Tech you miss/ new tech trends you hate - ok boomers

[DDBCAE CBAADCBE]

I fucking hate this shit. Had a weird fucking glitch on my phone once, got a hard black screen and it didn't answer to any inputs, in an older model it wouldn't be a problem as I could simply open the cover in the back, take out the battery and put it back. But no, with this retarded shit I would need to take it to a Repair Center, where they would factory reset it as per protocol and charge me for the pleasure, just to do a quick fix. Luckily I gave the hard reset a shot and it worked at my last try, phone was working as usual after that, which was nice!

Just buy a new phone you disgusting poors.

 

[BootlegPopeye]

I said it often in this thread but it bears repeating - CRTs fucking sucked. Yes, yes no pixels and all that but at the end of the day, even the high end ones were blurry. The early ones you could maybe repair if they went dead and the spare parts were still around, the later ones, forget about it, massive PITA. And they'd all eventually wear down and break. That's just what a CRT does. The parts have significant stress on them in normal operation.

I have a 13 incher, but only for lightgun console games, one of the only areas they've never come up with a good solution for. I also think that they have their uses for classic games at least until OLEDs catch up, which they are starting to do.

But it has become a meme that they were better for *everything* on /g/, no dumbasses, text was hard to read, they used an insane amount of power, the weight/size problem I already mentioned - which also really restricted how large your screen was (I had a 21 incher that was over 200 pounds circa 2004-5). I have a 2 24 inch monitors on my desk that weigh a total of 20 pounds - something impossible to do in the 90s without a massive hard wood desk. My 4k TV is a 43 incher, which only a few TVs were ever made that large in CRT - it weighs less than 10 pounds as well. There is a reason you can't even give the things away - 99% of people don't need them, they only have a few specialized uses that are justifiable. Since alot of the /g/ types seem to be approaching them as better in all cases for 'everything', I think much of that mentality is either a troll or luddite contrarianism.

 

[Boom Boss]

Precisely, it's a problem with phones too. Colossal pain in the ass to change the brightness while out on a sunny day, had to walk inside a store and buy me a cola just so that I had time to sit and fumble around looking for a badly lit corner where I could see the damn button lol!

I don't know about iPhone, but Android usually changes the screen brightness automatically based on how bright it is outside. It's set by default, but you can turn it on or off.

I have a 13 incher

I had a 21 incher

You need to work on your phrasing.

But it has become a meme that they were better for *everything* on /g/, no dumbasses, text was hard to read, they used an insane amount of power, the weight/size problem I already mentioned - which also really restricted how large your screen was (I had a 21 incher that was over 200 pounds circa 2004-5). I have a 2 24 inch monitors on my desk that weigh a total of 20 pounds - something impossible to do in the 90s without a massive hard wood desk. My 4k TV is a 43 incher, which only a few TVs were ever made that large in CRT - it weighs less than 10 pounds as well. There is a reason you can't even give the things away - 99% of people don't need them, they only have a few specialized uses that are justifiable. Since alot of the /g/ types seem to be approaching them as better in all cases for 'everything', I think much of that mentality is either a troll or luddite contrarianism.

Agreed. I prefer playing all games on a HDTV. I haven't played on a CRT in years, but even playing a console game on a HDTV with a CRT filter, the graphics look messy and wavy. I don't know if I could go back if that's the way CRTs actually look. I remember newer games being unplayable on a CRT because the text was too small to read.

 

[AmpleApricots]

/g/

They're a bunch of people cargo-culting specific computing philosophies for social clout, whatever that clout might be in their circles. I wouldn't concern myself. Besides your lightgun example, old computers look better on new screens too, and I'd fight everyone who says that isn't true. While it is true that some games were designed around the weaknesses of CRTs and certain effects like using patterns to simulate gradients with a limited color palette, or "working in" antialiasing in bitmap fonts with a few extra pixels when push comes to shove I personally still prefer the crisp and colorful output of a modern LCD any day. We would've wished stuff looked that good back then.

I think the problem people have with LCDs is mostly buying some huge (because "bigger is better", although especially for LCDs that isn't necessarily true) cheap ~100$ screen with abysmal pixel density and panel quality and then inferring that all LCDs suck because they never owned anything better. Good LCDs at appropriate sizes for the job can look absolutely stunning and it is an area where price really makes a difference.

 

[AnOminous]

*sobs solemnly about abandoning a sony trinitron CRT in a move because my escape module didn't have room for that shit*

Those CRTs had a vibrancy like nothing since, fuck me, I seriously regret not having the room in a hasty move to keep that gigantic mini-refrigerator-sized motherfucker.

