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you’ve got, there are guys in yeshiva with blackberrys. does it make sense? no. what do they need it for, to bbm (BlackBerry Message)?
but when it really hit me was when two out of my three chavrusahs got it. they don’t need it. all it is good for is distraction. and i hve to suffer.
what’s the CR’s say on this important matter?
If I was in your position I would explain to my chavrusahs that they seem to be preoccupied with trivial things not related to learning and it is hurting the learning. If it can’t be corrected within say 5 days, I will have to look for a new chavrusah.
I download audio shiurim to my Blackberry and listen to them on the bus and subway through headphones.
Like all things, having a Blackberry has its virtues and its vices. We have already discussed ad nauseum whether or not talmidim should have cell phones in the Beis Medrash. We have attacked this issue from several different angles, and the heated discussion became very acrimonious (usually the younger posters versus the older ones). Anything that prevents someone from doing properly that which he entered the Beis Medrash to do, and especially if it distracts others, should be banned at that time.
The biggest problems with Blackberries and similar devices is not Bittul Zman, but Bittul Guf. In my days we exercised all our bodies playing real active sports. Now all the kids exercise during recess is their thumbs.
The problem doesn’t lie with the blackberry but with what the blackberry entails u must have a data plan eg: internet isn’t that the prob ?? A phone alone is no prob and I would argue that niether is bbm but the web is where it goes wrong
it’s possible to have a blackberry without the data plan
I stand corrected a blackberry doesn’t have to have a data plan but if it doesn’t then why isn’t the original problem that” my 2 chavrusas have cell phones” bec w/o web a blackberry is like any other phone so I assumed he was talking about a phone with web
ihear, maybe the chavrusas do have data plans? Just a possibility.
I have in the past thought the same thing. In seminary, someone once mentioned something about her blackberry and I thought to myself “you’re 18, who are you that you need a blackberry?!” I’m not against texting or the internet if they stay in safe hands but I see no need for a blackberry (definitely not for a young crowd).
blackberries r for working people, why do kids need it?
Blackberries have replaced talking.
At least the users who are Shomer Shabbos are forced to use their mouths one day in seven.
I concur with Josh 31
i use to have a blackberry it didnt have a data plan my phone broke and someone gave it to me so i used it
it was a FREE phone what should i do
I am looking to replace my Palm PDA (wihch is not working so well anymore)and plain old cellphone with a smartphone (so that I only need one device instead of 2), but I do not want internet access. The reps in the Sprint store told me that I must have a data plan for the Blackberry to work.
most service providers require a data plan for smartphones. you can do what i did – buy an unlocked phone and put a sim card in it
I am researching the same thing – for the “privilege” of using any smartphone , you have to pay 9.99 or 29.99 (depending on phone) per phone, for the (unwanted) data package.
Torah Mom, you’re pretty much stuck with a data plan. But if you have any sort of self control you can avoid going to dodgy websites. For looking things up Google gives you the options of “safe search”. And if you have kids you can always put a lock-code or password on your phone so they can’t access it.
Man yeshivas are banning these things. They are incredibly addictive and a waste of time. My wife complains that her boss is too busy with the blackberry to get any real work done.
torahmom – I also wanted a smart phone with no data plan. I had called around and they would only give me the phone with the data plan until I stated that I wear glasses and wanted the blackberry not for internet but for the size and T mobile was willing to sell me the phone and connect it without a data plan because of (this is their term not mine) a visual impairment, sprint or verizon wouldn’t do it. Good luck
I know this may sound like a revolutionary and shocking idea, but…
… how about letting the parents decide if it’s appropriate for their minor children to have a Blackberry?
The Wolf
It is extremely rude and inconsiderate and absolutely not kovodik to the Torah to put your blackberry on the table while learning or even pull it out of your pocket when it rings. If you are learning then you must put aside that time to devote to learning and turn the phone off. Whether it is a blackberry or any other cell phone. One can check their messages after the seder is over.
This has nothing to do with blackberries or what’s on them. This is plain and poshut bad manners. If a person would walk over to your table while looking to have a poshut conversation would you or they stop learning to shmooze with the others? If the answer is yes then the blackberry or phone is in the same category and that would also be a boosha to the sefer and the intention of learning Torah. However, if your answer is “no” then there should be no problem making up with your chavrusahs that when you are learning together, the phones have to be turned off and you wish to have a no interruptions type of session.
anuran, if I put a lock-code or password does it just block internet access, so they can still use it as a phone?
Yes
Jothar writes:
Man yeshivas are banning these things. They are incredibly addictive and a waste of time.
That’s why we call them “crackberries”.
TorahMom:
The lock-code doesn’t allow any access to the phone until it is entered.
For something a little more flexible look in the iPhone app store under “parental control”. There’s everything from a kid-safe browser to ways of locking down selected lists of applications. No kids have access to my phone, so I haven’t investigated them.
The BBerry App store has similar apps that lock down individual features (apps).
First of all, bb are one of the best fones out there, which is y someone would get one in the first place. Regarding filters, jnet makes a very good one which doesn’t even allow going on youtube.you can get a bb from verizon w/o internet,however u would have to pay the 30 data plan then block the internet on the fone.
You don’t have kosher phones in Ch”L yet?
a shtuss!
TorahMom, the Palm Treo and Centro allow you have a phone and your PDA in one. They work like a regular Palm but they also have a phone and camera. And you don’t need a data plan (at least with Sprint). You can even beam or bluetooth all your applications you currently have on your Palm to the Treo/Centro.
(The only difference between the Treo and Centro is that the Treo is a bigger phone (larger screen and keypad) then the Centro.)
The problem is, some of the cell phone companies and pulling the Treo/Centro (including Sprint). For some reason, they are not selling these great phones anymore. If you can get your hands on one, your lucky. But try not to get a used one. Many have the used ones have many problems.
I do kiruv online and have to stay in contact with quite a few people. I use the bb instead of a computer (not that I would have minded having a normal phone and a computer separate but the bb is what came with the contract and it works)
To clarify my first statement the people I am doing kiruv with are only accessible to me online
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