Scared of technology

Well I had revived the blog a while back but unfortunately I let it slip back into a coma. Apologies for that, I did have a valid excuse for part of that but it was mostly laziness. I really should schedule some blog writing time. I am currently writing this in a Starbucks. I never really understood the appeal but I think I get it. Home is home, it's time to relax. A Starbucks can feel like an office. Oh and since the topic of this blog entry is technology I am writing this on my new ASUS C302CA Flip Chromebook. So far I am really liking it.

Alright now for the actual blog post. Why are so many people afraid of technology? First lets get the definition out of the way, when I say technology here I mean computers and all their various digital companions. Some could argue that a lot of modern mechanical technology wouldn't exist without computers, that may be true but that is not what I am talking about.  As for the second definition I admit afraid might not be the right word. Not willing to adapt may be the better term.

A little background for the inspiration for this blog entry. I work in a small engine repair shop. We both sell and service various types of outdoor power equipment such as lawnmowers, chainsaws, and snowblowers. As you can imagine this means I get to deal with the general public. The shop is admittedly a little tricky to find. We are located in a plaza that for all intents and purposes is divided into two sections, there is a map at the entrance but it is easily missed. The plaza is also not accessible from the main road it is on, you actually have to tun onto a side street just before the plaza. GPS systems know where the plaza is but are unaware of the lack of driveways on the main road and you can't enter our specific unit number that would direct you to the back section where we are located. OK so that is a failure of my beloved technology. I never claimed it was perfect. I am happy to help people that call when they can't quite find us. I admit I do get frustrated when they can't comprehend the concept of "We are in the back on the other side of the parked trucks" but that is another rant for another day.

What I can't comprehend is the amount of people who call simply wanting our address, directions, store hours, etc. I get at least one of these call a week. Now Jabbles you might be saying, these are likely all elderly people. Well first off that shouldn't be an excuse, more on that later but these are not old people. I am not expert voice analyst but I can tell the difference between an 80 year old and a  forty-something on the phone. Many of the people who call for these easily answered questions via a simple Google search are in the latter category. They already found our phone number they likely have the information in front of them already. I actually recently had a guy ask "What would you have done before Google Maps?" when I recommended using Google Maps to find us. I added a place marker showing our exact location on Google Maps making it much easier to find us. I was letting him know this, it is honestly the easiest way to find us. Take a look before leaving and when you arrive the whole "we are in the back" thing makes much more sense. I really had no idea how to respond. It's certainly possible this guy simply can't access Google, I would be surprised but it's possible. Just let me know and I will offer additional directions on finding us. I am quite confident that he did have access to Google but was somehow offended I suggested he used the best tool available to find us. Somehow I don't think people would have been offended at the suggestion of calling someone on the phone once phones were pretty much universally accessible. I take that back actually I did know how to respond to him, I wanted to ask him how he would have contacted us if phones didn't exist, would he have sent a telegram?

That is what bothers me about this fear of technology. At its core it is a tool. Just like a car, some people enjoy cars and driving, some do not. Many people who aren't car people still own and drive cars because they are a very useful tool. It really should be the same for computers, you may not want to spend a lot of time playing on a computer. You may not care in the slightest about social media or video games but the tool is still useful. There was a time when the cost of entry was pretty expensive but you can get a brand new machine that has accesses the internet for a few hundred dollars these days. Now the actual internet access isn't exactly cheap, especially for someone on a budget but many public places have free WIFI these days.

In a blog about how people don't use technology I feel a little guilty about this part. I can easily go to Wikipedia and read about pretty much any person, place, event, thing, or phenomenon I can think of. One I am done with the Wikipedia article I can move on the the citations and I pretty much have access to anything and everything written about that particular topic. What isn't so easy is finding less tangible data such as how various people and demographics accepted various new technologies as they became affordable. I feel as the school system failed me on that one, I was never taught how to do research on something that isn't already in a book. I would love to know what the average person in the 20's, 30's 40's  thought of the car. How people felt about the industrial revolution in it's first few decades. Where people afraid of the electric light 20 years after most homes were wired up?

Lastly I would like to talk about those old people. Sure early computers required a certain set of skills to use. They were certainly a tool back then but a tool that most people simply didn't need, especially given the cost of owning a computer back in the 80's. I can forgive them for not being interested back then. Modern computers however are quite easy to use, yeah if and when they go wrong it can be pretty frustrating but if you think about it machinery in general can be frustrating to deal with when it breaks. Lets take Interac as an example. Interac (debit/credit card machines for those outside of Canada) has been quite common for about 20 years now. The machines do vary and have changed a bit over the years but are quite straight forward. The first step is inserting a card, this is pretty mechanical, there should be no issues here from the "I am not a computer person" crowd. Next you have to confirm the amount you are being charged, not exactly a difficult question. If using debit you chose your account, again simple question. Last step is enter your PIN, unless you never use your card this is a 4 digit number, that should be pretty easy to remember. I constantly get old people who seem flummoxed by this newfangled machine and ask me what to do at each step as if this is the first time using such a device. Now it is possible some of them pretty much always use cash and only very rarely use the Interac machine. Somehow I doubt this is common. Even if they only use Interac about once a month, if they have done so for the last 20 years that is about 240 uses. Why is it still so difficult. I think that is just people being stubborn. I can't tell you why but I do find it frustrating. Why not accept that computers are not that hard to use? You are just making your own life more complicated.
 
I don't really have a conclusion for this post. I just felt like writing down my thoughts. I have more to say but that is all I have for now.

EDIT: I forgot I wanted to add what I was listening to when I wrote this. It isn't really relevant but I want to record it nonetheless. I like the "radio" feature on Google Play Music. You select a specific song you like and it will play other similar songs. Today's radio started with Faded by Alan Walker.