(Almost) End of an Era

[mikephillips]

While I don't mind having an iPhone since my job requires it, and there is something to be said for not having to walk around to a landline, the fact that you can be connected all the time means that many employers expect you to be connected all the time. I had a call one night from a guy in India looking for help with a failure who wanted to know why I wasn't at my laptop. I said because it was 2am in the morning. The reply was that it wasn't 2am in India. Told him his problem would wait until I started the day.

Anyway, used to be that questions and answers were, write it down, stick it in the company mail, and a couple or more days later depending on where that person was relative to you, then there was an answer. Now people are freaking out if you don't response immediately.

I do miss those old days when business wasn't so immediate obsessed.

 

[George_H]

As the Borg say...."resistance is futile" "you will be assimilated"

 

[Rhodyspit75]

It appears that I’m in the minority here. I have had a smart phone for what seems like forever. The things I use it for are too numerous to list. Here’s just a few. Right now I’m listening to music through my hearing aids, my phone is connected by Bluetooth through to my ears. I can now hear phone conversations. I take pictures of my restorations and refer to them when I forget how something came apart. Yesterday I checked the weather radar and saw that there was a thunderstorm on the way as we played golf. I only get notifications for text messages and if it’s not important I get to it when I can. My bank and credit card also texts me when there is a transaction. I can turn lights in my house on and off when I’m not home. My friend unlocks her front door when her ID daughter gets home and watches her get in on her ring doorbell, she then locks the door behind her. For me the pluses outnumber the negatives.

 

[BobHaskell]

Most useful features to me are the flashlight, camera and address book.

 

[bobhustead]

The two step verification Mac mentioned is a real cheeser for me. I do not have a smart phone and my wife does. Our homes are not in areas that have cell reception, so we can't use anything that requires 2 step. Even when the I-phone is internet enabled, it just does not work much of the time.

 

[YakkoWarner]

I have Trac-Fone also, and my old LG flip phone was phased out - however they did send me many many warnings. I bought an inexpensive Alcatel flip phone which works on the new systems....it is kind of a psuedo-smartphone because it does have "apps" and uses KaiOS in the background, but all I use it for are calling people.

The college wanted to push everyone to use a 2 factor authentication scheme making people use their own phones...even though their so-called showplace campus has buildings with metal cladding that phones do not work inside of. They got a lot of pushback from that and at least temporarily backed down on that one. If you have a prepaid service like Tracfone, you are charged for every text (smartphone or flipphone, doesn't matter) - it would cost about 8 cents to get the 2 factor code every time I had to sign in.

 

[waltesefalcon]

I've been using a smart phone for awhile now, I'm even using mine right now to write this. I use it primarily for the internet, camera, and music (I've ripped all of my CDs and have digitized many of my old cassettes), so I have something like 300 albums on my phone. I used to buy phones I could pop the battery out of, but with my new one I can't do that, so I have bought a Faraday pocket for it. So far I have been happy with that and think that with the phone off and in the pocket it is untraceable/unhackable.

 

[NutmegCT]

with the phone off and in the pocket it is untraceable/unhackable

At least until you use it again.

 

[gonzo]

Having recently experienced Technology Anxiety, I can relate to your situation. Jump in feet first, they're all good as phones but vary performance-wise on the "smart" side.

 

[AngliaGT]

Elliot - this sounds like a good idea for a new thread: "cars sending personal info", or something similar. I'd like to see some details on the cars that actually do share data, in addition to Tesla. I'd thought that only happens if you have a smartphone with a car-related app.

Thanks.
Tom M.

But Siri,& Alexa told me that wasn't true.

 

[Bayless]

Maybe the simple answer is if you don't like smart phones then don't use one. You still don't get to control what other folks think or want or do though. I probably wouldn't have one except my daughter insisted and gave me one. Actually she wanted a newer one and gave me her old one. Now I use it a lot. I have found that texting often is more efficient than talking. I use Siri a lot for questions as well as doing phone tasks. I take a lot of photos of my projects and progress, especially tear down. The phone is just a lot more convenient than carrying a regular camera. So there's my 2p.

 

[DavidApp]

Talking of wanting instant responses. My wife is a kindergarten teacher and today is the second day of school. About 3.30 she gets a text from a parent about a problem their child had at school. My wife is working in her class room trying to get stuff organized for the next day. Teachers get NO breaks during the day.
About an hour and a half later her co teacher texts her saying that the parent has just texted her wanting to know why my wife had not got back to her.
Teachers are now expected to spend their evenings contacting parents with reports on how the kids did that day. They are not allowed to do that during class time.

David

 

[waltesefalcon]

Talking of wanting instant responses. My wife is a kindergarten teacher and today is the second day of school. About 3.30 she gets a text from a parent about a problem their child had at school. My wife is working in her class room trying to get stuff organized for the next day. Teachers get NO breaks during the day.
About an hour and a half later her co teacher texts her saying that the parent has just texted her wanting to know why my wife had not got back to her.
Teachers are now expected to spend their evenings contacting parents with reports on how the kids did that day. They are not allowed to do that during class time.

David

I never give my number out to parents. Granted I teach juniors and seniors primarily, but there's no way I'd tolerate a parent contacting me outside of school hours. They have the school's number and my school email.

 

[NutmegCT]

David - thanks for sharing that story. But how did the parent get your wife's personal phone number? Does the school collect the numbers, then share the numbers with parents?
Tom M.

 

[Basil]

While I don't mind having an iPhone since my job requires it, and there is something to be said for not having to walk around to a landline, the fact that you can be connected all the time means that many employers expect you to be connected all the time. I had a call one night from a guy in India looking for help with a failure who wanted to know why I wasn't at my laptop. I said because it was 2am in the morning. The reply was that it wasn't 2am in India. Told him his problem would wait until I started the day.

Anyway, used to be that questions and answers were, write it down, stick it in the company mail, and a couple or more days later depending on where that person was relative to you, then there was an answer. Now people are freaking out if you don't response immediately.

I do miss those old days when business wasn't so immediate obsessed.

Now that I’m retired I don’t have problems like that. I have my phone set to silence calls from numbers not in my contacts. Also use the Do Not Disturb function but can “allow” certain numbers through. Works like a charm.

 

[Basil]

But Siri,& Alexa told me that wasn't true.

 

[DavidApp]

Not her personnel number. The school has a program Class Go Jo that allows teachers to contact parents and parents can contact teachers.

Notes in book bags worked fine for years but it relied on parents being able to read and write, Not all the local parents have that skill set.

David

 

[John Turney]