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Sorry to disappoint, but there's hardly anything that can run over me where I walk, which is either in a rather large county park that includes both paved walkways and wooded paths or a mile-long boardwalk at the edge of the continent. I don't know what you were imagining, but whatever. Sometimes I leave the headphones home, sometimes it's a camera day, but I do enjoy learning, and audiobooks have been a fine addition to regular print books at this stage in my life when my eyes tire more easily.
I'm quite aware of my surroundings at all times. The way you see a lot of our current century seems to me to have a lot of big splotches of blurry and opaque areas, so you enjoy your little world and I'll enjoy my expansive one, and we'll both be content.
It has become apparent to me that those who vehemently oppose technology are using bizarre/extreme situations to justify their fear of it.
Their world will become smaller, and more difficult, while those who embrace the change will benefit from the advantages offered.
It has become apparent to me that those who vehemently oppose technology are using bizarre/extreme situations to justify their fear of it.
Their world will become smaller, and more difficult, while those who embrace the change will benefit from the advantages offered.
Absolutely. And like I said, they become a burden on others who then have to do the work for them. I didn't mind doing the more complicated stuff for my mother (85 when she died) because she was gravely ill and had to have someone doing it for her. Same with my dad. He still uses his computer and email (and Facebook Portal) but when he was ill (benign skin cancer surgery requiring hospitalization) I did a lot of the computer work and telephone calls for him. That's different than being stubborn and refusing to change with the times.
It makes me wonder what Gen Z will do when technology advances far beyond their current imagination, because it will happen.
Last edited by pathrunner; 10-20-2023 at 08:07 AM..
Reason: typo
I'm not happy that we adopt new technology before most of the kinks have been worked out. I'm especially concerned about A.I. Look at Social Media, for heaven's sake. What could possibly go wrong? Oh, and I'm 99% certain my recent mammogram was not viewed by human eyes.
Thanks to your post I googled AI and mammograms. Turns out mammograms read by AA have comparable results to those read by human eyes. Actually, AI detects 20% more real cancer. False negatives are comparable.
I was feeling very indignant before I started to google….that here was another example of humans being replaced by technology, something so important would be done by a machine. My knee jerk reaction was that machines could malfunction. But a little research shows that this isn’t as bad as it sounds on the surface. There may be other issues from this..are we going to gave lots of unemployed radiologists? I guess not. By the time this technology takes over, people will have stopped going into radiology, at least as mammogram diagnosticians.
And yeah, machines can malfunction. But so can human beings. I can picture a radiologist starting to look at a mammogram and getting interrupted by a text message on their phone and going on to the next innate, forgetting that the original one hadn’t been done. Or someone not feeling physically or mentally well as they work.
So, may as well be open to new technology, new ways of doing things, since we can’t change the reality of these changes…
It has become apparent to me that those who vehemently oppose technology are using bizarre/extreme situations to justify their fear of it.
Or just make things up. Incorrect information from this thread alone:
- Smartphones require $1900/year to operate
- Smartphones have insufficient security to keep my personal info safe
- Smartphones don't have the ability to keep me from losing my important data if I lose the phone
But I can understand receiving some misinformation and believing it is accurate. What I can't understand is why anybody would even consider giving a rat's ass whether someone is using their phone for work, ordering a pizza, checking on their kids, or posting their gym pics on social media.
I've recently stayed in hotel rooms after, well, quite an absence, and the changes were startling. No more bedside alarm clock because it's assumed we're all using "smart" phones to both determine the time and to wake up in the morning. Sometimes there's an easy chair and sometimes there's a floor lamp, but there haven't been both, because who sits in a chair to read anymore? Staring at your phone is best done while walking or driving, and the screens are self-illuminating. There is, however, a desk, desk chair, and router, otherwise known as "the work station." I always enjoyed bringing bubble bath, wine, and a scented candle for enjoying a hot soak in the tub while traveling. No more! If there's a tub at all (usually it's just a shower, I guess because we're all in a hurry to get back online), the light now operates by MOTION DETECTOR, so darkness is not achievable. More "smart" technology. Lawyers. Finally, I recently traveled by public transportation and observed, to my horror, that I was the ONLY one looking out the window and admiring the brilliant fall foliage along the journey. Literally everyone else, young (even toddlers) and old, was -- with heads bowed -- creepily absorbed in whatever was happening on their respective devices. After what should have been an exciting day at the destination, NO conversation to share their adventures IRL ensued; again, everyone was presumably busy posting the experience on the web instead. It's absolutely terrifying and, yes, I feel like an alien, when in fact I believe it's the others who are the pod people.
