Consequences of zero IT skills

Unless an older person has some cognitive issues, learning one’s way around IT has to do with need and interest rather than age.

If one doesn’t require using modern technology in their day-to-day life, they might feel they have no need to learn it.

Or they’re like my dad, who was a mechanical engineer and loved all sorts of gadgetry. He must have been at least 65 when the computer age really took off but he learned his way around it all quickly because he was interested.

I know people in their 20s who don’t use smart phones and don’t have the need or interest to be computer savvy.

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Lol… my nephew started to give me a lesson on the early days of the internet.

Yeah, I know! I was there.

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I always ask for and get a paper menu.

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In this current climate, anyone who gets uppity or arsey about having to use a QR code for a menu, needs to get a grip.

Here in Spain many places are still using QR’s, even the Michelin recommended restaurant we ate in last night. So who is right as to whether somewhere is a restaurant or not @KenH, you or the Michelin guide?

It is a practice that is dying out though, many places will provide a physical menu if you ask. Usually in a “wipe clean” format though.

JF

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I still prefer to scan a QR code or look at an online menu rather than think about all that paper/card that could be wasted with physical menus.

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Thank you for contributing to the waste and CO2 use that could have been prevented by just looking at the QR code.

Blinkered view my old mucker.

There are many folks who do not possess smart phones therefore are unable to use a QR code.

There are many folks, like me, who are so visually impaired after a few wee Olorosos that squinting at a little screen becomes difficult. Ok, some folks are visually impaired without the Oloroso, and for them it can be difficult also.

Reign in the unwarranted criticism, please.

JF

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qr codes are “reducing human waste impact” , but also reducing human jobs to machines. I would rather deal with a person than with anything on my phone, sorry. No self check-in, no internet enabled lockbox here, not because I can’t use them, but because I choose not to.

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Do you have internet up in them thar hulls :rofl:

JF

yes, wireless, combination locks (never used) and no land line! no complaints :stuck_out_tongue:

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I’m in John and Gypsy’s camp. It’s absurd that someone would need to be smart phone user to eat out in a restaurant. Nothing wrong with using QR codes if they want to, but it being the ONLY way to see a menu is BS.

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I wonder about all the hosts whose guests need a smartphone to access the property and how many of them would scoff at a guest who wasn’t suitably equipped.

:rofl:

Actually, Google tells me that as of April this year, 85% of Americans have a smartphone with 97% having a cellphone of some kind.

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OK, but what percentage actually know how to use it?

JF

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Exactly. My kids’ dad had a smart phone and couldn’t even figure out how to answer it when it was ringing.

And I would never book a place that required a smart phone in order to get in. Even though I likely wouldn’t have a problem with it, what happens if the guest loses their phone, breaks it, or it runs out of charge on the way to the rental?

And I hate the presumption that everyone uses a smart phone, just like I hate the presumption that everyone has a Facebook account.

My favorite restaurants pre-covid were the ones where I knew everyone. I would grab my favorite table, walk over to the pickup window, ask about specials, and put in my order before the server could pour water. But I have eaten in 2 outdoor seating places in the past year and a half, and none inside.

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At my previous STR I greeted and showed the rental to all.
When I moved here last June in the midst of Covid 2.0 with a living room open to the stairs that would lead to the rental I had to have an entry way put in.
It’s been a tough adjustment not meeting all my guests although I’ve met about half. I’m now kind of used to it and check in with the impersonal internet.
Re: restaurant and QR code. I’ve only eaten in a few in the last 1 1/2 years and only one higher end inside that provided menus. Not everyone in the universe owns a smart phone.

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Does it occur to anyone that businesses that use certain technology are perfectly happy to exclude the customers who can’t or won’t use that technology?

And the reverse is true as well. If a shop only has a storefront and no website with online ordering they are excluding a lot of customers.

“I won’t shop/eat/book/buy a ticket from/etc” seems like a meaningless phrase. No business is trying to attract everyone’s patronage. I won’t eat anywhere that requires a jacket or shirt with a collar but apparently those places stay in business without me.
I went to concerts this year where entrance was only by showing the QR code. No physical tickets were used. I used the app. Those with no tech could probably print out the code but I didn’t notice anyone doing that.

Bottom line is that any business that can save more money than they lose by implementing a certain technology will do it.

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Other than for food, almost everything I “need” is bought online. Thought I’d never buy a pair of shoes online but bought some boots that were not cheap and they didn’t fit as advertised, back they went.
I’m not a fan of the big box stores and it’s so frustrating trying to find one little thing you’re looking for, so I head to the internet.

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I send the money I save shopping at Amazon to grassroots organizations that work to unionize workers. :wink:

I am grateful for the miracle of online shopping during a pandemic but when the pandemic is over and we wait for the next one I’ll still shop online whenever possible.

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Try not to give Jeff any more money that he doesn’t need.