I thought by now technology would be further along...

[sml1950]

...than it seems to be.   By 2020 I expected that hologram technology would have made it into the public marketplace.  I thought bars would have “arenas”  where 1/2 size holograms would play the games in everyone’s hometown.  In this new era of social distancing, what do we have...zoom.  The time has come to travel by electricity and appear wherever we want to go without the worry of contagions.  I’m getting old, somebody out there make this happen.  Come on geeks , the world is wanting, needing and ready to pay for it.  

[WarPanthers89]

[BrianS]

Your expectations are completely overblown.

But just a few reminders . . . 

20 years ago, the top internet service provider was . . . AOL.

20 years ago, we were in a state of near hysteria over the idea that the technological world might implode when the calendar rolled over from 1999 to 2000.

20 years ago, televisions were still made with CRT's.

20 years ago, we still played movies on VCR's.

 

Technology evolves, but more slowly than we expect.  If you follow technology, you hear a lot of talk when proof of concept happens.  There's a massive leap from proof of concept to commercial viability, and it's important to keep that in mind.

[NAS]

I fear that most young people are now interested in being social media influencers instead of inventing things in science or technology. 

[frash.exe]

i think it’s a good time to remind everybody that technology isn’t as automated as it seems and we are not that close to singularity as elon musk or any tech porn news outlet would suggest.

your “cloud“ web account that you upload files to, is that information just out there in the stratosphere? nah, it’s just stored on a server in a data center only accessible to you via an encrypted connection over the internet. that ticker that moves on the bottom of the screen during sportscenter that delivers information instantaneously? yea, somebody manually inputted that into chyron software to get it to show up, same way it has been done for decades.

many ppl just take tech for granted like it’s supposed to get better and better and god forbid it fails on their watch. they don’t see the individual efforts that maintain these systems that they consume everyday.

[4Corners]

2 hours ago, BrianS said:

Your expectations are completely overblown.

But just a few reminders . . . 

20 years ago, the top internet service provider was . . . AOL.

20 years ago, we were in a state of near hysteria over the idea that the technological world might implode when the calendar rolled over from 1999 to 2000.

20 years ago, televisions were still made with CRT's.

20 years ago, we still played movies on VCR's.

 

Technology evolves, but more slowly than we expect.  If you follow technology, you hear a lot of talk when proof of concept happens.  There's a massive leap from proof of concept to commercial viability, and it's important to keep that in mind.

My friends dad’s buddy was a year 2000 prepper. Tons of stuff ready to go in a spare bedroom. Assault rifles with banana clips, food, tons of poo. I can’t imagine what this guy is up to now that there is actually something to be concerned about. Probably thinks it’s fake news. 

[onmyown]

Dude...when I was a kid I had to remember 20 phone numbers, early teen, someone could PAGE me to call them...there were pay phones EVERYWHERE

Used a 30 lb Walkman with headphones...had to record my cassettes or stuff my pocket with a few. Once portable CD player came out it was big $ to get one that didn’t skip.

VHS collection was massive...

The most high tech on a car was something like power locks and windows

There was no internet until I was an early teen and I spent days on red alert aol dial up and by days I mean 23 hours connecting and 1 hour playing. If the phone rang during a hot gaming session I’d flip poo and punch walls

played 2D mario on Nintendo until the revolution Super Nintendo and then Dreamcast and then the ultimate GOAT PS1 arrived later in my teens. Disc games? Revolutionary.

taking pictures? Expensive ass camera (no, not a digital one)

taking videos? Yea a recorder back then with shitty quality would run you about $1,500

you better balance that check book because other than walking into a bank...you have absolutely no clue how much $ you have

Riding on a plane? Why’re you...a millionaire??

When I was in 4th grade we all brought our floppy disks to school and it was high tech as fug. Dino park was the poo

drive thru food was cash only in my day

road trip? Better break out that papermap and it needs to be new or it’s 99% inaccurate. You’ll need to add time for taking a wrong turn, its the norm

This is just everyday life I can’t imagine the science and medical worlds and what they’d have to say.

 

 

 

And here’s the kicker. I’m not even 35 years old. If you take a step back it’s amazing how far technology has come.
 

....bluetooth

....wifi

cars that drive themselves

flying through the air on a plane is the norm

touch cell phones and gaming systems with crazy capabilities 

GPS literally guides you anywhere you want to drive

go into google maps and you can fuging plop yourself street view almost anywhere is the world...sometimes spend hours doing this....

just amazing

 

 

 

 

 

 

[LinvilleGorge]

In terms of remote working and learning capabilities, I think resistance to change has been by far the biggest road block in both utilizing existing tools and creating new tools using currently available to create new technologies. Maybe this situation will rapidly change that. Too many dinosaur thinkers who want to see butts in seats at an office.

[JawnyBlaze]

4 hours ago, NAS said:

I fear that most young people are now interested in being social media influencers instead of inventing things in science or technology. 

[Ja Rhule]

Back 1998... porn was basically pictures that took minutes to load on dial up.  Now you got 4K videos.  Please tell me again technology did not evolved.

[Navy_football]

If you haven't died of dysentary on the O-Trail, then you don't understand the struggle. 

[Datawire]

On 4/3/2020 at 10:15 PM, Ja Rhule said:

Back 1998... porn was basically pictures that took minutes to load on dial up.  Now you got 4K videos.  Please tell me again technology did not evolved.

In my day porn was a piece of driftwood floating down the stream that resembled a vagina.

[Anybodyhome]

...when the worst that could happen to you in the Phillippines was a case of the clap, and a shot of penicillin would take care of that.

...when your choices were ABC, CBS and NBC and maybe PBS.

...when AM radio was the only option

...drive-in theaters

[Wes21]

I am pretty impressed with where we are at, though there are some areas where I expected more.  Like, why are we still putting tennis balls on the feet of walkers?