In our younger days, Opal was a decent car. But, when one jokingly calls someone “Opal” (or “O Pei“), then one is obsolete (good to be ignored for getting old).
There is T.O. (Technical Obsolescence).
Some artifacts can be found only in museums, antique fairs (by die-hard collectors).
Some technologies are disruptive.
Many automobile workers lost their jobs when robotics gradually displaced them. Those, who did not have alternate skills, were hit hard.
Secretaries (experts in shorthand and typing) found that their skills have been marginalized by the word processors, voice-activated systems and similar advanced tools.
On the flip side, I would not have a reasonably good memory and a hobby of “connecting the dots” of seemingly diverse topics if I had early access to the wonderful world of Internet, AI, and Gaming.
Slates, Chalk & Talk, Logarithm tables, Slide rules, Multiplication tables (up to 16), Grammar books, Pronouncing Dictionaries, and most now hard-to-find artifacts trained us to remember (not rote learning per se, but using visualization and tricks).
Many people thought that I am either “brain damaged” or have an “unusual brain”.
One said, “You can write backwards faster than most of us can write forward”.
A few were not impressed.
A professor said, “You cannot earn money by being an expert in History in general, and History of Computing in particular.”
A manager said, “What is the use of knowing the Trivia (e.g. hobbies, awards) of your fellow workers?”
T.O. required me to unlearn some old skills, and to learn new “latest and the greatest” skills.
For me, it’s easy to remember and too hard to forget. I know thousands of names.
After procrastinating for several decades, I had a wake up call to dump my Trivia.
I have posted 3000+ articles and 220+ videos in the past few years.
There will be few Oldies who remember and appreciate the good old days before the T.O.
HlaMin 