Technology advances so fast that odds are the device you're reading this on was most likely obsolete before you even took it out of its packaging. That's okay though, because the world needs new tech to keep up with the new demands.
Most of the time.
Turns out, there's a lot of old, outdated, outclassed tech still floating around out there, and some people are forced to use them every day.
Pity them.
Reddit user, nathan_thinks, wanted to know what tech should be relegated to the bin when they asked:
"What is a severely out-of-date technology you're still forced to use regularly?"
Sometimes, even though the technology might be old or outdated, it works just as well as anything we use today. No need to change what still works at the level it's required.
If It Ain't Broke...
"Kinda boring but I guess the oldest thing I regularly use is my alarm clock, same one has been next to my bed for over 30 years. Just a basic 80s clock radio."
BrandonTaylor89
Heavy Audio Requires A Heavy Mixer
"My quarter million pound audio mixer was built in 1998. It runs on Windows NT and a Pentium III with a 256Mb memory stick. We added an SSD a while back and changed all the fans. Our satellite uplink dish runs on two very old Mac's."
John5247
"I have a Wheatstone broadcast mixer in my home studio. I have to run a virtual machine with windows ‘98 to work the software for it. Luckily the software is really just needed to re-configure, and set things up initially. I’m not doing music, so inputs rarely change. It works well though. Each channel strip has a little screen on it that tells what the input is. It’s one of the first consoles that did that, and I just put in a new SAS console in a cluster build and the little screens on it look the exact same as my Wheatstone. Rarely digital stuff ages well, but this has done great."
TravisGoraczkowski
Ever Seen A Movie About Reporters In A Library?
"Wouldn't say forced because I love it but microfilm. Work at a library. Super cool to still have this stuff. Lots of history would be lost without this."
turducken19
"I work in government records. Microfilm is the sh*t. The only thing that really worries me about it is what we’ll do if one of the microfiche readers breaks beyond repair….."
Karnakite
"My state's archivist said that the reason for microfilm as an acceptable archiving material is because all you need is a light and a magnifier. It would suck to lose the machine that makes it easy, but we could still read it."
Available-Love7940
Won't Break As Easily
"I'm way off base from the other comments, but the only thing I can think of is the 'thumb breaking' can opener. The battery ones just don't cut it (hee hee), so I resort to old faithful. It works, but it's a bit hard on the hands. :):)"
MamaKitty28
Sometimes it takes old technology to get the job done.
That would be the only sane reason why you're still tearing small strips of paper off of the sides of your sheet after it's done printing.
Electronic Mail Must Seem Like Witchcraft To These People
"Fax machine"
f-ckitweredoingitliv
"Fun fact: The fax machine predates the telephone."
mprecup
"Swear to God, some of the older people at my work still ask me how to use the fax machine....are you kidding me."
throwingplaydoh
"Fax machines. Dear lord why do we need fax in 2022. Most businesses don’t even have a copper landline. And why pay for an online fax service?"
RoadOk3108
When You Have To Schedule Time In Your Day To Print
"At work we still use a dot matrix printer with the strips you have to tear off. We've been told that when it breaks next time that's it. So we are all waiting on it to die."
Edrock627
"Does it go “SKKEEEEEEEER SKEEEEEEEEER SKEEEEEEEEEER” every time it prints? I gotta admit, I have a lot of nostalgia associated with that sound."
Karnakite
Code: Blue, No Matter Where You Are
"We still have a pager for our on call. It's ridiculous!"
Wiccataz
"I’ve heard the reason that hospitals still use pagers is that they are much more likely to have a signal than a phone in certain parts of the hospital."
ichliebekohlmeisen
And then there's these, tech maybe better suited to be a paperweight than what they were intended for.
So Much More Sanitary
"TP instead of a bidet. I've never used one but the sounds cool and cleaner than TP"
FluffyPancakes90
The Peak Of "Why?"
"How they still charging $100 for the TI-83???"
UndressMyBoner
"I started working for TI at the end of last year and during the info session the first thing they said was “no you don’t get a free calculator”."
"We are actually having a fundraising auction right now to support United Way and tons of employees are auctioning off their rare TI calculators within the company. It’s wild."
kpidhayny
Pray For Those In The Classroom
"My school computers. They have 4GB RAM and Intel Pentium processors from 2012, plus Windows 10 bloated with school security stuff. It takes half an hour to have it running, then the other half waiting to do stuff because it freezes"
Lollooo_
While You're At It, Pray For Those In The Medical Field
"Windows XP on a 20 year old computer. Scientific instrument that we can't upgrade."
Mica_Dragon
"We still use windows xp for our X-ray fluorescence spectrometer 😩. I know the pain"
liberalvenery
Seriously, Does Anyone Use Internet Explorer If They Don't Have To?
"Internet Explorer, I do programming as a mechanic whenever we install a computer on a car and many of the programming softwares need to run on IE to work correctly."
Sergio-14
Laws Keeping Old Machines Running
"In these parts, property titles MUST BE type-written using a REAL TYPE-WRITER. Which means a document that could be shot out of the laser-printer in 6 seconds needs to wait for 43 days while the type-writer person gets through their pile of other documents from 8 other counties."
"There exists some silly statute from colonial times (50 yrs ago) to this effect."
tastes-like-earwax
We're Totally Paperless....Kind Of...
"Paper bank statements as part of proof of address/identity. It’s dumb especially in today's climate."
"I use online banking, my bank has no buildings and doesn’t use paper. It’s all done via an app. My statements are all online and are not acceptable forms of identity/address for some stupid reason, even though my name and address are there along the official bank stamp."
"I was forced to open an account with £1 at a brick and mortar bank and print off half a tree, get this… to take and upload photos of them and send them via email. And this bank is 8 miles away from me so I had to drive there and use fuel."
"What a wasteful and time consuming process."
MeMuzzta
We can only keep working towards the future. Sometimes that's a little harder when seemingly everyone is set on hanging out in the past.
What old technology are you forced to use every day? Tell us about it in the comments!
