The past week was filled with all sorts of good news and bad news on the electronic communications front.

 

In terms of bad news, Retrevo.com released its most recent Gadgetology study and reported that only 29% of all parents disallow texting during family meals. This is not a good idea, folks. The family meal used to be the place where young people learned basic table manners, including how to manage social conversations. To the extent parents now allow children to text during meals, both parents and children are missing out on a key learning opportunity. Parents should make family meals a text-free zone and instead encourage their children to engage in real conversations during this important time.

 

Those same parents should be aware of bad news regarding their own use of e-mail. According to the New York Post, a survey of 4,750 businesspeople showed that one of three who used their laptop or cell phone just before going to bed had a hard time getting to sleep. It turns out that e-mailing before bedtime has about the same impact as downing a double espresso. It would appear we would all benefit by turning off our e-mail an hour or two before we intend to head to bed.

 

Finally, some good news appeared in Sunday’s New York Times. In “Tell-All Generation Learns to Keep Things Off-Line,” the NYT reported that today’s thoroughly connected young people have become increasingly concerned about protecting their digital reputations. Reporting on a Pew Internet Project survey slated to be released later this month, the NYT indicates that young adults in their 20s vigorously delete unwanted posts and limit information about themselves that makes its way on-line.