The Mac Interface allows for quite a few options in sociability. I am focusing on the dock which is where a lot of the options the user uses repeatedly are stationed. For instance, you have the gateway to the Internet — your web browser which allows you to access endless channels of interactive material with both a CPU and other people. You can access information at the drop of a hat ( most of the time … ). However, if you take a closer look, you realize that Mac offers lots of other features to interact with other than your web browser. To be more specific, it offers an address book, calendar, iChat, and Mail. All features which allows a person to communicate with other users accross any platform. All of these features allow the user to plan events (iCal), chat with other people for whatever reason (iChat, Mail), or keep information stored for chatting with other people (address book). These features increase sociability and allow for an easy way to manage your everyday social tasks. It’s one of the reasons why I carry my Mac around with me everywhere. I can access all my information that I will need. My classes, any events I have planned, and I can talk to people via it too. These tools also increase awareness. When you are able to be tied into other people you are able to learn more of what is going on. How other people’s lives are going, what events that you don’t know about are happening and so forth.
So in short, the Mac dock allows for conversation, coordination, and awareness. Whether it’s conversation over the net via iChat or Mail, whether it’s coordination via iCal or your handy dandy Address, or the fact that it promotes awareness because in the course of it’s use in every day tasks it allows you to interact and broaden your knowledge with other persons and events.
