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Author Topic: Modern Kids, old technology  (Read 16111 times)
Trevor
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« Reply #15 on: January 17, 2011, 09:27:59 AM »

I actually have an old 8mm projector in the basement that I picked up at a rummage sale a couple of years ago. Thought I might put it on display or something. I should buy some films for it off eBay and show her how it works.

Or you can just invite me over and I will bring some films to screen for you.  TeddyR
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Jim H
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« Reply #16 on: January 19, 2011, 12:52:00 AM »

My daughter finally asked me about the 16mm film reels I have mounted in a frame. She wondered why I hung a bunch of wheels on the wall. Took quite a bit of explaining - how moving pictures work, how a film projector works, how movies have only come on tapes and discs for a relatively short time, and so on.

I actually have an old 8mm projector in the basement that I picked up at a rummage sale a couple of years ago. Thought I might put it on display or something. I should buy some films for it off eBay and show her how it works.

There's something almost magic about watching projected film with a projector like that.  I think it's because it's so much easier to understand than the technology in newer formats.  Vinyl is the same way.  It's just neat, and is one reason vinyl has had a minor comeback amongst young people in the past 5 years.

I have a significant amount of experience with old tech for someone my age (27).  My dad brought home a teletype machine that was going to be thrown out, so I messed with that.  We had a rotary phone in our basement that I used sometimes for some reason (honestly, I have no idea why we had it, they were already outdated in the late 80s).  My dad had all kinds of OLD computer equipment, including punch cards.  A love of old video games has led me to buy a few made before I was born.  I remember messing around with our 8-track player.  Those things suck.

We also had two Betamax players when I was younger, and almost all the films I watched growing up were recorded off HBO/Cinemax on Beta, and we and still had one hooked up til about 2000.  I own several hundred films on LaserDisc.  I've toyed around with the idea of buying a CED player, but haven't gotten around to it. 

As far as modern kids go...  I do find it somewhat worrisome how dependent some are on the internet/cell phones.  I'm very glad now that I grew up without such things.  Well, the internet was AROUND and I first used it around 1992 or '93 (my dad was an engineer and used it for work in the early days) but I can fully remember when it was not so useful.  I also find some people's attitudes about cell phones to be extremely annoying.  Particularly how shocked and appalled they get at the idea of being unable to use theirs for more then literally minutes at a time (and this is hardly just young people either). 

Ever read the reactions people give to the idea of theatres actually blocking cell phone signals inside the theatres (a fantastic idea, by the way)?  They act as if you'd be cutting off their hand.  They whine about emergencies.  Yeesh.  Has that EVER mattered in the history of cellphones in theatres?   Lookingup
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El Misfit
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« Reply #17 on: January 19, 2011, 12:57:16 AM »

I honestly never thought I'd be the old guy who rags about how kids today have it so easy. 

Me either.  Kids today wouldn't know what to do with themselves if their tech was taken away.
That is difficult for me to comprehend because I was raised very differently.

I read an ABCNews story recently where a teacher dared his students to go without their cell phones or Facebook for one week.
Several of the kids stated that it was hard for them and many of them slipped.

Is that sad or what?
What kind of pussies are parents raising these days!?


eh, I can go without both- Before Eighth grade, I never had a cell phone nor had (and STILL!!!)  have a Facebook account.

PS, The Social Network robbed Inception of its Golden Globes, That nailed the coffin of how I will NEVER have a Facebook account! Hatred

I have a rotary phone!  TeddyR
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AndyC
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« Reply #18 on: January 19, 2011, 09:53:44 AM »

I have a significant amount of experience with old tech for someone my age (27).  My dad brought home a teletype machine that was going to be thrown out, so I messed with that.  We had a rotary phone in our basement that I used sometimes for some reason (honestly, I have no idea why we had it, they were already outdated in the late 80s).  My dad had all kinds of OLD computer equipment, including punch cards.  A love of old video games has led me to buy a few made before I was born.  I remember messing around with our 8-track player.  Those things suck.

I used to be fascinated by 8-track players. Just having this cartridge without the exposed mechanisms of a cassette, that could continuously play and wind the tape back onto the same reel. And a head that could shift from one set of tracks to the next. It was ingenious. I just hated having to wait for the tape to come back around to the same song if I wanted to hear it again.

