Brushing teeth, driving a car, running the dishwasher, mailing a bill, and bank transactions are all tasks that require minimal knowledge of technology. Without knowing, everyone of us uses technology in one way or another every day. It’s important to understand technology lets us do the things we normally do, just more efficiently.
As I was procrastinating writing this week’s article, I completed a ton of menial jobs around the house. Quite honestly, I was stumped about the subject matter tonight and was frustrated I hadn’t come up with a novel idea. I was loading my washing machine when this week’s idea popped into my head. Shazaam! I have an article.
Brushing teeth seems pretty simple and it can be argued about the legitimacy of my claim. Really, all we’re doing is squishing toothpaste on a bunch of bristles. If you’ve ever tried keeping a toothbrush in a five year old’s mouth for longer than thirty seconds you’ll get a hoot out of this. I recently saw an advertisement for an electronic vibrating toothbrush that stays on for two minutes. This little idea puts technology in your mouth and keeps it there for a little while.
Driving a car seems pretty simple and outside of modern computer interfaces it would seem like a car is a pretty low tech machine. I spent yesterday with my mechanic waiting for my old jalopy to come back to life. He explained the connection between the gas pedal and engine is electronic and the engine speed is really controlled by a computer. Even my eleven year old heap is computerized. I’m not sure a police officer would agree, but it’s the computer that controls speed.
Years ago I had a friend who’s first ‘real’ job was programming dishwashers for a major appliance manufacturer. Everyone in my circle of friends gave this guy grief because he took a job with a company that made washers, dryers and dishwashers. My friend’s job was programming a chip that engaged the cycles initiated by toggling the pushbuttons. Essentially his job was creating convenience.
Last week I was asked by the clerk at the post office to kindly write Zip codes neater on outbound mail. During her explanation she unveiled mail doesn’t simply move from point A to point B. Rather, it skips through a sorting facility where it is electronically scanned, read, and rerouted to its destination. The long barcode printed on the bottom of envelopes is done at a sorting facility by machine. Mail is only manually read at local post offices.
Several months ago my accountant noticed a $400.00 transaction incorrectly associated with my bank account that wasn’t the fault of my bank. After a frustrated visit to my branch, the super-suave teller I prefer to deal with initiated a correction. After a bit of research I discovered checks, like mail, are sorted and processed at the Federal Reserve by computer then resent to account holders via the bank. After pushing a few buttons on her computer, Beth created a chain of events reversing the computerized trail the check had initially followed.
Most of us simply don’t think how technology is associated with our daily routines. Though technology is the basis of so many things, the burden is on us to utilize it best and stay compliant with standards. It’s up the five-year-old to brush up and down. It’s my responsibility to know the difference between a stop and yield sign. Scribbling addresses hinders the efficiencies of the sorting machines. Beth’s job is understanding the processes needed to initiate the reversal procedure. Adoption of technology is a conundrum of sorts: It’s necessary for many tasks and at the same time can hinder our existence.
(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. located at 509 Main St. in Gardner. You can call him directly at (978) 919-8059) or visit www.LocalComputerWiz.com.