Loved your post. Cracked me up about staring at your phone is best when walking or driving. I would also yoga classes because so many people do it there as well! And the heads bowed down. I often think of praying mantises or supplicants in prayer, deeply immersed in their little screens because even the most inane video is more engaging than anything beyond the screen, right? And the photos and posts all in the hopes that someone will mindless click “like.”
There are extremes of each and every kind of living situation. Much said here is true as well as ridiculous. Anyone on here, by definition is not a Luddite. Just saying..
I can relate to some of what otterhere is saying, but the fact is, we can't stop it. The world is hurtling toward massive change and it's only going to get "worse".
When I used to be out in nature quite frequently with my dogs (OFF leash whenever possible) I would strive for a balance of snapping a photo or taking a video of them playing on the rocks or splashing through water. But if I'm at the dog park and I get an important phone call or text from my doctor's office or some other important business that needs taking care of, I'm not ignoring that. And it happens more often these days.
I drove through the Smoky Mountains a few weeks ago. There were tons of cars and people. They were out in nature enjoying the first day of autumn. Large sectors of society still enjoy being outdoors. Only a few of them were using their phones to capture wildlife.
One of the most frustrating things for me is not only the need to download all these apps onto my cell phone, but to deal with all the requirements after you do that. There are often requirements that one upload personal documents like passports, drivers licenses, etc. Its standard to require everyone to create a personal account with a very strong password that includes characters, numbers, capital letters. Often that is not enough either to obtain access to an account. Many secure apps insist on sending a code number to your cell phone that has to be entered each time you access the account.
Yeah, it gets stressful.
I also am still working and because of clients who just love text messaging I have to frequently convert photos from text to jpg so I can view them online or add them to a document or such. Some people these days cannot imagine another way of communicating other than through text. I've reached a point where I find people who cannot pick up a phone to make a call annoying. However, many want to limit all exchanges to text messaging. Nothing is more irritating than a twenty-something client who texts you "whassup". Its their way of asking for an update about their case.
Many older lawyers, like myself, are realizing that the most difficult thing about our job is not practicing law. Its trying to understand all the technology we are forced to use.
One of the most frustrating things for me is not only the need to download all these apps onto my cell phone, but to deal with all the requirements after you do that. There are often requirements that one upload personal documents like passports, drivers licenses, etc. Its standard to require everyone to create a personal account with a very strong password that includes characters, numbers, capital letters. Often that is not enough either to obtain access to an account. Many secure apps insist on sending a code number to your cell phone that has to be entered each time you access the account.
Yeah, it gets stressful.
I also am still working and because of clients who just love text messaging I have to frequently convert photos from text to jpg so I can view them online or add them to a document or such. Some people these days cannot imagine another way of communicating other than through text. I've reached a point where I find people who cannot pick up a phone to make a call annoying. However, many want to limit all exchanges to text messaging.
Many older lawyers, like myself, are realizing that the most difficult thing about our job is not practicing law. Its trying to understand all the technology we are forced to use.
Yep. I knew my time in law was up about 15 years ago when I got a job in a small law firm where I was expected to learn 7 different software programs inside of 3 days. And answer phones, and do clerical work, and receive clients. Yeah... no. No way. And those attorneys were some of THE nastiest, meanest, unhappy people I've ever encountered on the planet. No wonder they can't keep an employee! I really do believe part of the reason they were so unhappy is because of all the computer technology on top of all the other stressors of being an attorney. I'd love to still work part time in law because I found it interesting, but they can keep all their software and shove it. That's why I said upthread that I'm a semi-Luddite.
It seems more often now that I download an app and it's too much trouble to deal with for what I might occasionally use it for. And these apps want too many concessions, knowing your personal details. There again, that's why I'm a semi-Luddite. But I do believe there will come a time when we won't be able to refuse, and I think that's what a lot of people are p.o.'d about.
Last edited by pathrunner; 10-20-2023 at 08:11 AM..
Could this be a reaction to being in the military as a career?
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