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Almost Obsolete

  • Apr 29, 2011
  • by
Thought I would compile a list of things that are just about or soon will be obsolete. The world is changing so rapidly and for older folks like myself it is difficult to keep up. I probably left off lots of items on my list so feel free to make up your own. My list is presented in no particular order.
1
Wrist Watch
Wrist Watch
Since I personally don't care for jewelry I haven't worn a watch in years. Frankly, with all of the electronic gadgets people carry around with them today I am surprised to see as many watches as I do..
2
Bookstores
Bookstores
This is one thing I will hate to see go but I guess it is inevitable, A great place to meet up with friends and neighbors but sadly no longer viable in most cases.
3
Fax Machine
Fax Machine
It seems like yesterday when fax machines were introduced but yesterday was more than 20 years ago. I remember being totally amazed when I saw what they were capable of doing. They'll be around for a while long but will probably be obsolete by 2015.
4
College Textbooks
College Textbooks
I will shed no tears over this development. College textbooks have been one of the biggest scams of the past 50 years.
5
Checks
Checks
While I do pay many of my bills online I still write more checks than most. I have never used a debit card. Old habits die hard I imagine within a decades paper checks will probably be a thing of the past. I read recently that most people under the age of 30 have never written a check. That seems uncomprehensible to me.
6
Network Television
Network Television
As far as I am concerned Network TV has been so bad for so long that I simply don't even think of it anymore. I have not watched a series on a major network on a regular basis for years. There are so many options available today. In a way it is sad because there are very few share experiences anymore.
7
Telephone Book
Telephone Book
Considerably less important than it was just a few years ago. Isn't it odd that as phone books become obsolete we now get several each year from different companies. Still a good thing to have around the house but I find we refer to it less and less.
8
Written Letter
Written Letter
Very few people write letters anymore and that is a real shame. Text messaging is very expedient but I get the feeling that society has lost something precious with the demise of letters.
9
Compact Disc
Compact Disc
Looks like compact discs will follow casette tapes and vinyl records to the graveyard. Too bad. Downloading MP3's may be a lot cheaper but I will miss the packaging, liner notes etc. It's just not the same.
10
Foldable Road Maps
Foldable Road Maps
This venerable item served us well for decades. GPS is great technology but it is not something that I have much interest in.
11
Cash
Cash
I talk to more and more people all the time who carry very little cash. And just the other day I heard that many parents now give their kids allowance on a debit card. I guess the hand-writing is on the wall....
12
Catalogs
Catalogs
There are still lots of them around and we seem to get them all but catalogs are extremely expensive to produce and mail. Online ordering really is the way to go and I actually enjoy it just as much as thumbing through a catalog.
13
Newspapers
Newspapers
It's only a matter of time......However, reading the news of the day on a Kindle really does not excite me.
See the full review, "The decline of America's once great newspapers has been a painful thing to watch.".
14
DVD
DVD
This really upsets me because this technology is still relatively new and I like to have the physical product in hand. My wife and I have been busy building a collection of classic films but the trend is unmistakable here.
15
Land Line Phones
Land Line Phones
Just read an interesting piece the other day that Rhode Island and New Jersey lag behind the rest of the nation in ditching their land line home phones. I can relate. We still have ours and I have no plans to get rid of it anytime soon.
16
Rolodex
Rolodex
These were a fixture in offices until the past 5 or 10 years. Now it seems odd to see one.

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May 04, 2011
Your list succeeded in making me feel like I am rapidly becoming obsolete, hah! ;) Some items could be gone already, but things like bookstores and CDs/DVDs I will miss. How much do you wanna bet though that watches make a resurgence when you can elegently fit a cell phone and more powerful computer into them?
 
May 04, 2011
Like you I have not worn a wrist watch for years, since I got a cell phone I simply do not see the point. I will also be sad to see bookstores go but the fact is I buy almost all of my books now through Amazon. The last telephone book I got was 2006, and it's been years since i've written a letter or sent a postcard and I work now in the Post office and handwritten letters or postcards are very rare these day's. I still buy mostly CD's because downloads will have to become better, for example with itunes you do not get any information or liner notes. Cash is something that I never use I pay everything with credit cards and I never read paper newspapers anymore.
 
May 03, 2011
Interesting list, though I think a few of these were extinct probably a decade ago. I recently attended a talk by a lady with Barnes & Noble who told the group about an area high school investing in a couple dozen Nooks (readers) for its students. That's an amazing idea, and, yeah, it just kinda shows how textbooks are quickly becoming obsolete.
 
May 02, 2011
Great list, Paul! I was just thinking the other day that I needed to get a land line because my cell reception is ridiculous in my house and it cut out on a client the other day, not good! I'm upset by the loss of bookstores, luckily in SF, they are fiercely protective of mom and pop shops, including bookstores, so hopefully they'll keep these around because it's a wonderful way to spend an afternoon. I think that you are right about the written letter, it's so wonderful to receive a hand written note in the mail and I think it means even more today than it did when it was the only form of communication.
 
May 01, 2011
Hope you're right about the DVD. The price keeps coming down and the bonus packages keep getting better and better, Love those extra discs with the extra features. Network television may survive but will be increasingly irrelevant. Only a fraction of the audience they used to command. Thanks for the comments!
 
May 01, 2011
Great list. I love wrist watches! But as for dvd; not yet. Bluray is the one that has been given a tombstone according to the experts. Cash will always be around imho LOL!! # 6 will always be here and the fax machine...I know but I think court filings will always require them LOL!!
 
April 30, 2011
I will not miss text books either. Overpriced vastly to scam already starving people out of more money. Those authors better get paid a lot to write them to justify the price. ANYWAY, awesome list! Theres some things on here that I wouldn't have thought of ever going away, but taking a second I can see how it could happen.
 
April 30, 2011
Great list. Phone books are actually an annoyance. They go right to my recycling bin. Text books are another annoyance and I watched my kids develop scoliosis from carrying those heavy backpacks. Not so sure about cash since many people operating businesses still insist on cash to avoid paying those credit card fees and possibly paying sales tax. I still have plumbers and such that tell me that if I pay them in cash, they won't charge me tax.
 
April 29, 2011
They are not gone at all... they have been digitized, that's all!
 
April 29, 2011
This is such a great list. I agree Fax Machines do need to go. Although i cant see land lines going anywhere anytime soon, i still see alot of em.
 
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About the list creator
Paul Tognetti ()
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I guess I would qualify as a frustrated writer. My work requires very little writing and so since 1999 I have been writing reviews on non-fiction books and anthology CD's on amazon.com. I never could … more
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