 

[Smaug's Smokey Hole]

But it has become a meme that they were better for *everything* on /g/, no dumbasses, text was hard to read, they used an insane amount of power, the weight/size problem I already mentioned - which also really restricted how large your screen was (I had a 21 incher that was over 200 pounds circa 2004-5). I have a 2 24 inch monitors on my desk that weigh a total of 20 pounds - something impossible to do in the 90s without a massive hard wood desk.

The way CRTs worked also meant that depth increased as they grew in size, my 34" Trinitron took up so much fucking space because of the depth. SED was a fascinating concept, they even had working models to show off. If you don't know what SED is it is/was CRT flatscreen technology.

Weight in general was also a bitch. I had a 17" CRT monitor and that was no problem to move around but one time I tried to move a larger SGI monitor and how heavy can it be? Then I figured that maybe it was bolted to the desk for some reason.

And remember the logistics of buying a tv in the past? I can now buy a flatscreen, effortlessly carry it to the subway, go home and walk up the stairs. That was not remotely feasible with a larger CRT TV, that was a two man job and required a car. And I say two man job because I don't think a woman have ever helped carry a 200+ pound TV and I envy them because it sucks so much.

 

[BootlegPopeye]

And remember the logistics of buying a tv in the past? I can now buy a flatscreen, effortlessly carry it to the subway, go home and walk up the stairs. That was not remotely feasible with a larger CRT TV, that was a two man job and required a car. And I say two man job because I don't think a woman have ever helped carry a 200+ pound TV and I envy them because it sucks so much.

That 13 inch set I have for a few games I mentioned still weighs 30 pounds. If I were to go to a 19 inch, that would increase to nearly 100 pounds and it would no longer fit on my L desk. I've also been told by my parents of the first wooden-encased TV that they bought in the 1970s was a backbreaking move. (My recollection - the TV was about a 24 inch size and the picture eventually started to turn reddish).

 

[Smaug's Smokey Hole]

That 13 inch set I have for a few games I mentioned still weighs 30 pounds. If I were to go to a 19 inch, that would increase to nearly 100 pounds and it would no longer fit on my L desk. I've also been told by my parents of the first wooden-encased TV that they bought in the 1970s was a backbreaking move. (My recollection - the TV was about a 24 inch size and the picture eventually started to turn reddish).

Yeah, TVs weren't that big. I think they typically maxed out at 28" for quite a few years(during the 80s, 90s). Rear projection is the exception to that but they were always crummy. It's funny seeing old pictures from luxurious mansions and their living room with multiple TVs built into the wall. They're so small when looked at with modern eyes.

19"/100lbs isn't bad to move around by yourself, the size and weight distribution of that TV makes it so that if you keep the glass towards your stomach it's 85% leg and core strength, a little bit of grip. Carrying a twice as large LCD can be easily done with one hand of course, the box have a handle for that reason.

 

[Elysian]

I considered getting a 13-14 inch CRT so I could play my old PS2 games on the original hardware without them looking crusty but fuck knows where I’d actually put it. And how I’d get it from A to B since shipping on something that heavy is expensive and I can’t drive to go pick it up from the seller since I don’t have a drivers license.

I miss coloured PC hardware. I like the versatility of RGB a lot but there’s something cool about a rig where all the parts have been selected to be specific co-ordinating colours. Part of me wants to get the Hello Kitty gtx980 and matching motherboard and make a late 2000s scene kid dream PC. The hot pink and black is giving me major Avril Lavigne vibes.

 

[Haint]

Voiced GPS units. Bitch, don't tell me what to do or where to go!

 

[Boom Boss]

I fucking hate this shit. Had a weird fucking glitch on my phone once, got a hard black screen and it didn't answer to any inputs, in an older model it wouldn't be a problem as I could simply open the cover in the back, take out the battery and put it back. But no, with this retarded shit I would need to take it to a Repair Center, where they would factory reset it as per protocol and charge me for the pleasure, just to do a quick fix. Luckily I gave the hard reset a shot and it worked at my last try, phone was working as usual after that, which was nice!


Precisely, it's a problem with phones too. Colossal pain in the ass to change the brightness while out on a sunny day, had to walk inside a store and buy me a cola just so that I had time to sit and fumble around looking for a badly lit corner where I could see the damn button lol!

Maybe you can get the parts to open up your phone.

Voiced GPS units. Bitch, don't tell me what to do or where to go!

I always need the GPS talking to me, or I stop paying attention to the GPS and accidentally keep driving past where I'm supposed to.

 

[Kosher Snake]

The wide swath of looks of phones back then.

 

[Max Free]

Thankfully I am not a console gamer anymore, but what is this retarded trend of having wireless controllers on everything now? You Zoomers like paying for and changing batteries or putting your controllers into recharge stations all the time or what?

