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People Explain Which Pieces Of Outdated Technology We Still Use Today

People Explain Which Pieces Of Outdated Technology We Still Use Today
andreas160587 / Pixabay

Technology is one of those things we are constantly updating in our personal lives. We have the newest phones, the latest computers, and televisions with the highest possible definition.

But the same can't be said for a lot of surprising, and honestly a little worrying, stuff.


One Reddit user asked:

What is the most outdated technology still used today?

Like I said, it's a little worrying.

All You Can Be?

army GIFGiphy

Like how all of the U.S. Army's systems run on Windows XP and they can't update because it would require converting so many files and programs and protocols that it would be very expensive to insure the process/be very hard make sure all their files transferred successfully?

- D_Redacted

I always loved how we can spend over a trillion dollars on building a modern aircraft with advanced avionics and stealth technology.

But we won't spend money to modernize the computers.

- thatAC130

Completely Separate Desktops

I went out my local tax office a few years back, because I needed new plates for my car.

While waiting in line I realized that each teller had two desktop computers. I then discovered that one was for property taxes and one for automobile taxes.

I can't even imagine what archaic system they were using that required completely separate desktops.

- Hactar42

Medical Faxes

I work in healthcare: fax machines.

- chadwick586

Sysadmin here. Laws may differ but where I live, faxes are in the same class as registered mail, so anything that can only be legally sent via registered mail can also go via fax.

Email etc don't have the same classification even though 90% of businesses who still use faxes do so electronically. Doesn't matter... so legally the fastest way the medical practice can send documents to you? Faxes.

This is starting to change and all the hospitals here have set up secure alternatives for sharing between one another, but random GPs and small clinics haven't caught up yet. Another few years and there will be less faxes but I'm guessing it's going to be around for a good while longer either way.

- wafflesareepic

Intentionally Impossible

Probably the 'computers' used in nuclear missile silos. Though kept that way, intentionally, they are really outdated.

- __groundhogday__

You can't tamper with something you can't interface with.

Until just a couple of years ago, they were using 8 inch floppies in the nuclear silos. No, not even the far more common 5 1/4 inch floppy, the even older 8 inch. They were so old that it would be nearly impossible for someone to mess with it.

The government is tracking the few places that you can still get these components. Anyone who's buying more than just replacement parts for anything they already have (i.e., trying to assemble a whole working system) will get severe scrutiny.

- WardenWolf

Historical Legacy

The NYC subway system

It is one of the oldest train system around but it has never been updated or replaced for better technology. They keep updating train car designs but the rails and signal systems are f*cking trash.

There is no reason for us to be stopped in the middle of a tunnel for fifteen minutes because of signal problems or because there's "traffic".

The MTA's excuse for not replacing the entire system is because it's a staple of NYC and is considered a historical legacy.

Like f*ck you MTA! I would like to not get fired from my job because of you! I would like to not have to leave my house 3 hours early to avoid being late for work and appointments because of your trash system.

The trains weren't as bad before, but ever since that hurricane hit, the MTA was all "well, we tried guys. The hurricane said no. Let's just drain the tracks of water and f*ck renovating anything that needs fixing."

The trains run weirdly too. The D and F trains will randomly switch lines with one another due to construction work... WHAT CONSTRUCTION WORK!?!?? THEY'RE BOTH STILL RUNNING!!!!!

The B line stops running after 9:45pm but then at 11pm, when you're drunk off your ass and need the D train (which runs the same line as the B in Manhattan but separate onto a different line in Brooklyn/Bronx), you will get on the train without looking and then just as you cross into Brooklyn/Bronx, you realize "oh my god! I'm on the B train! Tonight's the night it's running late! I'm so f********cked!"

People living near stations with just one train line... like I don't even question it. When the train that pulls up, it's our train. It's the "f*ck it. I'll figure it out once I'm in Manhattan" mentality.

And then just as you're beginning to relax, the conductor gets on the intercom to tell everyone the train will not be going into Manhattan. No, it will be reversing back to Coney Island and you will need to take literally any other train line but the one you're on in order to get into Manhattan.

That's when you wonder if you should just throw yourself onto the tracks and get it over with.

- jtrisn1

Ancient Leatherworks

If you want really outdated technology, craft leather workers (and honestly a lot of craftspeople) are using basically the exact same tools they were in the BCE.

How we make the tools is slightly different, but a leather awl is a f*cking leather awl and has been for around 3000 years.

- Sethrial

Leather burnisher. Basically a polished bone that's not been significantly changed or improved upon in the past, oh, 40,000 years or so.

Leatherworkers still use them the same way today as back then.

- Warpmind

"Old Reliable" Is Just Old

green light episode 13 GIFGiphy

Traffic light controllers.

In today's world we should have smart traffic lights that promote better flow of traffic- or at least don't make you sit at a red light for 5 minutes at 2am when there are no other vehicles on the road.

Only argument I've heard is that the older systems are tried and true, reliable, etc... Well as a police officer with lots of experience directing traffic when those old "reliable" systems fail, no. They're not reliable.

- Trouble-free

I work really early and leave the house at 4.30am. It feels really stupid sometimes when you're stopped at the traffic light for a couple of minutes when there's literally nobody else around.

I wish they'd turn the intersections in residential areas into a 4-way stop from midnight to 5am or something.

- DekeKneePulls

They Aren't Ineffective

A lot of militaries have very old airframes, with no retirement in sight. See: B-52 and Tu-95, F-5s and MiG-21s, and a whole lot more.

