Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know
by Stacy Johnson
provided by Money Talks News
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Huffington Post recently put up a story called You're Out: 20 Things That Became Obsolete This Decade. It's a great retrospective on the technology leaps we've made since the new century began, and it got me thinking about the difference today's technology will make in the lives of tomorrow's kids.
I've used some of their ideas and added some of my own to make the list below: Do you think kids born in 2011 will recognize any of the following?
Video tape: Starting this year, the news stories we produce here at Money Talks have all been shot, edited, and distributed to TV stations without ever being on any kind of tape. Not only that, the tape-less broadcast camera we use today offers much higher quality than anything that could have been imagined 10 years ago -- and cost less than the lens on the camera we were using previously. Digital takeover of this was inevitable. I still use videotape, but that’s because I am too cheap to buy a DVR…
Travel agents: While not dead today, this profession is one of many that's been decimated by the Internet. When it's time for their honeymoon, will those born in 2011 be able to find one? Don’t we know it?? J
The separation of work and home: When you're carrying an email-equipped computer in your pocket, it's not just your friends who can find you -- so can your boss. For kids born this year, the wall between office and home will be blurry indeed. This is scary, what if you need a “mental health day?” This is why people burn out so quickly these days…
Books, magazines, and newspapers: Like video tape, words written on dead trees are on their way out. Sure, there may be books -- but for those born today, stores that exist solely to sell them will be as numerous as record stores are now. I still like the textile pleasure of a good book. The smell of the print, the feel of the page…
Movie rental stores: You actually got in your car and drove someplace just to rent a movie? There are still usages of these. But with Netflix taking them down, its pretty much going to mean you are going to have to be a member of services like this to get what you want anymore.
Watches: Maybe as quaint jewelry, but the correct time is on your smartphone, which is pretty much always in your hand. This I am guilty of. I don’t wear a watch anymore..
Paper maps: At one time these were available free at every gas station. They're practically obsolete today, and the next generation will probably have to visit a museum to find one. This also depends on if the military keeps allowing citizens to utilize their GPS systems, or our wonderful star the Sun keeps allowing these satellites to keep their orbits (sunspot activity can take down a satellite). Only the Europeans have a system that is independent from the DARPA and US DoD – all it takes is one military command and all GPS is off. Geolocation, however still works and as long as you have that and a hand map, you will be ok. Learn old tech - old ways works better and will work even without GPS.
Wired phones: Why would you pay $35 every month to have a phone that plugs into a wall? For those born today, this will be a silly concept. But what happens when there’s a disaster and those towers aren’t available because everyone’s calling? Remember the cel networks are limited to the number of users per tower, etc. I have run into this even with the plethora of towers there’s limitations to the network. Same with wired phones however with fibre optic technology this still has a higher number of nodes and switchers available to it and much greater capacity whereas wireless has limitations on it based on the capacity of the wireless broadcast signal itself.
Long distance: Thanks to the Internet, the days of paying more to talk to somebody in the next city, state, or even country are limited.
Newspaper classifieds: The days are gone when you have to buy a bunch of newsprint just to see what's for sale.
Dial-up Internet: While not everyone is on broadband, it won't be long before dial-up Internet goes the way of the plug-in phone. And services like YouTube and the immersion environments many commercial websites have become have made it impossible to view these via a dialup connection – it just takes too much time to incorporate and recreate the data on the other side of the connection.
Encyclopedias: Imagine a time when you had to buy expensive books that were outdated before the ink was dry. This will be a nonsense term for babies born today.
Forgotten friends: Remember when an old friend would bring up someone you went to high school with, and you'd say, "Oh yeah, I forgot about them!" The next generation will automatically be in touch with everyone they've ever known even slightly via Facebook. Many of my Facebook friends are people I had passing aquaitences with in High School, college or work. Honestly, very few of them are people with whom I had close relationships with.
Forgotten anything else: Kids born this year will never know what it was like to stand in a bar and incessantly argue the unknowable. Today the world's collective knowledge is on the computer in your pocket or purse. And since you have it with you at all times, why bother remembering anything? I have noticed I am doing this!
