Eureka Columnist

I consider myself a fairly intelligent person, with varied interests, who tries to stay up-to-date on current trends and events. Apparently, I’m not doing a very good job of knowing about electronic devices.

My grands, however, definitely know about and how to use them.

Grayson and I were having a conversation about the gifts she received for Christmas.  She was excited about her Rocketbook, and I commented that I didn’t know she was interested in rockets.

She gave me a strange look, and then patted me on my shoulder, and stated, “Oh, Nanner Banana, isn’t about rockets. A rocketbook is a virtual diary. You write with a special pen and what I write is stored on my cloud. Once it is full, I just erase it and start over.”

I said, “Well, that is ok, but I had journals, and really liked writing in it each day.”  She laughed and said “Yep, you are still old school, but it’s okay I love you anyway.”

Thanks. I think?

If you start looking at all the devices and “i” everything you can quickly become overwhelmed. You also have to be careful what you say as terminology no longer means the same as it did.

Examples:

A switch has nothing to do with discipline! It’s a game console.

Zip means to compress a file, not your pants.

Zoom is how to communicate by video not the speed you went through the grocery store.

Clouds are storage spaces, but I can’t really figure out where they are.

Tablets are rechargeable mobile devices with touchscreens, not pads of paper.

Tweets are comments you make on a specific website, not the sound of birds.

Apple is a brand not a fruit.

I could continue, but you get the picture. The difference between virtual reality and actuality are becoming a blurred line.

You don’t need a dictionary or thesaurus any more. You just ask your phone, or digital box that contains a beautiful voice, but no one knows what she looks like.  I guess I can use my imagination. Or is that allowed?  I’ll have to ask.

You can also “time” my face and ”book“ my face, and I can create an avatar that is an improved version of myself (no wrinkles or dusting of freckles.

I’m not sure about using many of these things, and if I do I’m not sure I’m doing it correctly. How do I know which cloud to be on?  Do I have more than one cloud if I have more than one electronic device?  I’m not going to worry about getting lost in the clouds – I’ll just have one of the grands find me.

A scarier thought is that apparently I am leaving a trail of “cookies” and digital footprints so anyone can find me. I’m not so sure that is a good thing. I hope I can update my knowledge and “get with it,” –  is that the terms kids use today?

Ugh…now I have another question to ask my phone. Maybe I better stick with pen and paper, and be thankful.

Write to Pam Bock at bockpam@yahoo.com