Obsolete Skills
 

The other night, as I was taking a piss and getting a drink, I had the Daily Show on pause on my DVR, I realized the skill of timing a commercial break is about to be completely lost. I could take my sweet ass time with no sense of urgency because I had nothing to fear, there was NO WAY I could miss anything on my program. I use to rule at timing commercial breaks. I could perfectly time a break to do my required activities (pissing, making a sandwich, getting some ice cream, etc.) in the allotted time and be back before missing anything of my show or sporting event. With Tivo, there is no longer a need for this skill.


I was thinking how for guys older than me (I am 31) with no intention of ever getting Tivo, they still use this skill all the time and have no idea it is becoming obsolete. For the guys a lot younger than me who have always had Tivo, they will obviously never develop this skill, nor even realize its existence in the first place. Only those who have spanned this gap, living with TV before Tivo, yet young enough to buy and embrace Tivo will realize the passing of the guard so to speak.


Are there any other skills you have had that have become obsolete through advancements in technology? Are there any other cool skills that our parents possessed that we have no idea even exist now?

-Phil

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Guessing who is calling on the phone?

James

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Philuva,

Researching information without the Internet!

It's hard to imagine the way we had to write reports looking up stuff in card catalogs and microfilm and stuff at the library. Oh man, that sucked. The difference between being good at that or not was incredible in terms of how long it took to get a report or research paper done.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

grammer

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

I posted a lame joke that Diablo correctly pointed out was a lame joke, so I deleted it.

On a more serious note, I'm starting to think that math is an obsolete skill. I have so many students that can't handle simple calculations without a calculator. Things like handling powers of ten, simple square roots, etc. If I want a more precise square root or a logarithm while working something out at the board and I do it in my head, they look at me like I'm insane. Math without an electronic crutch is a lost art. [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

By the way, if anyone doesn't know the simple techniques for taking square roots and logarithms in your head, I can explain it if you're interested.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

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By the way, if anyone doesn't know the simple techniques for taking square roots and logarithms in your head, I can explain it if you're interested.

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That'd be cool.

Most of my math classes, ever since high school calculus, have banned calculators. Is that unusual?

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

hm, ive never thought about math as an art form before. i dont think i agree though.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

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That'd be cool.

Most of my math classes, ever since high school calculus, have banned calculators. Is that unusual?

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I imagine they only ban calculators with a SOLVE function, which is pretty much any graphing calculator. That function allowed me to skate through high school math classes with ease. A lot of people still don't know how to even work a calculator properly, though.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Balancing a check book and checks in general really except for a few occasions.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

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Balancing a check book and checks in general really except for a few occasions.

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I have never done this and have almost forgotten why it's necessary. Excellent choice.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
Philuva,

Researching information without the Internet!

It's hard to imagine the way we had to write reports looking up stuff in card catalogs and microfilm and stuff at the library. Oh man, that sucked. The difference between being good at that or not was incredible in terms of how long it took to get a report or research paper done.

[/ QUOTE ]
This still applies for research on the internet!

How about all that time they spent teaching us to write in cursive in elementary school?

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

fast forwarding between songs on a cassette tape

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ROJ039.agr.jpg

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
fast forwarding between songs on a cassette tape

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remembering track numbers on cds

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Remember telephone numbers.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Limit poker.

-Michael

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
grammer

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Spelling? [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ROJ039.agr.jpg

[/ QUOTE ]
Nice one though most of the people here won't even know what that is!

I once managed to spill all the little rectangles from the collecting box underneath. This was in a carpeted room. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
grammer

[/ QUOTE ]
Spelling? [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

"Leveling" people still seems to be alive and well, though.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Remembering which positions the TV antenna should be for every station. Oh wait... my parents still do this lol.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Being able to change TV channels quietly so you don't wake up your parents from the clunk of the dial on a Saturday afternoon to watch cartoons.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

I still know a ton of DOS commands that will never be used again (at least by me).


