The Computer Age

[Mobasser]

I was born in 1957 and graduated high school in 1976.         There were no computers when I attended school. It's almost embarrassing to say, but I struggle with computers and related things.                                         I'm wondering, are there any other folks here( around my age group), who have a hard time with computers?                           I recently got a new cellphone. I was lucky the guy at the store helped me get it set up. He was 22, and knew all about all the high tech stuff in the store. I felt like an old timer down there.  I'm trying to learn as much as I can, but I'm slower than molasses when it comes to computers. Any of you guys struggle with computer tech like I do?

[gim]

You sound exactly like my Father.  He's had a cell phone, computer, tablet, and marine electronics for almost 20 years now and still can't operate them properly.  It will be a never-ending learning curve until he dies.

 

Definitely a generational gap thing.  No offense to you @Mobasser.  We live in a digital computerized world now.  The first time my Father used email he asked me how much it costed to send it lol

[A-Jay]

 @Mobasser

I came into this world in 59 and graduated in 77,

so we may be sort of cut from the same era cloth. 

As the 'tech' came on I was pretty stubborn about getting on board.

But 'They' gave me little to no choice.

From banking, to travel and from Amazon to Tackle Warehouse.

'They' made it harder & harder for me to 'keep my old ways'.

It was either get with the program or have the world pass me by.

So I had to made a rather concerted effort to do so.

Fortunately my wife is 15 years my junior and is all over this stuff.

Still, giving how & when I was brought up, it seems against my nature

and I am forever feeling like I'm behind the 8 ball and playing catch up tech wise. 

Would rather be chopping wood than 'downloading' another freaking App. 

Get off my lawn !

A-Jay

 

 

 

[king fisher]

I think computers and other new tech. makes people lazy.  Just look at your TV remote.  Can you imagine someone so lazy they wont bother to tell their wife or kids to turn the TV channel?

[Mike L]

If wasn’t for my younger grandkids I’d still have a rotary phone!

 

 

 

 

Mike

[Mobasser]

5 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

 @Mobasser

I came into this world in 59 and graduated in 77,

so we may be sort of cut from the same era cloth. 

As the 'tech' came on I was pretty stubborn about getting on board.

But 'They' gave me little to no choice.

From banking, to travel and from Amazon to Tackle Warehouse.

'They' made it harder & harder for me to 'keep my old ways'.

It was either get with the program or have the world pass me by.

So I had to made a rather concerted effort to do so.

Fortunately my wife is 15 years my junior and is all over this stuff.

Still, giving how & when I was brought up, it seems against my nature. 

Would rather be chopping wood than 'downloading' another freaking App. 

Get off my lawn !

A-Jay

 

 

 

A- Jay, the local junior college near me offers a free course in computer training. I'm thinking about taking the course after new year. They're trying to help crusty old bass dudes like me to get with it. Like you, my wife is much better at it than me. She helps me out, when I get stuck, which is often.

[A-Jay]

3 minutes ago, Mobasser said:

A- Jay, the local junior college near me offers a free course in computer training. I'm thinking about taking the course after new year. They're trying to help crusty old bass dudes like me to get with it. Like you, my wife is much better at it than me. She helps me out, when I get stuck, which is often.

I'd say do it. 

If nothing else you could gain some confidence in the area

as well as learn enough stuff to get past 'the dangerous zone'.

Which is where I'm at . . . . 

Help me ! 

A-Jay

[MN Fisher]

23 minutes ago, Mobasser said:

I was born in 1957 and graduated high school in 1976.         There were no computers when I attended school. It's almost embarrassing to say, but I struggle with computers and related things. 

Not far behind you - 1959/1978

 

1971-72 school year I was at a private college-prep school. They had an old HP Mini with those yellow roll-paper terminals. I taught myself the programming language so I could have the computer do my math homework for me.

 

High-school - we had Decwriter terminals with dial-up connections to the state educational computer. Played text games, learned more programming.

 

Air-Force (1980-1984), my primary job was computer op. Purchased a Commodore-64 in 1982 and have had at least one computer since...right now there's three in the house.

 

Spent 20 years after the AF being everything from a computer op to the interim MIS director.

