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Tech Challenged Generation
On my first night back at school, I wanted to check Facebook and change my status to announce my return to ONU. Unfortunately, this was impossible, since my computer was downloading all of the new security updates that it needed before I could access the internet. I figured that this wouldn’t take very long, so my roommate and I went to Northern on Main Cafe for an hour. When I got back to my room, the security was still downloading. Eventually, my temporary internet access expired, and I had to begin downloading the security updates all over again.
This was becoming frustrating, so I called one of my friends, an electrical engineering major. I figured he’d be able to tell me why my computer wasn’t downloading the security updates. I also hoped he’d be able to tell me how I could make these updates download faster. When I asked him, his response was, “I don’t know.”
“You must have some idea!”
“No clue. Are you connected to wireless?”
“No.”
“Well, that’s the only reason I can think of that it would take so long.”
“But I’m not connected to wireless. So, what do I do?”
“I have no idea.”
Eventually, I grew so frustrated with my computer that I shut it off and decided I’d try downloading the updates another time. Later that evening, however, I remembered my godmother’s standard advice about the computer: “If it’s not working, turn it off; then turn it back on. Usually, that will make it work.” So, I turned my computer back on and tried to connect to the internet. This time, my security worked flawlessly, and I was able to access the internet and check Facebook. (By that time, I’d already run into most of my friends, so I saw no reason to change my status.)
At that time, I also wanted to print out my class schedule, so I attempted to hook my printer up to my laptop. I discovered that my printer cable was the wrong size and wouldn’t fit my laptop. This time, instead of calling my engineering friend for help, I called my dad.
“Dad, my printer won’t work.”
“What’s wrong with it?”
“The cable won’t fit my laptop.”
“Are you using the black cable or the grey cable?”
“The black one.”
“Of course that one doesn’t work! That’s why I hooked up the grey one while you were moving in. Try printing something. There shouldn’t be anything wrong with it.”
Feeling like an idiot, I closed my cell phone and put away the black printer cable. The grey cable was already connected to my laptop, so I printed my schedule.
My generation is stereotyped as being “tech savvy,” and we often deserve this label. When my mom needs to find something on Google or YouTube, she always asks me. My grandmother comes to me when she doesn’t understand her cell phone. There are times when I can’t understand how people a generation older than I am need help doing something as simple as sending an e-mail. However, I doubt that older generations are as technologically inept as they seem. My dad’s job involves entering data into spreadsheets so complicated that I could only understand them after taking several college courses. Even my godmother, who balks at the idea of using Microsoft Excel to keep track of our church’s finances, had better advice than my friend, the electrical engineer.
However, I do not consider myself “tech savvy.” I know how to use my computer to do what I need it for, which is usually limited to using Microsoft Word and Excel, manipulating search engines like Google, and sending e-mails. Beyond that, I’m as clueless as my mom and grandmother. Many people my age can do things with computers that I cannot even fathom, like write music, create web pages, and edit photography. Despite these talented individuals, most of the people that I know who are my age are just as inept as I am. They can do what they need to with a computer, but beyond that they’re clueless.
Skills with technology seem to vary from individual to individual, regardless of age. Many younger people are more “tech savvy” because they have had more experience, but experience and not age, seems to be the factor that determines if a person is technologically skillful. There are many people from previous generations that have had just as much experience and are just as open to learning about the new innovations that technology has to offer.