The evening news: The news is on 24/7. And if you're not home to watch it, that's OK -- it's on the smartphone in your pocket.
CDs: First records, then 8-track, then cassette, then CDs -- replacing your music collection used to be an expensive pastime. Now it's cheap(er) and as close as the nearest Internet connection. As long as the recorded music is transferred to a digital downloadable source and the material is available. Think of all the wonderful music and performance was lost when New Orleans’ community radio station WWOZ flooded during Katrina? There were some recordings they had that were “one of a kind” and never digitally transferred. Lost forever.
Film cameras: For the purist, perhaps, but for kids born today, the word "film" will mean nothing. In fact, even digital cameras -- both video and still -- are in danger of extinction as our pocket computers take over that function too. The camera and the display source are combining…
Yellow and White Pages: Why in the world would you need a 10-pound book just to find someone? Its available via the internet..
Catalogs: There's no need to send me a book in the mail when I can see everything you have for sale anywhere, anytime. If you want to remind me to look at it, send me an email. Once again it’s a textual thing. But websites are so much cheaper..
Fax machines: Can you say "scan," ".pdf" and "email?" Fax still has its purpose, but that is slowly going away…
One picture to a frame: Such a waste of wall/counter/desk space to have a separate frame around each picture. Eight gigabytes of pictures and/or video in a digital frame encompassing every person you've ever met and everything you've ever done -- now, that's efficient. Especially compared to what we used to do: put our friends and relatives together in a room and force them to watch what we called a "slide show" or "home movies." See film camera
Wires: Wires connecting phones to walls? Wires connecting computers, TVs, stereos, and other electronics to each other? Wires connecting computers to the Internet? To kids born in 2011, that will make as much sense as an electric car trailing an extension cord. Once again, what happens when we reach the end of the usable broadcast spectrum?
Hand-written letters: For that matter, hand-written anything. When was the last time you wrote cursive? In fact, do you even know what the word "cursive" means? Kids born in 2011 won't -- but they'll put you to shame on a tiny keyboard. The wife and I taught our son cursive. Keep in mind that book 1984 – It was with the handwritten word that Winston Smith keeps his journal. It will always be important.
Talking to one person at a time: Remember when it was rude to be with one person while talking to another on the phone? Kids born today will just assume that you're supposed to use texting to maintain contact with five or six other people while pretending to pay attention to the person you happen to be physically next to. Keeping up with 5 conversations at a time is why this country is going down hill fast! We do not need to multitask like this. This is rude and insulting. And another reason this country is going downhill fast…
Retirement plans: Yes, Johnny, there was a time when all you had to do was work at the same place for 20 years and they'd send you a check every month for as long as you lived. In fact, some companies would even pay your medical bills, too! In 1899 we didn’t have pensions or social security or anything. Once people retired they were on their own and many died of poverty. Some companies had retirement pensions, some didn’t. And people didn’t plan for their retirement. We were still mostly a rural agricultural society that was quickly urbanizing. Social Security came about due to the Great Depression, then companies started to fund pensions more. Then in the 1970’s-1980’s, pensions went and were replaced by 401(k) now companies are even doing away with those simple things. Healthcare is the same animal. So we’re regressing terribly in this case…
Mail: What's left when you take the mail you receive today, then subtract the bills you could be paying online, the checks you could be having direct-deposited, and the junk mail you could be receiving as junk email? Answer: A bloated bureaucracy that loses billions of taxpayer dollars annually. But that employs over 2 million and if privatized would be halfed or more and those jobs would never be replaced.
Commercials on TV: They're terrifically expensive, easily avoided with DVRs, and inefficiently target mass audiences. Unless somebody comes up with a way to force you to watch them -- as with video on the Internet -- who's going to pay for them?
Commercial music radio: Smartphones with music-streaming programs like Pandora are a better solution that doesn't include ads screaming between every song.
Hiding: Not long ago, if you didn't answer your home phone, that was that -- nobody knew if you were alive or dead, much less where you might be. Now your phone is not only in your pocket, it can potentially tell everyone -- including advertisers -- exactly where you are.
