Thursday, January 12, 2012

I recall how things used to last.  How, unless an item was broken, one kept it—as is—forever.  Then came technology….  With it the need to upgrade, toss out the old and replace perfectly good items that still worked with bigger and “better” models. 

Here’s an example.  If a person has a computer, and these days it’s rather challenging to get by without one…or access to one, the need to upgrade, enhance and ultimately replace said computer is no longer a luxury but rather a necessity—a way of life.  Even if a person is determined to hold onto their computer for as long as possible to do even the simplest tasks, there comes a time when they must upgrade that device.  And that right there is where the problems begin.

Though it’s possible to install upgrades on one’s computer, doing so can cause glitches with the computer.  Operating systems that used to run smooth…no more.  After certain upgrades, one might find their “new and improved” computer does random maddening things that make no sense, weren’t intended and frustrate the living daylights out of them.

The computer owner ends up spending valuable time talking to some stranger in some foreign land who does a bang up job of walking them through solving the problems.  The glitches seem to disappear…for a bit.  But then, sooner or later, they or others arise, often caused by something in the computer being incompatible with one or another items in the upgrade. 

Additional changes are made.  More time gets gobbled up problem solving with customer service reps.  Then comes the “need” to do more upgrades to a computer that was working perfectly fine before the initial upgrade was added.  So…more “improvements” are made, thus initiating an endless chain of frustrations that ultimately create the “need” for the person to buy a bigger, better, faster computer to keep up with new programs available—ones that won’t interact with the person’s existing computer. 

The scary thing here is how quick this whole process takes place.  How when the person originally saved enough to buy their first computer, they were hopeful their investment would last quite a long while.  But it doesn’t.  Within a few short years, the “need” arises for that computer to be replaced.

It’s not that the computer’s broken—per say.  Or incapable of getting the job done—per say.  But as the world swirls faster and faster around us, our need to keep up with it becomes more paramount.  The saddest thing is that old technology is rendered so valueless that individuals are left with little choice but to chuck out the items.  As such, before we know it, our landfills and donation centers are overflowing with old technological pieces, piled up like forgotten exoskeletons of things that used to be.

And this process carries over….