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Survey Tackles College Gaming Stereotypes
Thanks to an anonymous reader for pointing to an AP/Yahoo story discussing a survey on college gaming, whose results seem to challenge stereotypes about videogames interfering with college studies. According to a researcher for the project, which surveyed college gamers throughout the US, "It's not taking the place of studying; nor is it taking away from other activities. What.. [college students] seem to have done is incorporated gaming into a very multitask-oriented lifestyle." In fact, playing games can even save you time, quips college gamer David McNulty, "It takes less time to play a few games than to go downtown or see a movie with your friends. It's easier to meet them online and shoot at them."
http://www.pewinternet.org/
/rant
You can see their research fellows and what-not. As I am a college kid - I can tell you that every woman I know hates computer games save for solitare, and LAN parties are synonymous with sausage festivals.
Since I was skeptical - I noticed that the head researcher was a Steve Jones - doing internetworking since 1979 etc - maybe weighting some views in an attempt to make himself not look like so much of a tool?
socializing is talking/chatting/phoning real people - NOT masquerading as GHoSTFacEdKilLler93
end rant
This comes as no suprise to those between 16 and 26. Not as though older people are ignorant of this fact, they just consistently misunderstand current culture.
;) With the multitasking capabilities of modern computers, though, it's much easier to handle typing a paper, doing some research, and getting in a simple game (and some IM, MP3s, etc). I may not need to go to the library at all to do some research, and if I do, I can often have a fairly thick book list to look up when I get there, rather than trying to make that book list from the library's resources. Music has been a constant companion in my life since I was about 12 years old, and there's little time in my day when I'm not listening to it. Games are just another part, what I do with friends, or when I have nothing else to fill the time, or when I need a break from whatever I may be working on at home (can't play games at work, though I may catch a quick cell phone game on my smoke breaks if no one else is outside). I also tend to keep a fairly thick library of games at home. The point is not that I have time to play all of those games now, it's simply that I enjoy (or know that I will enjoy) those games, and may play each in short bursts, and would prefer to spend my entertainment money supporting developers that put out games I'd like to play, but may not have time to play now (but will eventually, as long as I can keep my consoles and computers working long enough).
I agree here (and no surprise as I'm 25). What I'm finding, though, as I work in an environment where I am definitely the youngest person working in-house (we have a few my age or younger working mostly on the road), is that older people are slowly getting more into gaming, although they typically stay in the sports games and only occasionally go into other areas (Tomb Raider, Splinter Cell, etc). A lot of people here have an XBox, and a couple have PS2s (though most of those for their kids, or nieces and nephews, at least that's what they say). (The reason for the high percentage of XBox users here has to do with HDTV support and online gaming, from what I've heard). Some of them played the occasional computer game, and a few of them had an Atari or an NES before, but most didn't bother really keeping up with what was recent in console or computer gaming, and for a few the XBox was the first console they've owned since the Atari or NES. I definitely think most of them would be surprised at this study, even though they have no problem putting in some game time with their work schedules.
My generation is one of multitaskers and speed-demons.
My biggest problem with college was the pace, especially when it came to computer courses, which seemed almost glacial. In one course in particular the assignments were handed out ahead of time, and I found myself well over half way through the work within 2 weeks, despite not really spending much time outside of class working on it (in fact, for the first week I didn't even have the compiler at home or any way to import outside work without typing it in during class, so I did no work outside of class). On the other hand, some courses definitely needed the semester schedule, although maybe people more oriented to those fields would not agree.
Everyone I knew at college did not just sitdown and write a paper, most would also have the TV on, play MP3s, actively IM, and perhaps have a game of Freecell going. It's not that these students magically have more time in their days to play games, sleep, and study, it's that most of the time they do activities simultaneously.
Exactly. Then again, some of us do survive on less sleep
-PainKilleR-[CE]