Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know

[STL]

http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home...y-kids_parents

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.

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?

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.

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.

Movie rental stores: You actually got in your car and drove someplace just to rent a movie?

Watches: Maybe as quaint jewelry, but the correct time is on your smartphone, which is pretty much always in your hand.

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.

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.


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.

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.

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?

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.

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.

Yellow and White Pages: Why in the world would you need a 10-pound book just to find someone?

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.

Fax machines: Can you say "scan," ".pdf" and "email?"

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."

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.

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.

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.

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!

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.

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.

[DiabloBlanco]

Damn this is kinda depressing.

[Clinton]

MTV used to play music videos

[STL]

Originally Posted by Clinton

MTV used to play music videos

Kids born in 1995 dont know that. Or probably kids born in 2000 dont know that.

[Clinton]

Yeah....possibly, Yet we should remind them

[Fordzilla80]

Originally Posted by Clinton

MTV used to play music videos

So did CMT.

I agree with Kyle, it is depressing. I'm not the least bit technologically advanced, so this basically tells me i'm screwed, and need to get with the game.

[DiabloBlanco]

yep, time to get with the times thats for sure.

[SPless]

--Shops that only do exhaust work, you void your warranty to touch it on a new vehicle, and can get some with a dual exhaust option.

--v8 vehicles, once were the almighty, now are fading fast.

--Frame on body vehicles, how much longer will these be around?

[Ranger_EDGE]

Originally Posted by SPless

--Shops that only do exhaust work, you void your warranty to touch it on a new vehicle, and can get some with a dual exhaust option.

--v8 vehicles, once were the almighty, now are fading fast.

--Frame on body vehicles, how much longer will these be around?

so true on the frame part. Mostly everything is a uni body ford pleased don't do a uni body truck like honda did. You took away our explorer this year please not the F series line up. And your right on the v8 dieing out part. so sad i hope i'm lucky enough to own a v8 one day with its true duel exhaust with duel 40 series flowmasters. Dreaming over here

[schultzkenneth]

Wow, i remember the days of all but maybe one or two of those. I can't imagine what life will be like when my kids are teenagers, let alone adults.

[Fordzilla80]

Originally Posted by SPless

--Shops that only do exhaust work, you void your warranty to touch it on a new vehicle, and can get some with a dual exhaust option.

--v8 vehicles, once were the almighty, now are fading fast.

--Frame on body vehicles, how much longer will these be around?

When transmission shops didn't charge $6565859 to rebuild components, and actually knew what they were doing, and fixed the problem right the first time. It's largely the automakers fault for making complicated systems.

[SPless]

Meh, I had a F-150 with a 351 and flows....now I want one with glasspacks

[TurdFX4]

Libraries

[Ranger Sport]

Ok i had a little fun with it, don't take anything personally, its not meant that way.



Heck it's been so long i forgot what i wrote in the first ones.

Originally Posted by STL

Video tape: That's been over for a while, unless you live in peru (don't ask, i picked at random).

Travel agents: Once people discover that they have no protection/securities dealing with internet sites, they'll run back to travel agents. The trend has already started here.


The separation of work and home: Agreed.

Books, magazines, and newspapers: Nah, far too much money involved. Even high end e-books emulate book texture with minimal back lighting. Remember how they were supposed to be the end of paper? Didn't happen.


Movie rental stores: Stores charging 5$ for a one night rental on a 25$ movie deserve to be closed down.

Watches: A watch is so much more than time, its also a fashion statement. No one will care about the phone you paid 800$ yesterday that's worth 20$ tomorrow, but they might think highly of that 80$ watch you bought 5 years ago.

Paper maps: Ok, i'll go one more on that one and say that the gps units are so cheap nowadays, who needs the headache of a paper map.

Wired phones: Cordless phones are still wired, unless you use voip over a dry conection, that's wired too.

Long distance: Nothing in life is free, even voip already charges on various plans.

Newspaper classifieds: I haven't checked the paper classifieds in years, so confirmed (lol).

Dial-up Internet: Again, depends which country, and which areas.

Encyclopedias: Refer to newspaper classifieds, add several years more.

Forgotten friends: If anything, the next generation will have forgotten more friends than we'll ever meet, because they'll never have met them in person, merely friended them for a brief chat and then moved on. Heck, it already started before facebook, that plague of a site just made it easier to find people you'll never care about.


Forgotten anything else: Yes and no, i have learned and forgotten some in school, but much more from the internet. The hard part is keeping in the stuff that's true, and rejecting bad wikis and opinions from self proclaimed know it alls. Oh the never ending quest for turth!


The evening news: Stopped watching it already, but that's only because one of the local giants decided it didn't want to broadcast news anymore, not because i chose to. I'm not about to pay for a news channel.

CDs: The recording industry is a dinosaur that woke up at least a decade too late, and now cries about loss of sales. If they had thought about long term instead of short term maximized profit, things would have been different, i'm sure.

Film cameras: Haven't seen that in years.

Yellow and White Pages: Yay for internet.

Catalogs: Pretty much same as you, but i get my notices via television ads.

Fax machines: The most secure way to send private and personal documents, other than dropping them personally. Shame its on a decline.

One picture to a frame: If you need to see more, you can always turn on the computer. I'm sure your dog won't mind not seeing your trip to the bahamas. Besides, it conserves energy.

Wires: Wires are useful when i don't want lag. Albeit, i'll give you that duracell now can charge wirelessly, but it still needs to be plugged in.

Hand-written letters: True.


Talking to one person at a time: I hate when too many try to talk at once, we usually die, or fail.


Retirement plans: What retirement plan? lol

Mail: Ads, Ads, Ads, one or two bills. Yeah, i could do without.


Commercials on TV: Here's a big difference in our cultures. In Quebec, we have a rich history of funny ads. I'll give you there are boring conventional ads out there, and sometimes too many of "watch our tv shows", but there's regularly a gem in the lot. The target audiences being much smaller, the ads are designed accordingly.


Commercial music radio: No pandora here, i only listen to sports radio when i turn off the cd.

Hiding: Turn off the phone, don't go on facebook.

[99rangerbob]

The sad part is they call all this progress