People who know how to fix cheap home appliances (toasters, etc) have wasted skills now. It's so much cheaper and easier to buy another one than to have a broken one fixed.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

using an abacus

http://www.brianmicklethwait.com/edu...ves/Abacus.gif

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

When I see people that can't do simple math without a calculator: addition/subtraction/multiplication/division/square roots/powers/logs/differential equations <font color="white"> (joke) </font>

I cry.

There are two types of people that fall into these categories:

1) cash register attendants: can't do simple arithmitic, i just feel bad for these people. It makes me realize how bad the education system is in our country.

2) Colleagues: can't calculate exponential half lives, square roots, awkward division in your head, etc... This is just [censored] pathetic. You are in graduate school. This tilts the [censored] out of me.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

A real estate license.

J

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Full-ring limit.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

People are getting really bad at using GPS as a crutch while driving.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Newspaper layout and design.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
2) Colleagues: can't calculate exponential half lives, square roots, awkward division in your head, etc... This is just [censored] pathetic. You are in graduate school.

[/ QUOTE ]

lol wtf, who cares

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

Good penmanship. This was an OOT thread awhile back though.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

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fast forwarding between songs on a cassette tape

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remembering track numbers on cds

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Wedging the match book just right under the eight track tape so it wouldn't play 2 songs at once.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

While this might be arguable, I think driving a stick shift is becoming a lost art. Less and less new cars feature the standard option, and fewer of the younger generations know how to drive this type of car.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]

2) Colleagues: can't calculate exponential half lives, square roots, awkward division in your head, etc... This is just [censored] pathetic. You are in graduate school. This tilts the [censored] out of me.

[/ QUOTE ]

lol. last time i checked, doing tedious calculations in your head wasn't even remotely useful for getting into or getting through grad school, regardless of the field. there's no good reason to have any of those skills. if that tilts you, you have serious issues.

what do you study and at what school?

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

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While this might be arguable, I think driving a stick shift is becoming a lost art. Less and less new cars feature the standard option, and fewer of the younger generations know how to drive this type of car.

[/ QUOTE ]

this is really only true in north america.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

People,

Any further responses that either:

a) are stupid joke responses (funny ones are fine, but yours probably isn't funny).

or

b) don't have at least a sentence explaining why it is a good choice.

will be deleted.

Carry on.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
Philuva,

Researching information without the Internet!

It's hard to imagine the way we had to write reports looking up stuff in card catalogs and microfilm and stuff at the library. Oh man, that sucked. The difference between being good at that or not was incredible in terms of how long it took to get a report or research paper done.

[/ QUOTE ]

I always enjoyed going to the library and doing research...it was like I was solving a mystery...

I remember writing a screenplay that took place in the Amazon among El Dorado and The Lost City of Gold - beforehand, I had to do a lot of research on the subject matter. I got to go to the Library of Congress in DC and search to my heart's content.

Research always helped me come up with plot points and surprising facts I could then put in my screenplays.

I miss it.

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

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Being able to change TV channels quietly so you don't wake up your parents from the clunk of the dial on a Saturday afternoon to watch cartoons.

[/ QUOTE ]

wow...you just really took me back with that one!

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
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fast forwarding between songs on a cassette tape

[/ QUOTE ]

remembering track numbers on cds

[/ QUOTE ]

Wedging the match book just right under the eight track tape so it wouldn't play 2 songs at once.

[/ QUOTE ]

Holy crap, I used to do this too!

...Do I have to explain why so I won't be deleted??

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

[ QUOTE ]
Philuva,

Researching information without the Internet!

It's hard to imagine the way we had to write reports looking up stuff in card catalogs and microfilm and stuff at the library. Oh man, that sucked. The difference between being good at that or not was incredible in terms of how long it took to get a report or research paper done.

[/ QUOTE ]

I dont think ive ever seen anyone doing that in my life. But my mom talks about how much of a pain it was too [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Re: Obsolete Skills
 

stockbrokers are becoming mroe and more obsolete. Do people even use full service brokers anymore? This is more of a job skill that is being made obsolete by discount and online brokeages that let individuals who want to purchase individual stocks do so on their own. That and the growing popularity of ETFs are really gonna make stock brokers a thing of the past pretty soon imo.