When Was the Last Time you Saw A Typewriter?

Recently, I read an Article on Yahoo News called Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know.  In the article, the author made predictions about things that exist today but that will be obsolete to kids born today. Among the items she marked for obsolescence were fax machines, travel agents, newspapers, mail (aka snail mail) and wristwatches.

After reading the article, I perused the comments made by some of the readers.  One reader was particularly adamant that the need for a wristwatch would never be obsolete.  I found this comment amusing, considering the fact that I stopped wearing a wristwatch about six years ago – when I started carrying a cell phone full time. 

I was surprised by the passion of the audience who, for the most part, believed that everything that exists today will continue to be useful and exist well into the future.   These people are delusional. 

To prove my point, I made my own list.  I call it “Things That Existed 30 Years Ago But Are Obsolete Today.”  Here are some of the items from my list:

1. Typewriters – When was the last time you saw a typewriter?  When I was in high school, typing was considered a difficult skill to master.  Not everyone knew how to do it and those who could do it well could turn it into a lifelong career.  If you had told someone thirty years ago that they would have no use for a typewriter in 2011, they would have called you a kook.  Yet here we live in a world without typewriters. 

2. Pocket Calculators – I had never seen a pocket calculator until I was in the seventh grade.  A few years later they were everywhere.  And so useful.  They could help you do your taxes or be used to calculate a lunch tip. Everyone owned a pocket calculator in 1984.  They seemed to have a hundred uses.  And yet I don’t even own one today.  My cell phone took its place.

3. Phone Booths – When I arrived at college, I noticed that there was a phone booth at the end of the hall in my dorm.  There was one in every dorm.  And on every street corner, or so it seemed.  If I wanted to call home and ask my parents for money, the phone booth was my ticket.  I remember sitting on the hard wooden seat telling my parents about my latest test until the operator interrupted to tell me I’d used up my last quarter.  How much does it cost to use a pay phone today?  I have no idea.  Because in a world with personal cell phones, who needs a phone booth?

4. Music Stores – When I was in high school, one of my favorite stores at the mall was “Listening Booth.”  They sold records and cassette tapes.  I would spend hours thumbing through the selections looking for just the right artist whose album I wanted to purchase.  I think I bought a Millie Vanillie tape at the Listening Booth at the mall.  (The fact that I purchased a MV tape will need to be reserved for a future blog.) Think about it, when was the last time you were in a record store?  They don’t exist today. (Coincidentally, neither does Millie Vanillie).

As a society, the things we want and need change over time. When that happens, the old ways are discarded and new ways are adopted.  It’s called progress. It’s inevitable.  We can try to avoid it.  But it will happen.

I don’t think many people will argue that land lines (aka a “home phone”) and VCRs are knocking on death’s door.  But I’m going to go out on the limb and make some bold predictions of my own.  Here are some things we use today that I think will become nothing more than antiques before this century is half finished.

            1. Pens

            2. Sign Language

            3. Television

            4. Gas Stations

            5. Libraries (the actual buildings, not the concept behind them).

Think I’m crazy?  I guess we need to wait and see.

Now it’s your turn.  Look around you.  What are the things that you think are useful today – the things you can’t live without.  Will they be useful to your grandchildren?  I think you will be surprised by your answers.