On 12/5/2011 11:56 PM, Tommy Joe wrote:
> Not applicable to me or others who think for themselves, but for
> most people the cellphone, or any recent electronic gadget, is a
> gateway drug to the hard stuff. Most of the stuff advertised on tv
> and elsewhere is sold on the basis of speed. It's all about doing
> things faster to give us more time. But all it gives most people is
> time for more work. I have a cellphone I use for driving the stinking
> cab - but at home I use a landline and would never switch. Not only
> does the sound of most cellphones suck to begin with, most people make
> it even worse by using cheap ear buds and speakers that produce a
> tinny sound that is irritating and could even lead to a form of mass
> stress similar to that of mass hypnosis. Just kidding with that last
> remark, but maybe not that much. Anyway, I'm all for anything new
> that works and is helpful or enjoyable - but the truth is and always
> has been that today's luxury is tomorrow's necessity.
>
> One more thing I thought was pretty funny. For maybe 5 years
> now I've been looking for a personal phone book. You know, an address
> book - a small book with A thru Z sticking out on labels so you can
> write in people's phone numbers alphabetically. I wasn't searching
> desperately, just now and then when the mood struck and I happened to
> be in a store such as WalMart for example. All I ever saw were Day
> Planner books. The other day I went into the dollar store and asked
> if they had address books. They did not. All they had were the
> planners. Then it hit me, as maybe it should have hit me earlier -
> that the phone-number address book is hard to find these days because
> of the cellphone. People store numbers in their phones. Of course
> when their phones go down or are lost they typically have no backup as
> they have placed all their faith in the tiny electronic instruments
> that rule most people's lives.

The cell phone has changed people's lives and society. Oddly enough, the
cell phone has changed computers and the way we use computers. I don't
think that backing up cell phones will be much of a problem in the
future. My guess is that the all your data will be remotely backed up
and we won't be tied to any particular phone.

My understanding is that Apple is planning yet another huge data center,
likely to be built in some small Oregon town. They just finished
building a monster one. This looks like a growth industry to me.

P.S., Using a cell phone doesn't make you smart or dumb - don't feel so
smug about it.

>
> TJ
>