As I look toward 2010, I'm convinced I could go an entire year without sending a fax.
With the multifunction printer/fax/scanner/copier that Farm Progress has so graciously provided me, I find it's sometimes simpler to scan documents and e-mail them, rather than deal with faxing.
When I recently posted my thoughts on Facebook, the comments that came in made me pause and consider our evolving communication network. As Verizon and AT&T argue about maps, rollover minutes and 3G coverage, the time when cell phones didn't exist seems like eons ago.
I still remember our first cell phone. Dad purchased one of those bag phones. The battery and phone were enclosed in a bag about the size of a laptop. It had a little receiver so you could "hang up" the phone after the call. Today, that seems ridiculous, but I remember thinking, "How do you end the call?"
Even though the cell phone has improved some aspects of life, remember how nice it was to be out of touch? "I was outside" was a viable excuse for not speaking to someone on the phone. It was a different world indeed.
As I prepare to kiss the fax machine goodbye, I wonder what other bits of technology will soon be obsolete. Apple's iPhone has taught us there's an ap for about everything. Will the cell phone soon replace the point-and-shoot digital camera, calculator and day planner?
Maybe one day, folks will have one device that does everything: web surfing, calling, television, gaming, printing, etc. Perhaps my grandchildren will ask my son, "You mean you used to have about 10 electronic devices to do what one 'whizbang gizmo' does?" I only hope those grandkids will take the time to show old grandpa how his new 'whizbang gizmo' works.
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