 

I've been tech-savvy since that start back in the early 70s, and even some of my younger friends (30-somethings) come to me if they have problems with theirs.

[Mobasser]

2 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Not far behind you - 1959/1978

 

1971-72 school year I was at a private college-prep school. They had an old HP Mini with those yellow roll-paper terminals. I taught myself the programming language so I could have the computer do my math homework for me.

 

High-school - we had Decwriter terminals with dial-up connections to the state educational computer. Played text games, learned more programming.

 

Air-Force (1980-1984), my primary job was computer op. Purchased a Commodore-64 in 1982 and have had at least one computer since...right now there's three in the house.

 

Spent 20 years after the AF being everything from a computer op to the interim MIS director.

 

I've been tech-savvy since that start back in the early 70s, and even some of my younger friends (30-somethings) come to me if they have problems with theirs.

In many ways your lucky. Most guys our age have a hard time with computers

[Jigfishn10]

I haven't been the same since Y2K. ?

[Jig Man]

Geewhiz guys what is all of this talk about age and computers.  I doubt any of you are close to my age.  I was stuck in a no end job when Apple came out with the IIE.  I spent a few months pay check and bought one along with a dot matrix printer.  I taught  myself how to program in basic because there really wasn’t any thing else.  I spent countless hours learning data base and spreadsheets.  It got to the point where local companies were contacting me for assistance.  I turned my knowledge into my dream job.

 

Since then I have retired from two other professions.  All I do now is fish in a Nitro Z20 with a 250 four stroke Mercury equipped with 3 Humminbird Etherneted Solix units, and a Minn Kota Ipilot linked blue tooth Ulterra trolling  motor, along with an asgps heading sensor and next week I will have a Mega live transducer installed.

 

So don’t talk old and out of touch as it is a personal preference.

[fishhugger]

you guys............ jeezus............. yer babies! (i mean, you are younger than me...lol, tho not by much).  yes, cell phones, etc, the internet, it's a learning curve. i think, especially cell phones. they can do so much, and so it's --- yeah, confusing, imho. no doubt about it.

for me, it's a certain amount of research and getting used to the darn things. also, just what things are useful to you - such as weather apps, fishing apps, buying tackle, etc... i don't just download any apps. i don't need that aggro.... i get what i need, and figure it out. not unlike these forums, which take a little bit of study to use!

and of course, the internet is so darn useful. right now i'm watching videos put out on - i guess vhs, but they;'re on youtube... doug hanson, i think... all about bass fishing in the 70's. i can get that anytime i want! incredible.

[Bird]

61 here and to use the term " struggle " would actually be a compliment to my skill level with computer tech......illiteracy would be a better choice of word.

I've never pasted, faxed or drug anything. Lol

 

Now personal work programs that I dealt with on a daily basis using a laptop, I did well as they were structured with my input.

[Mobasser]

One Christmas my daughter bought me a building computer to use on my job. It did all sorts of calculations for stairs, measurements and other stuff. It spent most of the time in my truck, because I couldn't put in the input needed to get the answers I needed.                                  I just kept on doing things how I learned. Grab a scrap board, and figure my measurements, stairs etc, by division, multiplication, and addition. It was easier and faster that way.

[Jaderose]

I am fine with the tech I use.  What I do see is people using tech for things that, to me, are pointless.  For instance....used to be that I could go into a store and if I was unfamiliar with it, I could ask an employee where something was.  The would tell me and I'd be on my way.  Couple of weeks ago, I was in a Home Depot looking for something and I mistakenly asked a couple of boys that were obviously screwing around where said item was.  One of them whipped out his phone and dicked around with it for a few minutes trying to look it up.  He had no signal and ultimately told me he had no signal and therefore, had no idea where item was.  I worked in stores when I was a kid and knew where every speck of dust was, let alone all the products.  "Smart Technology" is sure making people dumb.  BTW, I told the boys they were of absolutely no use to me and to think about the idea that they can be replaced with a phone next time they chose to just do nothing.  I found an old guy and without even looking up he told me exactly what aisle it was in.

