One of our readers writes . . .

Dear Dr. Dopolis,

I am finding that sometimes your products interfere with my cordless phone. Why is that, and how can I make it stop?

Chatty Cathy in Carolina.

Dear Chatty,

First of all, don’t panic, and don’t place blame on your technology. Placing blame is often the first thing people like to do in situations like this. The reason that you sometimes get interference is that your phone, and some of our products run on a frequency of 2.4GHz. Or GigaHertz. The long and the short of it is that this is the standard because it’s the best frequency for consumer electronics. It’s also the frequency that the FCC has allotted for these products. 2.4GHz has better bandwidth, and better transmission (that’s what we call in my business [technology psychotherapy] a techno-psycho term, and I won’t go into much detail here). But it does sometimes create conflicts. Let me remind you though, that conflict is not necessarily a bad thing. Conflict, if we let it, can bring out the best in us, and cause us to grow. This is true in all areas of life, and it is true with you and your technology.

Let’s look at this from the technology’s point of view. It has only been given one frequency with which to communicate. That’s like several people in a group all talking at once. But that is easily solved. By politely waiting your turn in a conversation, you can resolve the "noise" problem that one sometimes encounters in a group of friends. The same is true with your phone and your X10 products. These are all like a bunch of friends trying to "talk at once." So encourage your technology to "take turns talking" to solve this problem.

When you’re using your phone, you let the rest of the technology listen politely. And when you’re using your other technology, encourage your phone to listen politely. This is the only fair way to do it.

In the mean time, remember, you are the "more developed" in this relationship, and so it’s up to you to lead the way with your technological counterparts. So when you sometimes become frustrated, give the product the benefit of the doubt, and check up on it first. Then you will find that things will continue to improve in your relationship.

And remember, technology is your friend.

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