this post was submitted on 17 Aug 2023
574 points (95.6% liked)

Ask Lemmy

27042 readers
1257 users here now

A Fediverse community for open-ended, thought provoking questions

Please don't post about US Politics. If you need to do this, try [email protected]


Rules: (interactive)


1) Be nice and; have funDoxxing, trolling, sealioning, racism, and toxicity are not welcomed in AskLemmy. Remember what your mother said: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. In addition, the site-wide Lemmy.world terms of service also apply here. Please familiarize yourself with them


2) All posts must end with a '?'This is sort of like Jeopardy. Please phrase all post titles in the form of a proper question ending with ?


3) No spamPlease do not flood the community with nonsense. Actual suspected spammers will be banned on site. No astroturfing.


4) NSFW is okay, within reasonJust remember to tag posts with either a content warning or a [NSFW] tag. Overtly sexual posts are not allowed, please direct them to either [email protected] or [email protected]. NSFW comments should be restricted to posts tagged [NSFW].


5) This is not a support community.
It is not a place for 'how do I?', type questions. If you have any questions regarding the site itself or would like to report a community, please direct them to Lemmy.world Support or email [email protected]. For other questions check our partnered communities list, or use the search function.


Reminder: The terms of service apply here too.

Partnered Communities:

Tech Support

No Stupid Questions

You Should Know

Reddit

Jokes

Ask Ouija


Logo design credit goes to: tubbadu


founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 

My wife and I started talking about this after she had to help an old lady at the DMV figure out how to use her iPhone to scan a QR code. We're in our early 40s.

(page 6) 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Nah don't think so. I think it's less of a generational thing and more like when a particular technology came about. Like boomers are in my experience generally okay with older more 'analog' tech. Millennials I think are decent all around. Gen z don't know how to use anything outside an app and it's baffles me.

Guess we'll just wait and see.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Damn near guaranteed.

Technology doesn't stop but at a point you get stuck in your ways. Sure you could use Windows Settings App, but you know how to navigate the control panel and the settings app is so damn cluttered. I could potentially live to be 90 something but I'm for sure intimidated by what tech would look like in 50 years.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Probably not as bad, but it is an inevitability I think. Once you get a certain age, major shifts are just more difficult to adjust to. On a smaller scale for example, I don't understand things like Tiktok, Snapchat, etc. I'm a millennial that will be hitting 37 this month, so my adjustment to social media ended with Instagram basically.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Yes.

Of course, there will be a range in all generations from those who ignore technology altogether and who will inevitably be bad at it, to those who keep on top of every change and continue to be skilled users of that technology.

I don't see why there would be a difference from one generation to the next. The proportions might be different: boomers and GenX who saw this stuff come in later in life and who know there is more to life than technology might be more inclined to spend their time away from that tech than later generations that grew up with this stuff. Or maybe the later generations will want to get away from it and rediscover nature.

I suspect that if and when retirement happens I'll (GenX) be spending a lot of time away from computers.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Na it'll be the music we don't understand.

And the fashion.

Oh wait and the slang.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

iPhone to scan a QR code.

Knowing that this feat was not existent 5years ago ( < iOS11) and is not implemented the same on , is it a fail ?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

It depends what we mean by "bad with technology."

A lot of posts here are talking about how the current young generations (Generation Z and Generation Alpha) are bad with technology as they don't understand anything, and this is true, but to most people being "good with technology" means you're good at using it for desired results, not necessarily understanding how things work or how to troubleshoot.

In my opinion: No. Due to the type of technology that the millennials grew up with, they are generally good at adapting to new and changing technologies, so I suspect they'll be quite good at keeping up. Whether this will hold true for Z and Alpha is to be seen.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I think it's gonna get worse. Change is a part of every generation but it feels like the rate at which things change is increasing significantly.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Yes. I think the big jump will be with biotech. Some people will have trouble with organic interfaces and organic machines.

Meanwhile I love watching kids who have used touchscreens their whole lives trying to navigate a mouse.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I think the opposite actually. We had to live through rapid changes in the way we used and interacted with technology in our early years. I think we may be slower to adopt certain things than the younger generations because of "fuck change", but on a whole I think we will be more technically competent with newer technologies as they emerge.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Careful about generalizations. I've been using computer technology since 1975.... #COBOL 👨‍🦳

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Not likely. You have to remember that Boomers grew up with zero computing in their lives, thus they never did get a general education on computing.

That general education instils the foundational knowledge and habits, and is extended by new technologies, not replaced by them.

load more comments (4 replies)
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I’m rounding mid 40’s. I use linux all the time and I am becoming increasingly bad at troubleshooting or fixing windows issues. I don’t really have that problem with my current OS and I’ve never used Win 11 once.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

This is something I worry about as well (mid-thirties millennial), but I'm really hoping it won't be a problem. Anecdotally, I don't notice any appreciable difference between myself and my dad (technically a boomer) when it comes to technology, but my mom isn't as comfortable. I think it's because my dad spends more time using various types of current tech and is willing to troubleshoot on his own, so maybe it's just a matter of continued exposure and a willingness to learn.

At the same time I see my grandparents really struggle with digital interfaces because they didn't grow up with them and don't find them intuitive, in a way that can't be explained by lack of curiosity. It's almost like they're not fluent in the language because they missed a critical period of learning in childhood? If a brand new, extremely different way to interface with the world takes over, I guess I could see myself and my peers struggling as well.

load more comments
view more: ‹ prev next ›