Tech Wrecked

I was talking to my brother recently, and we started thinking of all the technology milestones during our lifetimes -- specifically to do with computing. We’ve seen it all.

He recalled there was a company called Heathkit that offered a DIY project where you build your own computer. It may have had .84573 gig of memory. 

My first computer came from Radio Shack. Black background. Green characters. The internet had not been invented, so it did what it did, which wasn’t much. But it looked good when company came over, so $1500 well spent.

Then came my second desktop with dial-up connection to…..something. Netscape. AOL. Net Zero. What the what? The computer came with a disc that (supposedly) had maps to get me anywhere in the country. Used that one as a coaster.

Then came laptops.

Then came wi-fi.

Then came cell phones.

Then came smartphones. Blackberries. And iPhones. And Android phones.

Then came tablets.

Somewhere in that mix were MP3 players. The Christmas son got his first MP3 player it held -- what for it -- eight songs. A year later that was left in the dust by his first iPod. I had a friend who said his iPod had 5,000 songs. I’ll bet he played the same 10 over and over.

Lest I forget the GPS, which saved me from having to ever read a map again.

Now we have smart TV’s, though the programming in still pretty stupid.

All this leaves me wondering what the tech landscape is going to look like when my five-month-old grandson is 13. I read where virtual reality is the next big thing. We can live a completely different life in a virtual world. If so, mine is going to need a Krispie Kreme franchise.

Drones are getting a lot of ink. Some companies are testing delivery by drone. Does this mean I’ll need to build a landing pad for my pizza or dog food? Maybe Heathkit, if it’s still around, has that in its catalog.

I’m not sure what else phones are going to be able to do. Maybe more memory. Bigger. Smaller. Better resolution. Able to pick up my dry cleaning. Able to do my dry cleaning.

This is the point in the post where there is a summation -- some sort of profound statement that pulls this whole thing together, but the reality (not virtual -- reality reality without donuts) is that by the time I post this there will already be a new next big thing.

I’d surrender but there’s no white-flag app on my phone.

[Jim Osterman is a crackerjack freelance writer. You can find him at [email protected] or visit his online home at https://wordsbyjimosterman.blogspot.com/]