Bigglez wrote:Technically ignorant society. ...-> After all, the stone-age didn't end because humans ran out of stones.
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Bigglez,
My replies:
1.) The independent closed due to location and, from what I had heard, shady management.
A.) While on the main road of town, the parking lot was off of a side street that made it hard to
get off and on the very same main road - inconvenient. The Corporate store was located in a mall
and is still located in a mall just down the road from the original location. Both the old location and
the new location have plenty of parking.
B.) Something to do with questionable money management. This is 3rd or 4th hand information.
2.) Technology apathy is, I think, a more apt description. As you inferred, most people could care less
about how things work, as long as those things continue to work. This type of person is usually called
an End User. As long as they push button "A" and result "B" happens, all is well. When result "C" or "D"
happens, they are at a total loss as to why "B" disappeared, let alone why "C" and "D" showed up.
It's the same with people who drive their automobiles with faulty brake lights and the little "Check Engine"
light glowing on their dash. As long as the car starts, off they go, happy to be yet another End User.
With technology comes the responsibility of knowing something about that technology other than how to
turn it on and off. User manuals are included for a reason. I'm not saying that one needs to know the most
minute detail about everything they lay their hands on, but knowing the basic rules of ownership responsibility
and how to spot impending trouble goes a long way to getting the most out of any technology, even 'stones'.
*Quality* is a subjective term that has been used incorrectly for a long time. A qualifier is normally used with
it to tell what type it is: High means good or very good, Low means poor to no real value, while Mid is pretty
self explanatory. Subjective is just that - a personal evaluation of what is most important to determine the
type of *Quality*. For many with little disposable income, price may have a greater weight than actual performance.
Others place great value on brand names. Other people place individual freedom over certain restrictive caveats
placed upon a product by the manufacturer or provider. Therefore, *Quality* by itself really means nothing. In
this economy, I can see where price is a major factor in purchasing.
The rate of change in Technology is astounding. The plus side to it is that when a decently constructed unit
(whatever it may be) finally reaches the end of it's life, you should have gotten the perceived value out of it and
be good and ready to purchase something truly new, not just a small incremental upgrade. Sometimes you even get to
miss out on the so-called trends/things that probably shouldn't have been. Windows ME anyone? The downside to the
swift speed of technology is that planned obsolescence comes very fast now. Along with the perceived need to "upgrade"
is the hype that leads people to believe they need the latest and greatest "bling" to stay ahead in the world. IS the
upgrade necessary or is it just a byproduct of good/slick advertising? Even though a product may be improved, i.e.,
faster, cheaper (less expensive, cheaper has the connotation of lower quality), better, doesn't mean that it is a
necessity when last year's model is still fully functional and serving quite well. Would you go out and buy a new
house every 2-3 years just because it has a new feature? That would be ridiculous, right? Of course 300 G's or much
more is different than 100-1000 dollars, though the concept is the same.
As I said above, I don't expect people to understand every iota of everything they touch. Within this thread, though,
I do expect salespeople to have a firm grasp of their stock, at least in their section, so as to be able to assist
customers effectively. The salesperson is the first link in customer service.
I can think of an amendment to your question:
Since the global citizenry are turning more to "green", should the trend which has lead to the invention of the
disposable society be allowed to continue on unabated, or will it eventually slow or stall? Is all progress good?
A highly critical view of the global situation is required to answer those questions. In this case, critical means
analytical. It also means that a cursory glance is unacceptable to give informed answers. I, myself, have to do a
lot more research into those questions before I can even hazard an opinion.
CeaSaR
BTW, word count = 794.