JOIN USRemember those good old days when you spent time scribbling memorable notes to your high school friends, some of whom, you may never meet again. Writing in slam books, in colourful, wacky diaries and books was a ritual girls and boys followed before passing out of school.
But today, technology seems to have overshadowed that thrill and sentiment. The slam book has changed form and given way to newer forms of communication. You don’t write on slam books anymore but you scrap on Orkut and poke on Facebook to stay connected with your long lost friends and make new ones.
Slambooks had two pages set apart loaded with questions such as ‘What is your favourite colour?’, ‘What is your biggest asset?’ etc. You could answer these questions and even paste a picture of yourself. Slam books gave way to colourful diaries and these diaries were further worked upon and made to look attractive. Sangeetha says “None of my friends and classmates write in slam books anymore. We write on diaries, sign on a white shirts or a tee shirt. This is more memorable instead of writing in slam books. It is too old fashioned.” Adds Swara, “The last time I saw a slam book was when I was in class 10. A few months ago I finished my degree and I did not bother to own a slam book. It has moved out of the student community now.”
Efforts were made to reinvent the slam book in an artistic manner. The owner of the colourful book or diary would take pains to make his or her book look the best and the one who is writing would make effort to write the best piece, often using multi-coloured glittering pens. Deepika M S says, “No one would want to fill a slam book or a diary now. If we are seen signing in one, then we are considered outdated and technologically challenged. In an age of computerisation no one hangs on to slam books anymore.”
With the bombardment of social networking sites, e-mails and online chatting, many youngsters have given up filling slam books. These social networking sites make it easy for youngsters to find more friends.
Chaitra Murthy says, “I just passed out of college this year. I did not write for anyone in a slam book and nobody in my class circulated one. When we have Orkut and Facebook accounts where we can keep in touch regularly, why waste paper and time on slam books?”