Today, however, I am not here to look at the path-breaking inventions that are soon to come through our doors and become a part of our lives. I am here to throw a spotlight on the things that once were and which will soon cease to be before our very eyes. No doubt their replacements are faster, more efficient, and even snazzier, but there is a part in all of us that mourns them, even if it is for the sake of nostalgia.
Land line Phones
The landline phone was liberated of all the wires, nuts and screws that were holding it down and it shrunk to crawl into our pockets and handbags. The new avatar was called a cell phone and it was indeed an amazing thing. For a happy while landlines existed side by side with cell phones. Each knew their territory and neither tried to encroach or cross their limits. The cell phone was for people on the go, while at homes families usually had a landline with a long serpentine cord that could be extended through the length and breadth of the house. It was the source of many a happy and exciting conversations, both local as well as international
However, with cell phones becoming cheaper and fitting the pockets (both literally and metaphorically) of nearly anyone that had an income, landlines are being shown the door. Now, there are no more teenagers hogging the landlines engaged in animated love talk while a father fumes in the background and demands she hang up as he’s expecting an important business call. They are both occupied on their own cell phones, in different corners of the house.
Books – the Real Kind
Do you remember sitting with a hardback cover of your favorite book and reading it in the comforts of the bedroom, turning the pages, sipping hot chocolate with a couple of massive pillows tucked cozily behind you? Probably not! Books have been swallowed up by technology as well and now we have a slick-looking iPad and other gadgets that allow you to read e-books.
E-books are great, no issues about that, and environmentalists are probably relieved about use of less paper to print books every year. But many agree that e-books do not have the romance of a real, tangible, leather-bound, paper book. And I am with them on this one!
Push Button Camera & Film
Digital cameras allow you the facility of 10 times zoom, facial feature recognition, light sensitivity, white balance, and a host of other features that an average camera-buyer wouldn’t even be familiar with. Heck, digital cameras of today even tell you when one of the subjects in the picture blinks. You can look at your pictures, delete the ones that came out wrong, keep the ones that look perfect, store virtually endless number of snapshots, and transfer them easily to your PC. It’s convenient and it’s easy. Photography has become a piece of cake even for amateurs.
And yet, there are many that talk nostalgically about the good ol’ cameras that tested the true potential of a photographer. You had to take each shot with utmost precision weighing all the elements carefully so that you didn’t waste a single film in the reel. After all, they were really expensive. You had to take the film to the lab to be washed and there was a 24-48 hour impatient wait before you could finally see the results of your efforts. For many, it was a lesson in patience and practice. But, what is it that digital cameras teach you?
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