned money on it.  So regardless of how the product turns out, they want to ensure the right people know about it and most importantly when they know about it that they'll even give a crap about it.  These demographics can typically divide between age groups, creating a general stereotypical subgroup that we slowly percolate through as life goes on.  But there are other demographic definitions that can change seemingly immediately; I am currently staring at the fate of no longer being a college student.

Now I assume, upon receiving my diploma, all does not change and what attracted me for 5 years will not vanish into a bad dream.  But there will come the day very soon where I stop thinking like a poor college student and more like a young professional with more money than I've ever owned, and guess what, companies will probably realize it before I do.  This fact has made me consider how the technology in my life will change, what will interest me in the future, and it can not be ignored how my knowledge of technology will change upon leaving a college environment.

Our perception of a technology's value is directly related how we find it useful, and what we find useful is constantly changing.  Currently, every piece of tech I own is multipurposed, for entertainment and academics, this is economical for me but also lends to a college lifestyle of free form  time management.  Come the beginning of my career a separation of work and home will surely be more clearly defined and how I use and purchase technology will reflect that.  The odd truth is that being away from a Tech school like Stevens, alone may change how I appreciate technology as not being among technology inclined peers will limit my exposure and understanding of new advances.  This is where demographics come into play, while I may still be interested, not being in a youthful Tech school environment will automatically shift my awareness.  I am eager to rediscover, broaden my appreciation, and surely forget and never use some technology as my life changes in a new direction.  

In this class we discussed entanglement, and the reliance on technology.  A startling change of lifestyle may be what is needed to allow for a refreshing reassessment of the technology around me,  as I determine what belongs in my new life and what will fall by the wayside.