ActiveRain is like a toaster...

Maureen... for the most part, my opinion is that many people are just lazy. Sure, we can blame it on lack of time. But you can make time for most things, if you put your mind to it. Just setting some time aside per week is all it takes. You don't have to be addicted like some of us.  Good post.

                                                                                                         

Hi Maureen,

Great Post!  And, like yourself, I AM a 'boomer'....BUT at least I BLOG!!

The analogy of us 'boomers' just wanting to 'plug it in and it works' is, unfortunately SO TRUE!  Gosh, I find myself doing that quite often - maybe a little TOO OFTEN!  I have no patience for the 'hourglass' on the computer and start pushing all kinds of buttons just to rid my screen of it and 'move on'!  What usually happens, as a result of my impatience, is that I have to shut down the program because I've 'jammed it' up.

We "Baby Boomers" are a demanding bunch...always have been!  Remember 'burning bras' and 'flags' to protest????

VAL

I wonder what an 'ilama' is...that's my 'graphic'......do you think it's an 'illegal alien' llama?  I JUST WANT TO MAKE THESE GRAPHICS GO AWAY!  Where's the "fruit"???  (and there you have another inappropriate and demanding Boomer 'Outburst'!)

Lots of great comments. I liked Virginia's comment that it's an attitude not an age thing. My philosophy most of my life has been that when I'm 80, I don't want to be in a rocking chair saying, "Gee, I wish I'd done such & such." I hope I never get too old to learn something new.

The only internet resistant agents are near retirement....as well they should be.

Maureen, what a great perspective and now it makes sooooo much sense!  : )

The only constant from generation to generation is the resistance to change.  A brief look at history will confirm it. -Charles

I a boomer, but I am taking a plung and have done some blogging her on AR.  I am not one of the frequent featured posts members -- but I am happy with 2 featured "on the big board".  Honorable mention on the Eco all stars and 3 localism featured posts!  So, I have a long way to go, but I am enjoying be an AR Boomer.

Wait...my wife and I are both baby boomer's and we love technology. Generally speaking, I do agree a majority of baby boomer in our industry are resistant to change.

Cute post. Creative and fun.

I have an ugly, ancient, but magical toaster someone left behind at my dorm in the 80's . When you put a slice of bread in, it lowers automatically without anyone pressing the lever. I refuse to get rid of it. It still is ahead of it's time. What does that have to do with baby boomers and instant gratification you ask? Well, I think AR is the magic toaster. There is MUCH more to it than what meets the eye. Make it yours and give us a slice of what's on your mind! Active Rainers are cutting edge!

First post on AR! Woo hoo! 

 Age doesn't have much to do with it. I have a client in her early 80's.She's has several computers in her house, WiFi, multifunction printers and loves doing photo slide shows and is proficient at Word Perfect. On the other hand I know a lot of 20 somethings and 30 somethings that can't make heads or tails of anything tech related. I think it boils down to desire and need.

The tendency though for older people to be less technically inclined is they weren't expose to computers and high tech until a much older age than younger people. Consider that the first time I was exposed to computers was I was a Junior in high school. Computers didn't have hard drives or mice and came with a monochromatic monitor. Compare that to somebody born a mere 11 years later like my daughter who is now 12. She started using computers at 18 months old (and had them at school from kindergarten on up)...simply a game that introduced toddlers to using a mouse. Now she runs circles around most adults like many kids her age.  (Just don't ask her what a "45" or an "LP" is! LOL!).

My point is that if you grow up using certain technologies like radio and toasters, not only do they just plug in and work for the most part, but  they are also familiar, usual, and easy to master. Most people grew up with these technologies already commonplace and using them is practically second nature much like riding a bike...not so much with computers unless you're gen Y or younger. Not only are they (computers & high tech toys) unfamiliar, but they're a great deal more complex and user unfriendly than older technologies, which leads to a higher learning curve and a big heaping pile of frustration. Nobody wants that. People like simplicity, not complexity and will naturally gravitate towards the path of least resistance.

 Having said that, I also think there's a tendency for people to convince themselves that technology/computers are too difficult and thus don't put in much effort on moving up the technology learning curve. Rome wasn't built in a day. Take baby steps, build on that, and you'll be well on your way.

Do you remember the smell of the transistor radio? YES..it had a distinct smell! So you know I'm a "bummer" as Missy called us in her comment above. Wonder if that was a "slip" or a proper reference from her perspective.

98% of our clients never blog. Because they are in the "Top 10% in production", they use excuses like "I'm to busy" among others. I agree with the other comments. It's not an age "thing", it's a "want to thing". As Jeff stated, we do what we want to do.

Maureen,

I enjoyed your post!  As for the boomers, some will flourish with technology and others will not inquire and learn the new ways.  For myself, I consider myself technologically proficient but still struggle to keep up with everything new.

I am about to be in the State Realtor Magazine here talking about blogs and SEO and I can't wait to hear the talk from the older folks here.

Maureen,

It seems that it takes convincing for people to take on "new" things.  Most people do not like change and technology is always changing.  I agre that it might not be related to what age you are but how open you are to try new things.  I liked the way you compare AR to a toaster.

I wish computers were so simple. just plug it in and everything works perfectly!

Isn't that what the marketing tells us Plug n Play

Ala Dustry Springfield's song..."Wishin' and hopin', lovin' and prayin'..." won't get you up to speed with technology. It all depends on your attitude, desire and necessity to become one with the techno world. As a boomer I can say I am very happy that I embraced early! My first computer was a Commodore 64 with QuickBrownFox as the word processing program. I was "thrilled" being able to transcribe my college course notes, key-in my papers and have my dot matrix printer spit them out while I slept!!! Now, I become verrrrrrrrrrry irritated when I have to wait more than a few seconds for something to load. We are spoiled these days. it's a wonderful world and can't wait to see what's next. Please pass the honey and butter.