I remember when my dad installed an 8-track player in the family Suburban. I use the term "installed" very loosely, since Dad refused to drill holes in the truck's interior. The deck sat loosely in the glove compartment, cushioned by sponges affixed to it by electrical tape. The surface-mount speakers were screwed to a board that sat under the front seat. It wasn't pretty, but it allowed us to enjoy a shoebox full of John Denver, Charley Pride and assorted bagpipe music on family road trips.

And Dad being a cheapskate with little interest in gadgets, we had rotary phones in the house until the 90s, including a hardwired wall phone they still rented from the phone company. Big black thing, so old that the outer shell was the only plastic on it. Metal hook, metal dial, metal everything. When Dad finally gave in and got me to install a jack for a touchtone with call display, the phone company actually wanted the old relic back (company policy, I suppose). Personally, I think they had a nerve to continue charging rent on it, much less ask for it back. I just wish I could have been at the local Bell World store to see the looks on their faces when Dad strolled in past the cellphones, satellite dishes and modems to present them with the thing.

A rotary phone remained in use in the basement until my parents sold the house a few years ago. Only rotary desk phone I've seen with an external Caller ID box.
« Last Edit: January 19, 2011, 10:05:41 AM by AndyC » Logged

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Trevor
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« Reply #19 on: January 19, 2011, 10:03:06 AM »

I just wish I could have been at the local Bell World store to see the looks on their faces when Dad strolled in past the cellphones, satellite dishes and modems to present them with the thing.

 TeddyR TeddyR Me too.

My folks had a rotary phone in Zimbabwe and they had to get used to a push-button phone here once they moved.
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Newt
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« Reply #20 on: January 19, 2011, 10:15:53 AM »

I have had to teach kids how to use a broom.  Not little kids: kids well into their double digits age-wise.   Buggedout

HEY - I actually had to USE the teletype at a job I had back in the '80's!

I live on a farm.

The only landlines available are NOT capable of high speed internet.  The phone company has no plans to replace them any time soon: it is too expensive to do.

Our phone is rotary-dial because that service is cheaper.  (Our second phone will produce tones when needed)  I am not going to pay for an upgrade to touch-tone until the phone company gives me no choice.  Why should I?  I get the same service.  We've been here since 1992 and that has not happened yet.  A neighbour still has a party line - for the same reason.

We do not have any cell phones in the family.  No texting teens here!  Hubby carries one for work when they ask him to - or a pager.

Yes we have internet: dialup.  TEN bucks a month.  (Compare unreliable wireless at $60/month) Yes my kids use it.  Three of us are on Facebook.  Big deal.  It provides contact with far-flung relatives and friends and it is cheap entertainment.  Nothing more.

We have satellite TV.  Largely a waste of money, but it is our one major indulgence.

People ask me, "What if someone wants to talk to you when you are away from the phone?" - they can wait until I check the answering machine!  The Prime Minister knows where to find me if he needs my immediate input.   Wink   I do find that people are less willing to leave a message - they let it ring twice and if nobody picks up they break the connection before the answering machine picks up on the third ring.  THEN they tell me, "I called and called, but there was no answer!"  WTF???  If you really want to get in touch with me, give me the option returning your call you idiot!  (And it is not just private parties: businesses do it too)  IF I am expecting a call, I use the intercom in the barn to monitor the house phone.  I can hear it ring - and hear any incoming messages.  IF it was not important enough to you to make the effort to leave a message, it is NOT important enough to me to look up your number and call you just because you called my number! (Nope: no call display either.  Why pay for that?)

My kids understand that we are unwilling to spend the money to have wireless internet at the current rates and five cell phones, and that that money gets spent on other things we need or want more.  It's just not practical for us. Convenient? Perhaps. Essential? Absolutely not.

Years ago (over 20!), I encountered kids who were unable to tell the time on an analog clock - I have to say that disturbs me.  Now they cannot tie shoelaces, or even figure them out.  Read a map?  Not a hope.  Know which way is north?  HA!  Follow written directions?  It is to laugh!

