When I first read this book as a required reading for my multimedia web class, I skimmed through it, and I thought to myself, “this is literally just a book. We are reading a story as an assigned textbook.” I even almost skipped out on buying it because I wasn’t too sure that was the right book for the class. It most definitely was, and after reading through it, I can see why it was required reading. I am very glad that I got the chance to read the book and see how innovative the writing for it is.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (H2G2) was a phenomenal read, and a story that was already relatable nearly 50 years early. Douglas Adams told a futuristic story about the future, and did so in a way that no other author probably could at the time that story was published. The elements within the story, and its relation to modern technology, provide us with something phenomenal that makes you wonder how Douglas Adams was able to create a story about technology, back when technology was a thing that many people overlooked when it was first being introduced.
To quote a character from the musical The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals: “Once confined to the world of science fiction, she is now science fact!” (He was referring to Amazon’s Alexa that acted as his virtual maiden). There have been many adaptations of the technology within the world of H2G2 that are used now in everyday lives; things such as Wikipedia websites that have a forum of information that can be accessed at any time they want (such as the in-story H2G2 that was written by Ford Perfect, and many others that came before him). Or an app that can translate words and sentences from a different language (like the Babbel Fish, without the intrusiveness that comes with using the Babbel Fish).
These things help make gathering information, and learning about them, much more accessible than it used to be. They are also constantly improving and becoming faster and smarter, which is both highly impressive and intimidating at the same time. On the other hand, they can also cause confusion, as there are so many things to keep track of and keep up with; sometimes it seems like things are new, but lack the charm of what came before them, and even seem worse. In the same vein, as I have attended my multimedia classes, and begin learning these new programs and try my best to keep up with all of these larger projects, one thing that has been taught to us, and hopefully something that can be taught everywhere else, is: Don’t Panic. Of course, that can be hard to do when the task is daunting and intimidating. But when we learn to path our way through the chaos, or maybe learn to take a step back and reassess ourselves and come back to it later, we’re able to achieve great things, and navigate ourselves better through a world that doesn’t want to wait. And hopefully, you too, can figure out where your towel is (I don’t believe I have yet, but that is a discovery that I must make for myself).
Featured image credit: “Towel Day – Dont Panic – Douglas Adams – The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy” by Alan O’Rourke is licensed under CC BY 2.0.