Tech the kids don't understand

[tmm99]

One of our dancers was asked to go into the studio and "turn the record over". She had no clue what we were talking about.

After we showed her, she was absolutely fascinated that you could "play the big CD on BOTH sides!"

 

[Keim]

ya gotta know that any comment beginning with "One of our dancers" is going to be funny!

 

[Walt34]

Car headlight dimmer switch.....ON THE FLOOR!?!

I wish they still put them there. It was a lot more convenient than that stupid multi-function stalk thingy.

That way people wouldn't be so prone to drop their coffee, hamburger or cell phone while driving....

 

[Midpack]

I think the clutch is going to become one with the manual choke for the next generation of kids. I do remember my daughter asking why I had that extra pedal!

Already has, but has anyone noticed that a lot of basic cars are base priced with manual transmissions still, with automatics a $1,000+ option? You probably won't find any non-sports car with a manual transmission on a lot anywhere, and they would probably hate to even order one.

About 10 years ago, DW made the mistake of asking a Lexus dealer if she could get their entry level sedan with a manual transmission, and the sales rep literally laughed at her. She was so mad she left...

 

[Nuiloa]

I love a manual transmission. It gives me something to do while I'm sitting in traffic for an hour on the commute to w*rk.

 

[donheff]

I was talking to a 15 Y/O who collects old outboard engines last weekend. His dad has a 67 Chevy. The kid didn't know anything about timing lights and plug gap/valve gauges. Do they get used for anything these days?

 

[travelover]

....... The kid didn't know anything about timing lights and plug gap/valve gauges. Do they get used for anything these days?

Timing lights can be used for amusement. Sit at the end of your driveway in a lawn chair, drink beer and point it at passing cars. Feeler gauges can even out a short table leg with extreme precision.

 

[Purron]

Impress the kids with this! I was astonished back in the day. Seems so primitive now.

Steve Jobs demos Apple Macintosh, 1984 - YouTube

 

[M Paquette]

Found another one.

Photographic film. Old cameras.

"Daddy? How do I get the pictures into the computer?"

35mm, 120 rolls, 4x5 sheet... and none of them with a USB socket or memory stick connector. DD didn't know what my Calumet view camera was. The other one at least had a familiar shape, and she could see through the viewfinder so it MUST be charged and on, right?

 

[bizlady]

A friend of mine was recently visiting some other friends. He was running late, and asked one of his daughters to call "mom" and let her know they were running late.His daughter got to the the phone, an old on th wall Bell dialer, and did not know how to use it!

 

[SteveR]

OK, I'll play....

Starter switch on the floorboard.

Windshield wipers that only worked when you let OFF the gas; a problem in hilly country where I grew up.

Laser Discs....I still have my collection a a player.

8 track tapes

Cassette tapes

Vinyl records (except they seem to be making a comeback in esoteric circles)

Clocks with hands....my grandkids can't tell time unless it is digital.

Pong game

Engine distributor points and condenser; setting valves with shims, adjusting a carburetor..remember those things?

Hand crank ice cream maker

Party line telephone...no dial at all.

Outhouse


Your turn..........

 

[FIREd]

Straight and safety razors.

 

[clifp]

Impress the kids with this! I was astonished back in the day. Seems so primitive now.

Steve Jobs demos Apple Macintosh, 1984 - YouTube

I remember that day. I'm on the main floor on the right but I can't find myself in the video. It certainly seems primitive now.

 

[Purron]

I remember that day. I'm on the main floor on the right but I can't find myself in the video. It certainly seems primitive now.

Wow, you were there! I'm impressed. Jobs and I are the same age and I've followed his career with great interest.

 

[kat]

My experience was a little different than the OP's.

I decided way back not to have cable, because I did not watch tv enough, and football games and PBS came in fine without cable.

With the change.... I thought about getting cable. But the young person who was at my house doing other work looked at my tv. He moved my antenna to the attic, at a particular angle faced a certain way on "this wall is best", and then told me....

Your HD will be better than anything any cable place can produce or want to give you. (He explained why, but I didn't get it, even though he explained twice.)

I've been happy.

 

[GregLee]

Your HD will be better than anything any cable place can produce or want to give you.

