Technology, especially computers, is supposed to make our lives easier. Discuss.
I've been mulling this recently following various abortive but ultimately successful upgrades to the iMac. I can see for a tiny tiny number of road warriors that being 'connected' (whatever that means) has to be a good thing. Moving between hotel, car, airport lounge, train the ability to be able to access documents, emails, is clearly useful for some. But we did have a lot of this before. Just seems to me to be overly complicating things now especially as the Mac and its operating system seems to be also moving down the Microsoft route of making things more and more like a touch screen smartphone. For instance, one of the strap lines on the iMac is the 'ability to start working on a document on your iPhone and then carry on from where you left off when you get into the office on your iMac or hotel room on your iPad. But that seems to me of benefit to even fewer people. But the thing is it has knock-on effects on the rest of us. We get shoved in this direction whether we like it or not.
Upgrading all of these devices also becomes a chore because even if you buy them all at the same time and resist the temptation to constantly upgrade as each new iOS or OS upgrade comes along, there will come a time when iPod X is no longer compatible with iPhone Y or that software package has quirks depending on device that renders the key feature that you bought it for useless. So you gradually get out of sync across your devices until you have to bite the bullet and go out and buy them all again. And start the merry-go-round all over again.
The same equally applies to TVs and associated gubbins. We are still watching quality pictures on our plasma screen. We have four PVRs of differing vintage. SWMBO has her beloved TiVo (that for rescued from the technology graveyard by a group of altruistic guys who created an alternative EPG to that provided by TiVo when they pulled the plug in the UK a few years back). I have the Humax and a Hitachi. Both of which have their foibles. But all connected via SCART. No HDMI.
Then we have our Sony Home Cinema system connected to the TV. Equally of elderly vintage...think 20 years. The DVD player is starting to die (probably the laser) again. I've been nursing this device by buying secondhand units from eBay. It is a sod to repair..all DC digital switching amp. Leave something disconnected and if you;re not careful you fry something else. But it is coming to the end of its life and to be fair we have had our money's worth. Only it's not just a simple case of swapping out the DVD/amp because the Sony speakers are 3 ohm and not many (if any) amps these days will drive that low. So we're looking at replacing the whole system. Which may no longer have a SCART. So a SCART to HDMI adapter? Lots of them? At least SWMBO is remarkable in this respect as her view is ditch the lot and buy new...woo hop
bscene-drinkingcheers: Only. Only, even though I took an active interest in all this once upon a time, I am HDMI/BluRay/WhizzyWok/TechnoFudge'd out. Dipping in briefly to the quagmire a few months back I found it hard to distinguish between manufacturer's proprietary 'Things to make your life EASY (aka difficult)' and industry standard. We shall get there. Just that somehow I resent the time spent on doing this....very strange and not quite sure why I find myself thus.
Actually, SWMBO epitomises the use of KISS most eloquently. TiVo has just the one channel. She never keeps stuff on it. It's either fast-forwarded or deleted. Her mobile phone is never switched on. She prints out most stuff from her iMac and files it! She most definitely keeps technology at arms length. Maybe I should learn from her?
But then who is going to fix it all when it goes belly-up?
[/musings for a Tuesday morning]
I've been mulling this recently following various abortive but ultimately successful upgrades to the iMac. I can see for a tiny tiny number of road warriors that being 'connected' (whatever that means) has to be a good thing. Moving between hotel, car, airport lounge, train the ability to be able to access documents, emails, is clearly useful for some. But we did have a lot of this before. Just seems to me to be overly complicating things now especially as the Mac and its operating system seems to be also moving down the Microsoft route of making things more and more like a touch screen smartphone. For instance, one of the strap lines on the iMac is the 'ability to start working on a document on your iPhone and then carry on from where you left off when you get into the office on your iMac or hotel room on your iPad. But that seems to me of benefit to even fewer people. But the thing is it has knock-on effects on the rest of us. We get shoved in this direction whether we like it or not.
Upgrading all of these devices also becomes a chore because even if you buy them all at the same time and resist the temptation to constantly upgrade as each new iOS or OS upgrade comes along, there will come a time when iPod X is no longer compatible with iPhone Y or that software package has quirks depending on device that renders the key feature that you bought it for useless. So you gradually get out of sync across your devices until you have to bite the bullet and go out and buy them all again. And start the merry-go-round all over again.
The same equally applies to TVs and associated gubbins. We are still watching quality pictures on our plasma screen. We have four PVRs of differing vintage. SWMBO has her beloved TiVo (that for rescued from the technology graveyard by a group of altruistic guys who created an alternative EPG to that provided by TiVo when they pulled the plug in the UK a few years back). I have the Humax and a Hitachi. Both of which have their foibles. But all connected via SCART. No HDMI.
Then we have our Sony Home Cinema system connected to the TV. Equally of elderly vintage...think 20 years. The DVD player is starting to die (probably the laser) again. I've been nursing this device by buying secondhand units from eBay. It is a sod to repair..all DC digital switching amp. Leave something disconnected and if you;re not careful you fry something else. But it is coming to the end of its life and to be fair we have had our money's worth. Only it's not just a simple case of swapping out the DVD/amp because the Sony speakers are 3 ohm and not many (if any) amps these days will drive that low. So we're looking at replacing the whole system. Which may no longer have a SCART. So a SCART to HDMI adapter? Lots of them? At least SWMBO is remarkable in this respect as her view is ditch the lot and buy new...woo hop
bscene-drinkingcheers: Only. Only, even though I took an active interest in all this once upon a time, I am HDMI/BluRay/WhizzyWok/TechnoFudge'd out. Dipping in briefly to the quagmire a few months back I found it hard to distinguish between manufacturer's proprietary 'Things to make your life EASY (aka difficult)' and industry standard. We shall get there. Just that somehow I resent the time spent on doing this....very strange and not quite sure why I find myself thus.Actually, SWMBO epitomises the use of KISS most eloquently. TiVo has just the one channel. She never keeps stuff on it. It's either fast-forwarded or deleted. Her mobile phone is never switched on. She prints out most stuff from her iMac and files it! She most definitely keeps technology at arms length. Maybe I should learn from her?
But then who is going to fix it all when it goes belly-up?
[/musings for a Tuesday morning]