[king fisher]

        My wife was frustrated with me when I couldn't figure out how to do something she called simple with my phone (it wasn't simple, simple is using the phone to talk to someone). I told her to be patient, that new age electronics were difficult for me.  She then asked how come I didn't seem to have any problem learning how to work my new Garmin fish finder, or how to look up screenshots and other advice on my computer and even phone to get the most out of my fish finder.  I hate it when she tries to apply her idea of logic to my fishing.

[Jigfishn10]

25 minutes ago, king fisher said:

I hate it when she tries to apply her idea of logic to my fishing.

We must be brother-in-laws ?

[detroit1]

57 / 75 here.  Someday i will learn how to add pics. A free (or real cheap) course at the local college is what i need.  I don't / can't act my age...

[DitchPanda]

 Not sure its purely a generational thing..take my parents for example. Mom: born in 57-graduated in 75-very proficient with her cell phone, tablets and uses basic computer systems at work like excel, word etc.

Dad: born in 55- graduated in 73- no offense dad but when it comes to technology you can't find your own A#$ with 2 hands and a flashlight. He's had a cell phone for the better part of a decade and just "figured out" how to text like 3-4 months ago.

 I'm 38 and grew up with all sorts of technology- computers, cell phones common by the time I was in high school, countless different types of video game consoles..and computer business classes in junior high and high school. As an outdoorsman I sometimes get sick of technology and would much rather be outside sans phone and all ties to the tech world. But I'm comfortable with and take to learning any of that stuff easily.

[MN Fisher]

8 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

Not sure its purely a generational thing..take my parents for example. Mom: born in 57-graduated in 75-very proficient with her cell phone, tablets and uses basic computer systems at work like excel, word etc.

That describes my mother-in-law to a 'T' - and she was born in 1946...For her most recent work (commercial real estate) she had to learn the tech to stay at the top of her game. And she's still working, selling properties to commercial developers.

[BrianMDTX]

Graduated in ‘78. That was the first year we had a computer class in school (I did not take it lol). But being in the aviation maintenance field, there was no “I hate technology and will remain a Luddite”. Today’s aircraft (starting in the 90s) are basically a flying computer. And being in management since 1993, having to learn how to use a PC efficiently, and create documents, spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, etc. came with the territory. Had a Blackberry until the iPhone came out and we all got one. 
 

It’s got its plusses and minuses for sure. 

[FryDog62]

I graduated high school in 1980 in a town where IBM was the major employer. Yet the only high school level computer course was with batch cards - ha! 
 

It was about 2-3 years later when the world changed. People a couple years behind me got the indoctrination and

grew up with some form of technology that could apply forward to the next thing and the next thing, and so on... 
 

So I’m fine with the basic stuff, but if it’s not intuitive I struggle to figure things out, but eventually get there.
 

Fishing electronics have helped push me to learn stuff I probably wouldn’t have spent time on otherwise. I use Livescope, 360 Imaging, etc. fairly fluently now but admit I struggled with many aspects initially. Called my dealer and 800 lines regularly, asked the same questions sometimes more than twice. And there are still subtle nuances with all those technologies that others picked up well before me. 
 

I’m right at the tail end of the Baby Boomers... and have seen routinely the GenX’ers just a little younger than me do things intuitively that I have to take extra time to figure out. 
 

Oh well, they didn’t sport bell-bottoms and a mullet hairdo for several years like I did ?

[MN Fisher]

2 minutes ago, FryDog62 said:

I graduated high school in 1980 in a town where IBM was the major employer. Yet the only high school level computer course was with batch cards - ha! 

Did you not go to HS here in MN?

 

Even up in Bemidji we had access to the MECC/MERITS system in the TC via acoustic modem...we did learn punch-cards, but we could also enter programs directly from the Decwriter terminals...and this was back in '76.

[Jaderose]

1 hour ago, DitchPanda said:

 As an outdoorsman I sometimes get sick of technology and would much rather be outside sans phone and all ties to the tech world. 

My phone does NOT go in my boat.  When on the water, I am free of technology, unless you count a trolling motor.  

[DitchPanda]

20 minutes ago, Jaderose said:

My phone does NOT go in my boat.  When on the water, I am free of technology, unless you count a trolling motor.  

Fish finder?