And don't get me going on the lack of manners!  HOW is it polite to carry a cell phone, insist on keeping the ring 'on' and then to ignore the calls coming in - while you are doing something involving paying attention to another person?  If you're not going to actually USE it, HOW is that different from me being away from my phone and answering machine in the house?

As far as I can see, we're not gaining skills, we are losing them.  Including patience.

No wonder we have so many people who feel extremes of anxiety: they cannot be alone and they have no abilities when they are 'cut off'.  That IS scary!

BTW: my family is active in outdoor activities: all are involved in Scouting, camping, boating, fishing, sports, etc.  My kids DO spend a good bit of time playing games on the computer, and on the internet, but it is only part of what they are 'into'.  We're even more committed to Scouting as a counter to what we see happening to kids these days.  There is a great deal of self-esteem to be gained from a feeling of capability and self-reliance.

Sorry this turned into a bit of a rant - hit a sore spot!   TongueOut

(edited for spelling!)
« Last Edit: January 19, 2011, 10:38:31 AM by Newt » Logged

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AndyC
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« Reply #21 on: January 19, 2011, 10:30:57 AM »

I just wish I could have been at the local Bell World store to see the looks on their faces when Dad strolled in past the cellphones, satellite dishes and modems to present them with the thing.


 TeddyR TeddyR Me too.

My folks had a rotary phone in Zimbabwe and they had to get used to a push-button phone here once they moved.


Found an identical phone on Wikipedia. The Western Electric Model 554 with a metal dial, circa 1959. That would have been about when the house was built, so I assume it was the original phone.

Been a long time since I can remember seeing something like this inside any electronic device.


Back when rotary phones would still work on the lines, a friend of mine put one in just because he's an aficionado of old technology and a fan of 70s-80s kitsch. It was one of those wall phones with a rotary dial in the handset. I used to think those things were so cool when I was a kid. So did my friend, so he was thrilled to find one. Even today, it seems a really creative mix of old and new (for the time) technology.

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Flick James
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« Reply #22 on: January 19, 2011, 11:30:39 AM »

Speaking of teletype machines, I went to electronics school in the Navy in 1998, and they were still teaching about how to troubleshoot them in the context of a full communications room on a ship. I never saw an actual teletype machine once I hit the fleet, however. I just remember that phase of school and the TTY machines always having the old teletype testing sentence that contains every letter in the English language "THE QUICK BROWN FOX JUMPS OVER THE LAZY BEAR" over and over.
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ulthar
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« Reply #23 on: January 19, 2011, 12:19:00 PM »


My cellphone is my only phone line, so it'd be a bad idea to cut that off for a week (plus I use mine as a watch).


In the mid '90's, I went for a year with no phone at all.  It was great and I loved it.  (I did have phone access at work, so if family across the country had to get in touch for an emergency, they could).

To order pizza, we had walk or drive to a nearby gas station and use the pay phone.

I'd LOVE to be phone-less again.  For most part, I don't want people to get in touch with me; I want to be left alone.  However, I admit with the children and their activities (schedule changes, etc) that it would be harder to do without.

As for old tech...well, we don't have pressurized running water and we certainly don't have hot running water.  We have a hand pump, and when we need hot water, we heat it on the stove; that includes for mundane tasks like washing dishes.  No oven and no microwave, either, so cooking is a little more "old school" (we cook on a propane stove).

We also have no refrigerator, so storing food is a low-tech approach.  We do have a passive ice box.

The funny thing about all this is how other people react (kids and adults).  They assume that we are unhappy - because we don't have a microwave oven, for example - like we would change it if we could.

That's the wrong assumption.  We reject those 'conveniences' as a requirement to being happy, and that's the disconnect.  Others act like "how can you be happy without x?"
« Last Edit: January 19, 2011, 12:32:57 PM by ulthar » Logged

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Paquita
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« Reply #24 on: January 19, 2011, 12:42:07 PM »

Oh Newt!  I love you!  I got a cell phone for my 21st birthday and cried... because I was sad, not because I was happy.  I'm really wrestling with modern technology.  I see all the benefits, but I can't get over people being so obsessed.  I refuse to use my cell phone for conversations... I'll call you at home or come over.

