Did you know that people with ASDs and other neurological "disorder" have a different way to use IM than NTs? Generally speaking.
After being online for the last 10 years (more so during some periods, but very much so during the last two years), I've had quite a few IM conversations. For a time of 3 years I ran a very active server where I hosted a few hundred GBs of a few shows, one that is impossible to get on DVDs due to the sheer number of episodes. Especially during that time, I was contacted, often several times a day, by people who either had access or by people who wanted access. And they all had one thing in common; how they started the conversation.
As you are most likely able to figure out by now, these people talked to me in a polite and friendly manner. They said hello, asked how I was doing - you know, dragging it out, sometimes for several topics before the real reason why they contacted me came up.
(Of course, I don't know whether or not anyone of these could be diagnosed with a neurological "disorder", and I cannot remember every single conversation)
Then, this year when I came in "closer contact" with others "like me", I've noticed a different way to talk online. Sure, sometimes we say hello to each other, but most of the time there's no beating around the bush; a window pop up and either there's a simple exclamation, a question of some sort or a link to an article or discussion the sender found interested and wanted to share.
Without dissing the NTs in my life, I prefer the latter way of contacting others through IM. This unnecessary talk about everything else makes me very impatient and restless - either you want something or you don't. Online small talk is generally a hassle.
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3 comments:
Yes! I never thought about IM and chat being different for NTs and aspies, but that certainly explains why I use email exclusively. The few times I tried to take part in a chat it was being like being in a crowded room and trying to sort out the overlapping conversations. IM was more like a phone call that interrupts you without permission, and requires you to fill in empty air spaces to "keep the conversation going."
The funny thing is that I self-diagnosed as an aspie less than a year ago, but I keep running into things like this that would have been indicators if I had known about Asperger's then.
Thanks for your comment :)
I self-diagnosed around October/November, so a little after you, but I, too, keep running into these "little things" that I can see as small or big indicators, now.
As a NT (although my partner is not so sure) I'm at the opposite end. I find it rude if someone just IMs a question or link without saying hello and attach some text like "Hi, I though you might find this article about XYZ interesting".
But I too know the feeling when someone you have not talked to for a while suddenly starts talking about how I am, what I'm doing etc. I know that there is something the person wants, so please skip the chit-chat and get to the point :)
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