> So the only answer to controlling ourselves is to hobble our equipment? I totally disagree.
A certain amount of muscle memory is the problem. I can open distracting sites without even thinking about it. I use the LeechBlock plugin for Firefox to block out distracting sites when I really need to get something done. For the first little while, I open the sites automatically (which, of course, doesn't work). Eventually my brain gets temporarily retrained and I don't do it as much.
Bottleneck isn't really the issue (I have big dual-monitors, for example). No matter how much screen space you have, you can only look at one thing at a time. It takes your attention to read hacker news, for example.
Avoiding distractions is not a physical addiction that one needs to go "cold turkey" with. If so, the user has bigger problems than information overload. Game addicts would fall into that category, not those following Twitter or any other real-time media.
Widening the bottleneck allows one to view, arrange and process more information. I bet you are using both monitors directly in front of you, as one large display. That's a bottleneck as well. Try putting another to your right or left and filter certain information to it. Worked wonders for me.
Controlling what your fingers do, is another matter.I am in total control of my body when using the computer.
A certain amount of muscle memory is the problem. I can open distracting sites without even thinking about it. I use the LeechBlock plugin for Firefox to block out distracting sites when I really need to get something done. For the first little while, I open the sites automatically (which, of course, doesn't work). Eventually my brain gets temporarily retrained and I don't do it as much.
Bottleneck isn't really the issue (I have big dual-monitors, for example). No matter how much screen space you have, you can only look at one thing at a time. It takes your attention to read hacker news, for example.