Technology is good, but upkeep can be frustrating.

[Ezrablum]

We have the tools to get a lot of information right at our very fingertips. The internet has been around for a while now, and I have been regularly using it since 1997. That's 13 years. And in those 13 years, I would expect to be able to use it to my advantage on a regular basis. Truth is, it's sometimes faster to just use a phone book.

Is there some sort of conspiracy involved? Are the phone book manufacturers impeding progress on basic maintenance to keep their antiquated business running? I kid, sort of.

I went online at about 3:30 a.m. today, Monday morning, to see if the Homeland on S. 104th and S. Penn was open. I had been to that Homeland before and though it says it is a 24 hour store, they actually close. But I couldn't remember if they close on Sunday nights or Monday nights. I check the website, find the correct location, and it says "Open 24 Hours 7 Days". So I think, and this is where my mind is a little bit hazy, "Maybe they changed it. It seems like they have changed it before." This is where I admit to being confused about which days I thought they were open 24/7, mon/sun.

But I think to myself, I will trust the website. I could call, but it's 3:30 in the morning and even if I don't get a pre-recorded voice message, I will probably get a ringing tone which will never be picked up (based on previous experience with trying to call places and get a human on the other end) . So I won't be able to rely solely on that anyway. So I will travel the 3.8 miles over there and just see for myself. And hopefully I can get a late night bag of Chili-cheese Fritos to satiate my late night cravings. (I had been to the 7-11 near my house earlier in the evening and they did not have them)

Of course, I get there and the place is close. The stickers on the window, behind a bush of some sort for sale (which I have to physically move to see the hours) state "Closed Sunday Midnight - 6" or something to that effect. They were closed. It made me pretty angry. I try not to be a person who experiences much anger, but this has been building up in me for quite sometime.

Why can't the website be updated to say that it's closed Sunday night?

Is it that difficult of a task? Do they assume that nobody really even checks it anyway? I don't understand.

And this is just one example of many technology related things that should be better than they are. It's 2010! I understand that we can't have flying cars. I get why we don't have jetpacks. But not being able to get accurate information from a store website about their hours of business?????? This is basic every day stuff.







tl;dr The internet isn't as technologically advanced or as accurate as I had hoped it would be in this day and age.

[kevinpate]

No issue with the grouse, but if you don't also follow up on it with that particular store, odds of seeing a change would seem slim.

[Ezrablum]

On a semi-related note, why do you think people in Oklahoma don't seem to use the internet as much, or be as internet friendly as people in bigger cities like Philadelphia, Austin, L.A., N.Y., etc? San Francisco is a given, it's right in the heart of computer country. And I kind of understand why people would be more forward thinking and accepting of technology and its benefits in the obvious L.A./NY/Chi type places. But Twin Cities, Philly, Houston, Omaha ... they are all ahead of us inasmuch as their citizens seem to utilize the gifts of technology more than we do. Don't get me wrong, I like this board ok, and I feel like many of you are on the more enlightened path when it comes to "internetting". But on a lot of the national websites and forums in which I frequent, you rarely ever see people from Oklahoma.

I was on a couple of different messageboards all of the time in the last 8 years, and they would constantly have meetups in cities where many of the other posters lived. For instance Portland just had a big meetup from one site. And sometimes people travel from the surrounding areas to go to that meetup.

One site actually used to have a west coast and east coast prom every year. Members would get dressed up all fancy and meet at a bar or other place where they could dance and chat irl. It was a lot of fun. I feel like Okies are missing out on some of the benefits that the internet can provide.

I have friends who have used Craigslist in bigger cities to find dates that they have actually enjoyed. I tried using it here 2 or 3 times and was greatly disappointed each time. It seems to be considered a last resort here for really desperate singles who can not meet people any other way. Whereas in the more internet friendly cities you can find and meet decent people though missed connections, and the standard classified section.

I've also been fairly ripped off a number of times when trying to purchase something from Craigslist here. Whereas, again, friends in other cities seem to meet really nice people who genuinely want to help get rid of their used items for a decent price.

This is also part of my frustration with the internet. The lack of it being a viable mode of socialization and commerce in OKC. We talk a lot about growing and making things better in our communities, but what about our online communities? They exist, and they can provide a lot of good connections with good people.

[Ezrablum]

No issue with the grouse, but if you don't also follow up on it with that particular store, odds of seeing a change would seem slim.

Agreed. I am writing them an email and I intend to talk to the manager today ... hopefully by phone. ha

[decepticobra]

even more confusing is that theres a chain of fitness centers in the DFW area called "24 hour fitness" even though most of them really are not open 24 hours a day.

Reversing that trend, the 7-11 convienence stores were so named cause back in the day they were only open from 7am to 11pm, but as everyone knows, they never close at any hour or any day.

[decepticobra]

....and yes, keeping up with technology is a bitch unless youre financially endowed to a pretty nice level.

and its really a multiple stance issue.

first, you have the hard-core adopters...those techies who wait in line at best buy or wherever to buy something THE VERY FIRST DAY it comes out, because they simply MUST OWN IT.

This demographic is what the rest of us conservative consumers sit back and observe, to see if the product exceeds or fails expectations. conservative consumers are usually patient and wait a while for the price to drop as well.

I myself (like so many others) invested heavily in DVD technology. I saw the many perks of it over VHS: no need to rewind, no VCR chewing on tapes anymore, no magnetic degradation of tape quality through normal playback, and the ability to skip to scenes, subtitles, etc. all made since to me...not to mention they take up less shelf space.

