I use Mac and Mac alone. I’m not snobbish — just know they work all the time for me. I can do anything I need to with my Macs. Reading, writing, graphics, apps, browsers… I don’t ever have to worry that it’ll crash on me or that I’ll get some new virus for merely turning my computer on.

Thanks to companies like Apple, that are few and far between, we’ve got advanced communication at the fingertips of everyday people like you and me. Often you will come across folks with iPods, Mac notebooks, or iPhones as you roam the public square. One of the reasons this is is in addition to making high-end software and hardware, Apple keeps everything affordable for people that value user-friendly technology.

Technology like Apple’s is great, but only so long as you use it, right? It’s so true, but it seems to be taken for granted these days that you’ll use your computer and other related devices on a frequent basis. I’d like to know that people use technology for something worth doing, or that the technology really helps people. Do you lust for apps and gizmos for the sheer pleasure of sleek plastic and colorful graphics? Or are you actually using the technology that you have at your disposal for some good? (Computer games don’t count for time well spent in most cases.)

I am a writer, and I use a computer to write. I use the web to keep up with friends occasionally with Facebook or Twitter or Gmail. I look up Wikipedia, the thesaurus, images for an article from Google Image Search. How are you using your computer? Does it get overrun with free downloads you’ll never really use? Do you spend hours at a time skimming YouTube and FriendFeed for no other reason except you’re stultified?

I think this is what most people do — waste lots of their time on powerful technology. This is a great disservice to the people that develop the technology and to yourself. Technology, like most all practical tools, is not meant to be the end all of all itself. A hammer is made to help you build something. A car gets you from point A to point B. A building gives you a place to live and function in civilization. These are all man-made things that empower man to diligently preside over the earth and make the most enjoyable use of it. Everyone  can maintain their small part of the system.

Technology shouldn’t be any different. Computers have the means to get you education, skills, trades, knowledge, work, and even help you pay the bills. The computer is a gateway to an organized life stile. Why do some still use papers and filing when practically all the nitty-gritty personal management is better suited on a computer?

One of the reasons nations are faced with a deteriorating economic system is that the people who worked hard to get technology where it is today are seeing the fruits of their labors squandered. Many computer engineers and programmers slave over technology to be practical. They hope the technology will help further economic growth for the foreseeable future.

So above and beyond just keeping a schedule, reading the news, and paying the bills, computers, iPhones and a slew of other gizmos have immeasurable potential. How could  you use the technology at your disposal to be a better steward of your time and resources?