You Know You Are Old When

[WinterDeere]

..are there any woman on this website?

Yes, at least a few of our regular posters, although I can never remember which ones until they say something to remind me.

 

[goeduck]

In the 60's I got my German made slide rule from the German owner of a garage I worked in part time. What a work of art and three decimal places was no problem. I could only dream of owning something so expensive.

Fast forward to many decades later when I tracked him down in in Florida and in his 80's. We fondly reminisced about the slide rule and other drafting tools I got from him. He mentioned his grandson or great-grandson was following in his mechanical footsteps.

That's all I needed so I packed up the slide rule, some other instruments I got from him and stuffed the rest of the box with Amish dried food or canned foods. When he got them he was so surprised he was speechless. He thought they were long gone and far forgotten. Nope.

I only touched on the slide rule days. I learned how to use mine, but handheld calculators were all the rage in spite of some instructors refusing students use them. Somewhere, I am not sure where, I have my old slide rule.

 

[WinterDeere]

I only touched on the slide rule days. I learned how to use mine, but handheld calculators were all the rage in spite of some instructors refusing students use them. Somewhere, I am not sure where, I have my old slide rule.

It's always amusing looking back, the way teachers arbitrarily choose which "crutch" is acceptable. It's like, "I used a slide rule when I was young, so that crutch is okay, but these new calculators are bad." Honestly, were they so stupid as to really believe that developing skill in using a slide rule would serve anyone well, after the invention of the first handheld calculator?

I went thru the same a generation later, I was allowed to use a scientific calculator, but not the new graphing calculators. As if we'll all be relying on our math skills in the nuclear armageddon, unable to access our graphing calculators, because only the scientific calculators will remain working!

Thankfully, at least some of my kids' teachers are smarter, in allowing them to use AI in their assignments. The reality is that this is how our kids will work, for at least the next few decades, so you might as well learn how to best harness and use that technology to your benefit. That does not mean letting AI write your book reports for you, but rather using it as a tool in your own creative or technical work.

 

[BackRoad]

The Key...

 

[Sigarms]

YKYO when for the first time, you parked downtown and your cursing under your breath because you don't pay the meter with quarters, but you have to pay over your phone...

 

[WinterDeere]

YKYO when for the first time, you parked downtown and your cursing under your breath because you don't pay the meter with quarters, but you have to pay over your phone...

I'm not that old, and I hate those effing phone pay meters. Instead of taking 3 seconds to drop some found spare change into a meter, you spend 10 minutes (maybe longer than your intended store visit!) battling with some stupid software that refuses to take your credit card and errors out on Apple Pay.

9 times out of 10, ParkMobile will tell me "the transaction could not be processed", but then I see the card has been charged, and eventually the meter starts counting time. By the time that all actually happens, I'm ususually about ready to back my truck over the damn meter.

Talk about an over-complicated solution to a too-simple problem! Who can't find a little spare change in their vehicle, when they really need it? If your answer is "me", go get some out of your junk drawer, and throw it into the center console... now!

 

[masseyrider]

I'm not that old, and I hate those effing phone pay meters. Instead of taking 3 seconds to drop some found spare change into a meter, you spend 10 minutes (maybe longer than your intended store visit!) battling with some stupid software that refuses to take your credit card and errors out on Apple Pay.

9 times out of 10, ParkMobile will tell me "the transaction could not be processed", but then I see the card has been charged, and eventually the meter starts counting time. By the time that all actually happens, I'm ususually about ready to back my truck over the damn meter.

Talk about an over-complicated solution to a too-simple problem! Who can't find a little spare change in their vehicle, when they really need it? If your answer is "me", go get some out of your junk drawer, and throw it into the center console... now!

I rarely go down town mostly because there isn't much to go for.
But the meters are part of it.
First, find a parking space that is large enough to get your vehicle into and be able to get yourself out of it without hitting/getting hit by the vehicle next to you.
Now find the centralized ticket machine.
Because they don't want you sharing any left over time the ticket must have your plate number.
I've just walked 3/4 block to find the ticket machine and do you think I can remember my plate.
I know the first one I had 50 years ago. But the newest one?
The ownership is in the glove compartment. I can't see the plate from where I am. Actually I can only see the roofline from where I am.
Walk back, find a pen and paper to write it down so I don't forget it by the time I get back to the machine.
I get there and it's not working now for some reason. Have to find the next nearest one.
Get back with the printed pass and there's a parking ticket on my windshield for failed payment.
Now I have to go to city hall to fight the parking ticket I got while trying to pay for my space.
I have to go through the same s--t there.
And they wonder why people don't go to the businesses down town.

 

[Sigarms]

I'm not that old, and I hate those effing phone pay meters. Instead of taking 3 seconds to drop some found spare change into a meter, you spend 10 minutes (maybe longer than your intended store visit!) battling with some stupid software that refuses to take your credit card and errors out on Apple Pay.

9 times out of 10, ParkMobile will tell me "the transaction could not be processed", but then I see the card has been charged, and eventually the meter starts counting time. By the time that all actually happens, I'm ususually about ready to back my truck over the damn meter.

Talk about an over-complicated solution to a too-simple problem! Who can't find a little spare change in their vehicle, when they really need it? If your answer is "me", go get some out of your junk drawer, and throw it into the center console... now!

I'm old enough that I've never used Apple Pay LOL

Yesterday was the first time I've done it, but I've already got too many darn apps on my phone for work related items, so I just called the number.

That said, I probably took 10 minutes on the phone call typing in my plate number on how it's set up LOL

 

[WinterDeere]

Welp, moment of low cholesterol diet weakness, one cortado this morning. Still healthier than latte or my usual cappuccino.

 

[Oaktree]

It's always amusing looking back, the way teachers arbitrarily choose which "crutch" is acceptable. It's like, "I used a slide rule when I was young, so that crutch is okay, but these new calculators are bad." Honestly, were they so stupid as to really believe that developing skill in using a slide rule would serve anyone well, after the invention of the first handheld calculator?

I went thru the same a generation later, I was allowed to use a scientific calculator, but not the new graphing calculators. As if we'll all be relying on our math skills in the nuclear armageddon, unable to access our graphing calculators, because only the scientific calculators will remain working!

Thankfully, at least some of my kids' teachers are smarter, in allowing them to use AI in their assignments. The reality is that this is how our kids will work, for at least the next few decades, so you might as well learn how to best harness and use that technology to your benefit. That does not mean letting AI write your book reports for you, but rather using it as a tool in your own creative or technical work.

Allowing kids to use AI seems to be a bit of a slippery slope, but time marches on. When I was in college (late 60s/early 70s), all tests in the technical courses were open book, the theory being that in the real world we'll have reference material handy for when we need it. Tests were written in such a way that you still needed to have mastered the concept to pass it, but no need to memorize formulas, etc. I guess this isn't really all that different.