DVD technology came around to the mainstream masses around the turn of the millenia and no more than 10 years later, we now have Blu-ray at the forefront promising better quality.

Its a real kick in the ass after youve spent a lot of money on one format with the impression that it would last. Not that DVD seems to be dying anytime soon, but still.

You can still, believe it or not, find boomboxes that offer cassette tape playback.

CDs arent losing too much ground to MP3s, as just about every place that sells music has shelves lined full with CDs, but those cassette tapes that were around up until the late 90s are now long gone.

Everyone rushed out to buy a flatscreen/big screen TV. Many felt the huge kick in their butt if they invested in Plasma as everyone knows LCD is the way to go.

I still have my classic 25'' and 27" CRTs with all the necessary peripherals I need to enjoy current entertainment. I dont need a 63" 1080hp just yet, Ill wait for the price to come down before I indulge at seeing the beads of sweat slowly drip down the forehead of some newscaster's face. Hi def is great for movies, but not for live TV.

[Euphoria]

LCD *used* to be the way to go. Now LED wins.

Also, Blu-Ray and DVD aren't dead yet but they're going on life support soon. Seriously, digital media is king right now. When is the last time you bought a CD? For me it was over a year ago, I've purchased a dozen albums since then though, all in digital format. With internet speeds increasing there's no reason to package and ship physical CD's, DVD's, or Blu-Ray disks when the consumer can download a DRM protected copy for their own use.

Technology moves fast, it's our choice to keep up or not. I haven't owned a television in 10 years but I've seen every episode of House via the internet. I also watch Family Guy and SNL. I'm a 28-year old professional and have NEVER had a home phone. No need, my iPhone does anything I want and if I need to call long distance from the house I can use Skype, if I'm on the road I can Skype via my laptop.

Just my quick .02.

[fuzzytoad]

LCD *used* to be the way to go. Now LED wins.

Maybe if you own a stadium or a billboard advertising company...

That's the only place where true LED displays exist.

What electronics manufacturers and stores like Best Buy advertise as "LED TVs" are simply LCD displays with an LED backlight, instead of a fluorescent-type light...

True, they're thinner and use less electricity and are cheaper to produce, but they're also priced higher and(in some opinions) have black levels that aren't as deep and a bit of extra lighting on the edges of the screen...

At the end of the day, they're still just LCD screens...

[decepticobra]

if youre buying a new flat screen with an over proportionate size its difficult to not assume you to be something of a braggar, especially when you invite everyone you know over to your house to watch the big fight on your 63 inch tv.

[Euphoria]

Maybe if you own a stadium or a billboard advertising company...

That's the only place where true LED displays exist.

What electronics manufacturers and stores like Best Buy advertise as "LED TVs" are simply LCD displays with an LED backlight, instead of a fluorescent-type light...

True, they're thinner and use less electricity and are cheaper to produce, but they're also priced higher and(in some opinions) have black levels that aren't as deep and a bit of extra lighting on the edges of the screen...

At the end of the day, they're still just LCD screens...

Nah, you can already purchase OLED TV's in the 20 inch range. They have great color contrast (assuming the blue OLED hasn't burned out) and don't use a ton of power unless you're displaying white backgrounds consistently. They're just prohibitively expensive for the average consumer.

In fact, I think Samsung displayed a 40" OLED either last year or this year.

[fuzzytoad]

Nah, you can already purchase OLED TV's in the 20 inch range. They have great color contrast (assuming the blue OLED hasn't burned out) and don't use a ton of power unless you're displaying white backgrounds consistently. They're just prohibitively expensive for the average consumer.

In fact, I think Samsung displayed a 40" OLED either last year or this year.

The only one you can buy right now is an 11" OLED tv, for $2500.

I don't think that's what anyone would call a "replacement" for the LCDs everyone's buying now.

Sony & Samsung's 20-42" OLEDs are still in the prototype stage and have been displayed at the last two CES shows.. Again, with prices in the stratosphere.

Both companies have said that OLED and flexible OLED displays will eventually be at a comepetive price, but not til around 2012-2014

So for the time being, when you're shopping at Best Buy or Ultimate Electronics, or wherever, don't get duped by the sales associate using the term "LED TV"..

[Bunty]

Anyway, big screen plasma TVs make for a better picture. So please avoid buying a LCD screen. I recently saw a friend's 50" LCD Panasonic set, and kinda got the impression I was looking thru a screen door. No way will you get that feeling with a plasma. I think Consumer Reports gives the highest rating scores to plasma screens. The only down sides to plasmas are they may give off more heat, use more power, and reflect light worse than LCDs. But the latest plasmas are supposed to be more efficient.

LED DLP used to be a pretty cool and cheap way to go until Samsung quit making them. I still love my Sammy 61" LED DLP TV. Too many people, though, simply couldn't stand how a DLP picture faded out if you got too close to it or got seated too far off the side and because the cabinet wasn't thin. Mitsubishi still makes DLP and in the biggest screen sizes, 73", for instance, are, without a doubt, cheaper than LCD or plasma.

[Jethrol]

Back lit, LED LCD TVs with local dimming have contrast ratios, black levels and overall picture quality every bit as good as plasma TVs. They also do NOT have a problem with burn-in like plasmas.

There's a whole new crop of LCDs on the market with outstanding picture quality. Not a good idea to dismiss LCDs anymore.