The BlackBerry is a tool of the devil

So, RIM and NTP reached a settlement and BlackBerry users get to keep on stylin'. Great for them. They can have it.

I have never understood BlackBerries. I understand how they work, I just don't understand why anybody would want one.

My employer tried a couple of times to push a BlackBerry on me. Despite the fact that I have a cellphone (and keep it charged and on, usually), they wanted to be able to reach me via e-mail when I am out of the office. I flat-out refused to take it. I'm sorry, but there is no e-mail so important that it cannot wait until I get back to the office. I have trained and empowered my staff to manage work matters in my absence. Certainly, my supervisors should be able wait until I get back from lunch to check my bloody e-mail.

I think that a lot of people get these things thinking they're really cool toys. They aren't. They are remote-access handcuffs. Your employer is the one with the key. If you accept a BlackBerry from your employer, you have created the baseline expectation that you will be reading and responding to your e-mail no matter where you are, no matter what you are doing.

Boss: "I sent you an e-mail about that an hour ago!"

You: "I had to take my child to the doctor."

Boss: "Why didn't you check your BlackBerry? What do you think we gave it to you for?"

No, thank you. I'm in the office at 8:00 every morning, Monday through Friday. I'll check my e-mail when I get in.