the results of the ….

How many times will we hear this during the next couple of weeks? Since a large number of Olympic events being shown on TV will not be live, I think we will hear this a lot. Many people will want to watch the events without knowing the results.

Of course this is a culture change that has been slowly evolving over time. We now have the capabilities with the Internet and mobile devices to instantaneously check the scores of almost any sporting event that we want from anywhere in the world. I like to check the Baseball scores, and it is easy to quickly pull up the daily scoreboard on MLB.com. Depending on where I am, it can be with my Blackberry, iPad or a computer.

Of course, this can cause problems when talking to friends. I may be checking the scores and getting excited since my team has won or is ahead, while they are asking me to be quiet because they are recording it at home.

This applies to many sports depending on the time of year and is more problematic during playoffs or major sporting events.

We live in a society that wants instant access to information, but also wants to filter out the results of events that they want to watch later without knowing the results. The same applies to our favorite sitcoms or reality shows.

For the Olympics, the results are everywhere around us. Even if you are checking your mail, you may see story headlines as you access your mailbox. A visit to you favorite financial or entertainment web site may also show headlines with Olympic results.

I have apps on my iPad that I can use to quickly access to check the latest results. They have been used several times already and I know the results of several events that I will end up watching this evening. It will still be fun to watch the events, even if I know the end result.

So, if you want to keep the results of your favorite event a secret before you watch it, make sure you let your friends know and be careful what sites you visit on the Internet. Especially Facebook, as someone will surely get exited and post about their favorite event.

Steven