The Widget Thingie!

Okay, my lil sis, Debbie, just signed in and said she didn't SEE a new widget thingie in the left column.

Am I seeing things? Is she NOT seeing things? Does anyone else see the widget in the left column?

Please let me know because either Debbie or I might be losing our marbles and we're both hoping it's the other person.

Actually, let me phrase it THIS way. If you DON'T see the new gadget on the left, sign in and let me know. That would probably be simpler.

And while I'm on the subject, drop on over to My Charming Kids and look at HER widget thingie. That might give you a better idea of what the whole BlogFrog widget thingie is all about. My goal with this whole thing is to try and create a "discussion forum" here so that one of you can make a comment or ask a question, and then other people can pile on after you and comment on your comment or answer your question. It sounds like a fun, cool idea if we can all just get it figured out.

Whew! This is all requiring a lot of thinking, on TOP of the fact that I am also in the process of introducing Steve to the vagaries of Facebook this morning. My "technical mental quota" for the day is just about used up!

Which Techonology Is On Its Way Out?

Traci from PA pointed out in the guest book that Fox News just ran a story about about the top ten technology items that are on their way out. Since that ties in so well with what we've been talking about today, I'm posting an abbreviated version of it.

1. Landline phones: Walk into any college dorm room and ask to use a landline. You'll be met with blank stares. With cell-phone technology continually evolving, it seems that these days only a handful of people are still moving into a new house and having the landline turned on.

2. Floppy disks: Storing something on an external device? Considering the state of computer technology at the end of the 1970s, it's no wonder people were astounded by the usefulness of the 5 1/4-inch wide, 360-KB floppy disk.

A decade later, the disks had shrunk to 3 1/2 inches and their capacity multiplied to a whopping 1.44 MB — enough for a minute and a half of an MP3-file song. If you still have a few lying around, they make great coasters.

3. Wristwatches: Throwing on a fancy watch may make you look professional, but let's be honest. Cell phones and iPods tell you the time when you're out and about, and virtually every appliance in your home has a clock. No one wears a wristwatch anymore, unless he or she grew up with one.

4. VHS tape and VCRs: They met a sad death in 2006 when retailers decided there was no room left on their shelves for the big, bulky cassettes. Many people still keep VCRs around for when grandparents ask to see that old tape of little Bobby — who's now 22 and fresh out of college — shoving cake into his mouth on his first birthday.

5. Beepers: Annoying devices designed to beep any and every time anyone felt like reaching you.

6. Film cameras: When Polaroid announced in 2008 that it would stop selling its famous instant-developing film, people ran out to buy up the remaining stock in order to preserve this unique form of photography.

7. Typewriters: Once one of the most powerful means of mass communication, the typewriter claimed a spot near the top of the technological food chain for more than 100 years.

8. The Walkman, Discman and MiniDisc player: The multitasker's dream, the Sony Walkman portable cassette player changed the way the world listened to music in 1979, quickly becoming the hottest accessory of the early 1980s.

9. Dial-up Internet access: It's hard to see why anyone would use a phone line to connect to the Internet when there are so many feasible alternatives.

10. DVDs: What's that, you say? How can DVDs be obsolete? Facts don't lie — DVD sales fell off the proverbial cliff in the first three months of 2009. The fact is that with broadband Internet, you don't need a disc to watch a movie any more. Netflix and Blockbuster have recognized that by rapidly ramping up their online-download services.


So there you have it, folks. The times they are a'changing! The item on the list I couldn't believe was the watch because I'm just not sure I could make it without my wrist watch. If that makes me an old fuddy duddy, then so be it.

Any other comments on this subject? I've enjoyed reading all the guest book entries today. I do have one question though. What is a ditto machine? That one sorta threw me.

Writing Our Memories

It's been interesting to read your entries in the guest book about today's earlier post.

Sue reminded us that these will be the good ol' days in 10-20 years. She also bemoaned the fact that she doesn't have wonderful penmanship anymore. I can certainly relate to that; in fact, the only time I write in cursive these days is when I'm autographing a Chicken Soup book. And even when I do that, I realize I've forgotten how to make most of the letters. Scary!

Pam mentioned 8-track tapes. Do you remember those? You'd be right in the middle of your very favorite song when all of a sudden the music would fade, you'd hear a clunk or two and then there'd be silence for a while until the music eventually resumed. I must say, it didn't do a whole lot to enhance the listening experience.

But hey, we didn't know any better. It was just so cool to think that we were actually listening to music out in our cars. We were no longer stuck inside the house with the record player. (Which is of course, another musical antique.)

Pam also mentioned carbon paper. Good ol' carbon paper. Once again, it seemed like such a fabulous invention at the time but I don't even want to think about the nasty challenges involved in getting all the paper and carbons lined up perfectly; I don't think I ever did get it done just right.

And Wyatt wrote that e-mail and blogs are already becoming "dated" technology. Yikes! My favorite technology is now dated! What does that say about me? (Don't answer that.) But then he summed it up well when he added that we should, "Use the tool that works best for our life element." Good advice.

I don't care if I AM a bit old-fashioned; I just can't bring myself to Twitter about my life because I can't imagine Twittering about anything that would be remotely interesting to anyone. So it looks like it's dated technology for me! In fact you can call me The Dated Technology Chick, if you'd like. I don't mind.

How about you? Any memories you'd like to share with the rest of us about first computers, cell phones, or CD players? Or stories about using something that is no longer in use? For some of you readers with a few more years behind you, you can probably even tell stories about remembering when you first got electricity!

I just love reading people's memories and I think that regardless of what new technology comes along, writing our memories will always be in style.