Lucky you, to get a knowledgeable and honest technician. Must be rare. It's true that HD over the air is top quality and better than you can get with cable or satellite. (However, the number of available HD channels is smaller.)

 

[Nords]

Already has, but has anyone noticed that a lot of basic cars are base priced with manual transmissions still, with automatics a $1,000+ option? You probably won't find any non-sports car with a manual transmission on a lot anywhere, and they would probably hate to even order one.

Nothing sadder than a modern re-start of a hot sports car (like a Mustang) with a six-speed automatic...

I was talking to a 15 Y/O who collects old outboard engines last weekend. His dad has a 67 Chevy. The kid didn't know anything about timing lights and plug gap/valve gauges. Do they get used for anything these days?

Ouch. That one hurt. I guess they're only good for working on '67 Chevys now.

I remember that day. I'm on the main floor on the right but I can't find myself in the video. It certainly seems primitive now.

Were you the guy swinging a hammer in such a threatening manner that it inspired a commercial?

 

[clifp]

Were you the guy swinging a hammer in such a threatening manner that it inspired a commercial?

Naw I was one of the numerous guys drinking the Koolaid, hoping that I could buy two Macs.

 

[pb4uski]

I've heard that happens often. When I was 15 my Dad was the dumbest idiot east of the Mississippi. By the time I was 20 he sure learned a lot.

Here, here! It absolutely amazed me that during the first couple of years that I was in college that I was studying so darn hard but it was my Dad who was the one getting smarter. During that time, in my eyes he went from dumb to smart as a fox.

 

[pb4uski]

I wish they still put them there. It was a lot more convenient than that stupid multi-function stalk thingy.

That way people wouldn't be so prone to drop their coffee, hamburger or cell phone while driving....

I miss the headlight dimmer switch on the floor as well, I liked it better as a driver. They did tend to corrode and malfunction more than the current dimmer on the stalk though.

Also, remember manual shift on the column? or push button automatic transmission controls? Actually I remember one of our cars with an automatic transmission having a short shift lever on the dash that you would move to the left, then move up or down to your desired gear then return to the right.

 

[Nords]

Actually I remember one of our cars with an automatic transmission having a short shift lever on the dash that you would move to the left, then move up or down to your desired gear then return to the right.

We have one of those on our 2006 Prius. It also has a "Park" button.

When we registered the car the clerk said "Automatic or manual transmission?"
I said "I don't know. It's a continuously variable transmission, and it doesn't really "shift" like other automatic transmissions."
Impatiently she said "It's either automatic or manual."
Belatedly realizing this wasn't a gearhead conversation, I said "Oh, automatic."

We're picking up a 2005 Prius on Thursday and registering it on the way home. Same shifter. Same transmission. Hopefully that same clerk isn't on duty...

 

[travelover]

..........
When we registered the car the clerk said "Automatic or manual transmission?" ..........

It is a good thing that she didn't ask "gas or electric". That might take 10 minutes to explain the various modes of operation.

 

[W2R]

We're picking up a 2005 Prius on Thursday and registering it on the way home. Same shifter. Same transmission. Hopefully that same clerk isn't on duty...

Great choice!

Just remember to say "automatic" and you'll be set.

 

[Nords]

It is a good thing that she didn't ask "gas or electric". That might take 10 minutes to explain the various modes of operation.

My answer would be "Yes!"

Unfortunately it wouldn't result in me walking out of there with a registration slip, so it'd still be the wrong answer...

Great choice!

I sure hope so! The price is fair and we were willing to wait the three weeks for them to pack out their possessions and get ready to leave the island.

We'll have to verify that the car is in the same shape as the last time we saw it, but the owner is one of those people who runs to the dealer at the first "Maintenance Required" light or every six months (whichever comes first) and he has the two-inch-thick file to prove it.

The car's material condition may be irrelevant since my spouse has already made the emotional commitment to being a his&hers Prius family. Our 2006 is silver and this 2005 is black, so she's trying to decide between the names "Salt 'n' Pepa" or (my nomination of) "AC/DC" & "Back in Black".

 

[Keim]

I miss the headlight dimmer switch on the floor as well, I liked it better as a driver. They did tend to corrode and malfunction more than the current dimmer on the stalk though.

Shh! Don't tell my 76 Chevy Monte Carlo. That is one of the few parts I haven't replaced in the last 25+ years.