Old School Vs. New School

Marty Whitford • Publisher/Editorial Director

AOL Lives. — After we induct our Pest Management Professional (PMP) Hall of Fame Class of 2013 in October, there will be 75 PMP HOFers. Many of these industry legends — brilliant folks such as Dr. Austin M. Frishman, Dr. Doug Mampe and Jerry Mix — still use AOL for their email.

Back to School: Typewriters — According to Bill Wahl, a third-generation repairman at Mesa Typewriter Exchange, more high schools are going Old School and using manual typewriters to help students concentrate on their communication skills. Banging it out on a manual typewriter emphasizes the importance of every paragraph, sentence, word and punctuation. Amen, Old School brothers and sisters! … Now, please hand me a 55-gallon drum of Wite-Out.

PONG Rules. — First shared with the world by Atari in 1972, PONG helped spawn generations of couch potatoes like myself. The 2D tennis game is a forefather of Xbox 360’s Call of Duty and (ironically) Wii Fit.

QWERTY: Smart & Simple — Smartphone manufacturers offering only touchscreen options fail to cater to a growing niche to which I belong: Folks with fat fingers who also battle familial tremors (aka “shaky hands syndrome”).

Our Past Helps Build Our Future. — Here’s a short list of a few technologies unveiled in the 1930s — 80 years ago, when this publication launched — that remain in good use today: polystyrene, neoprene, nylon stockings, FM radio, TV, radar, the parking meter and the helicopter. In summary, without Old School, there would be no New School.

You can reach Whitford at mwhitford@northcoastmedia.net or 216-706-3766.

Will Nepper • Managing Editor

User Error — If you can’t make your computer do what you want, you’d better call Best Buy’s Geek Squad … unless you’re New School and more able to troubleshoot successfully (and rib elders by pointing out all they had to do was reboot.)

We Know the Answer. — And if we don’t, give us two minutes and a Web browser. Obviously, some knowledge can only be gained by experience. That said, Old Schoolers often have questions that can be answered with a simple Google search. What time does the pharmacy close? What’s the phone number to renew my AARP subscription? Ask a New Schooler and you’ll have your answers in about the same time it takes an Old Schooler to ask the question.

That’s (FREE) Entertainment! — Who needs cable when you can be entertained, often for free, online? Cable is going the way of video stores. Almost anything on TV is also available online. This includes local broadcasting, movies and sitcoms. But cable still sputters with life thanks to tech-illiterates.

Typing Skills — When Old Schoolers were teens, typing class was “for girls,” leaving several generations of males saddled with slower, hen-pecking keyboard skills. Education in more-enlightened times means typing is no longer just a training ground for future secretaries.

Smartphones — New Schoolers know there are many smartphones offering touch screens and keyboards. (Just sayin’, boss.) pmp

You can reach Nepper at wnepper@northcoastmedia.net or 216-706-3775.