I admit, I have trouble reading analog clocks.  I can do it, but it just takes me about 5 seconds or so.  I can't glance at it and know what time it is.  I've always had one at home, so it's not for lack of exposure!  I'm slow at reading too, so maybe that's related.

I used to have a rotary phone!  I miss it.  I always wondered why 9-1-1 was the emergency number when 9 takes so long to dial on a rotary phone.
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Flick James
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« Reply #25 on: January 19, 2011, 12:57:34 PM »

Oh Newt!  I love you!  I got a cell phone for my 21st birthday and cried... because I was sad, not because I was happy.  I'm really wrestling with modern technology.  I see all the benefits, but I can't get over people being so obsessed.  I refuse to use my cell phone for conversations... I'll call you at home or come over.

I admit, I have trouble reading analog clocks.  I can do it, but it just takes me about 5 seconds or so.  I can't glance at it and know what time it is.  I've always had one at home, so it's not for lack of exposure!  I'm slow at reading too, so maybe that's related.

I used to have a rotary phone!  I miss it.  I always wondered why 9-1-1 was the emergency number when 9 takes so long to dial on a rotary phone.

Don't feel bad about the reading thing. I'm not the fastest reader either, but my retention is outstanding.
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Jim H
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« Reply #26 on: January 19, 2011, 04:43:31 PM »

Hmmm...  If I went without a phone that means I'd basically never see anyone ever again.  Everyone I know lives far apart and keep odd hours...  So cell phones are the only practical way of keeping in touch.  Kind of sucks sometimes actually. 
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Allhallowsday
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« Reply #27 on: January 19, 2011, 05:52:10 PM »

In the mid '90's, I went for a year with no phone at all.  It was great and I loved it.  (I did have phone access at work, so if family across the country had to get in touch for an emergency, they could).
To order pizza, we had walk or drive to a nearby gas station and use the pay phone.
I'd LOVE to be phone-less again.  For most part, I don't want people to get in touch with me; I want to be left alone.  However, I admit with the children and their activities (schedule changes, etc) that it would be harder to do without.
As for old tech...well, we don't have pressurized running water and we certainly don't have hot running water.  We have a hand pump, and when we need hot water, we heat it on the stove; that includes for mundane tasks like washing dishes.  No oven and no microwave, either, so cooking is a little more "old school" (we cook on a propane stove).
We also have no refrigerator, so storing food is a low-tech approach.  We do have a passive ice box.
The funny thing about all this is how other people react (kids and adults).  They assume that we are unhappy - because we don't have a microwave oven, for example - like we would change it if we could.
That's the wrong assumption.  We reject those 'conveniences' as a requirement to being happy, and that's the disconnect.  Others act like "how can you be happy without x?"
I do not have a cellphone.  My employer had offered to pay for the thing, yet I declined.  I do see the practical uses, and if I was commuting as I had been back in the '90s, I would carry one.  Otherwise, my thought is: "Why would I want my phonecalls following me around?? Question Thumbdown 

I had no television for more than two years until I moved into this house.  I had a TV, so I could watch VHS, but no cable, and never bothered to connect the thing to the antenna that had been on the roof of the old house.  I did not watch television at all for about 30 months; I still don't watch much television. 

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ulthar
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« Reply #28 on: January 19, 2011, 07:12:18 PM »


Hmmm...  If I went without a phone that means I'd basically never see anyone ever again.  Everyone I know lives far apart and keep odd hours...  So cell phones are the only practical way of keeping in touch.  Kind of sucks sometimes actually. 


Write a letter?

I mean, if you are really spread out (like my family was when I went without a phone), you don't get together on a whim.  It has to be planned.  Writing works.  And a letter is something you put some of yourself into that the other person gets to keep.

Just think about how much of history we know from personal letters that were saved.  That's pretty much gone, now.   Bluesad
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Paquita
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« Reply #29 on: January 19, 2011, 08:00:20 PM »

Just think about how much of history we know from personal letters that were saved.  That's pretty much gone, now.   Bluesad

Don't worry!  I still write letters!  And I collect stationery!
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