 

[Sexual Chocolate]

Rear projection is the exception to that but they were always crummy.

Yeah, these things sucked ass and (I assume) cost more than your car.

The picture quality was like trying to read an encyclopedia thru a fogged window while drunk on absinthe. But the built-in ashtray, which could also hold enough car keys for a Tuesday night 70's suburban swinger party, was a nice touch.

 

[Picklechu]

Thankfully I am not a console gamer anymore, but what is this retarded trend of having wireless controllers on everything now? You Zoomers like paying for and changing batteries or putting your controllers into recharge stations all the time or what?

Battery life on all of the ones I've used has actually been pretty good. I can go a month or so without having having to charge my pro controller for Switch. I also don't know of any where you can't link it to the console via USB port.

 

[Smaug's Smokey Hole]

Yeah, these things sucked ass and (I assume) cost more than your car.
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The picture quality was like trying to read an encyclopedia thru a fogged window while drunk on absinthe. But the built-in ashtray, which could also hold enough car keys for a Tuesday night 70's suburban swinger party, was a nice touch.

It was the kind of TV set that can't be used in a normal room even with blinds and curtains closed, it would always look a bit iffy. Oh and the burn in... It's perfect big screen TV size wise for a basement dungeon though! But at that point, buy a BARCO or something front projection and build a theater room like people with actual money or foil the windows like a weirdo. A rear projection TV was not for the normal living room nor was it big enough for a theater room. In my opinion. Not that impressive.

 

[Retink]

Proper debug clocks on motherboards. I think one of my boards burned out the other day, but these days it seems like the double seven segment counter is gone and it's just a couple debug LEDs at best. There's one LED on this board that's just showing it's getting power and I guess you can get an panel to test it but I'm not going to go out and buy a panel to check a board that's not that expensive. I could just buy a new board, but what if it's just the CPU that burned out, which could very well be the case in this computer.

 

[The Last Stand]

*sobs solemnly about abandoning a sony trinitron CRT in a move because my escape module didn't have room for that shit*

Those CRTs had a vibrancy like nothing since, fuck me, I seriously regret not having the room in a hasty move to keep that gigantic mini-refrigerator-sized motherfucker.

I don't miss CRTs. They were too heavy, too prone to discoloration, too much static.

 

[nah]

I miss good technical manuals. Nowadays, there is a barebones manual which will direct you to a tech support area (github or stack overflow are big offenders for software, discord for games, and twitter or reddit for everything else it seems). The most obvious effect is everyone has piecemeal knowledge about systems. However, I strongly believe that system design is reflected in the communication structure of the organization who made the system, and manuals serve as a way to keep an order to this structure for users of these systems. So I see two additional issues popping up in this shitty manual world: a muddled core purpose of the system, and increased time spent maintaining and developing the system by the organization.

I think everyone can understand what I mean by a muddled core by taking a look at so-called "Internet of Things". Other examples are "feature creep" and Zawinsky's law: "All software expands until it can read e-mail."

The extra maintenance and development time, however, does not have a concise term that I know of. For this, I mean that since the idea of a canonical manual has been thrown out by seemingly everyone, the burden of explaining what a piece of technology's purpose, and, more importantly, method of operation is foisted upon every public-facing individual in an organization. If this isn't clear, think of the all of the times you've tried to figure out how to use software and think about how quickly you bypassed the official documentation, willingly or not, to instead visit the support forums. You no doubt found exactly what you needed, from someone else looking to do the same thing. But often the person explaining how to do that thing is a member of that organization, and they've given the answer to this to countless others before them. And this happens both unwillingly: some middle manager telling their underlings that budget cuts lead to letting go of the technical writers, so now the underlings get to manage the documentation and are part of the support team, also there's no opportunity to reduce their current workload to accommodate; as well as willingly: some developer creates a program, frobnar, and encourages every person to post their question to github because he simply loves to interact with the frobnar community, but over time frobnar seems to be less stable and doesn't seem to solve the problems it was originally created to solve, despite the github activity being off the charts.

And both of these issues can go away if everyone got their collective heads out of their asses and once again embraced the up front time and resource cost of designing a good manual.

 

[AnOminous]

So I see two additional issues popping up in this shitty manual world: a muddled core purpose of the system, and increased time spent maintaining and developing the system by the organization.

I remember a system I had to assist in maintaining had something like a 30 volume manual in those 3-ring binders, so you could swap out sections as they were updated (this part was not fun). I actually read them cover to cover in my first couple months so while I obviously didn't retain all this, I knew where to find it if I needed it from then on.