Also most 4th Generation jets were designed in the 70's (think F-15, Mirage 2000 MiG-29, etc.) and while modernized they're still Cold-War era frames.

- Capt_Torres

The reasons those planes don't get retired is simple they aren't ineffective against the enemy they face.

A few rebel groups can't harm them so why not keep them flying.

I guarantee if America went to war with say China those machines, or the few that survive the first year, would be retired.

Just look at the tank in WW2, any pre war tank was made obsolete within a year or two of the start of the war, even tanks that only entered service slightly before the war.

- mrv3

Balancing That Budget

I just moved to Japan and I have a bank book now??? No credit or debit card, no app, a bank book that i need to keep updated at all times.. so far for my expectations of Japan being technologically advanced.

- wndrksnk

The tsuucho. I have them too. The bank uses dot matrix printers to update them.

Culturally, the Japanese seem to like things that seem important to be more tangible. The hanko is another example.

- label974

CCTV

CCTV Footage.

How in the hell is that 2mp looking stuff going to pretend it's the best we have when a rollercoaster can snap a clear image of you at like 80mph?

- youreclappedmate

I can easily answer you that: they build for demand and the demand also has to worry about data storage.

Since COVID started, we've been recording our lectures. We generate about 15GB of footage in less than a week (And that's only for the classes/hours where we have permission).

Imagine if a story camera (running 24/7) would try to do this in the same/similar resolution

-usernamenotta

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People Break Down The Missing Person Cases That Just Don't Add Up

Reddit user yourlastnames asked: 'what missing persons case is the most confusing / doesn’t add up?'

Content warning: suicide.

There are truly some strange unsolved cases out there, but there's nothing quite like hearing of a person who has vanished as if out of thin air.

While some of these cases have been explained away or even solved, there are some that remain a mystery that truly does not add up, no matter how the puzzle pieces fall.

Curious about these cases, in particular, Redditor yourlastnames asked:

"What missing persons case is the most confusing [to you] or just doesn't add up?"

The Last Ride of Terrance Williams

"Terrance Williams disappeared in 2004. He's the subject of a fascinating podcast called 'The Last Ride.'"

"The short version is that he was taken into custody in Naples, Florida, after being pulled over in the early hours for traffic violations. He was never seen again."

"The deputy that pulled him over tried to conceal the traffic stop even from his own organization, but staff opening a local business saw the whole thing."

"When the sheriff's department finally looked into it, they discovered the deputy was involved in a similar disappearance of a man named Felipe Santos in 2003. To this day the deputy claims no knowledge of Williams's whereabouts, despite being caught out in a series of lies."

- AlanMercer

Paddy Moriarty and Kellie

"Paddy Moriarty and his dog, Kellie. They went missing in an outback town in Australia with a population of 12 people."

"They were last seen leaving the pub riding his quad bike the one-kilometer distance to his house. He or his dog have never been found and no one has been charged in relation to his disappearance."

- Bigred0762

Susan Powell and Family

"Susan Powell went missing from her home in West Valley, Utah, on December 6, 2009."

"She is presumably dead. Her husband, Josh, was the main suspect and just a real piece of work. No one knows what really happened to her."

"Sadly in 2012, Josh murdered their kids and committed suicide after Susan’s parents gained custody of the kids."

- AlexisVonTrappe

"This case is so frustrating since his brother and father are both dead too. We’ll never know what happened to Susan, but I’m positive she’s in an old mine shaft somewhere. F**k Josh Powell."

- burittosquirrel

​The Last Call from Brandon Swanson

"Brandon Swanson. He drove into a ditch and called his parents for help. They stayed on the phone with him for 47 minutes while they drove around looking for him."

"They heard him say, 'Oh s**t,' and then the phone went silent. They eventually found his car far away from where he said he was but he was never found."

- kittengoesrawr

"Reading this was absolutely chilling. It seems at first glance that it's most likely he drowned, but that really doesn't make sense because the water was only 10 feet deep and they would have found the body."

"He just suddenly said, 'OH S**T!' and the phone went silent, but he did not hang up. The phone call continued with total silence from his end. What the f**k happened to him?"

- angelposts

Babysitter Mar Lou Bostwick

"Mary Lou Bostwick. She disappeared July 18, 1972, from Waverly, New York. She was dropped off by her dad to babysit at a friend's house. This was also her 16th birthday. Her mom stopped by later with a cake and presents."

"The people in the apartment told her that Mary never showed up. However, her bag was in the residence. Nothing else was ever found."

"There was another girl around the same age, Sharon Coston, who was abducted and murdered in a nearby town about a year later. October 1983 in Sayre, Pennsylvania."

"There was a man convicted of that, but he always denied doing anything to Mary. One of the people who testified against him and was given immunity was a suspect in Mary's case. Mary's mom thinks there's a connection, but nothing was ever really found."

"I've sadly never seen anyone cover her disappearance on any of the podcasts or YouTube shows."

- Vamp459

Derek Seehausen of San Diego

​"Derek Seehausen. My friend was dating him at the time of his disappearance, and he was actively planning his future in medicine, and was last seen in San Diego."

"I saw him about two months before he disappeared. Please send any tips."

- Hereforit2022Y

The Beaumont Children

"The Beaumont Children. Three kids go to the beach, are seen with a mystery man, and never make it back home."

"Never found out who the man was or where they went. Their parents just recently died without ever getting any closure."

- snguyenx96

Xavier Dupont de Ligonnes

"Xavier Dupont de Ligonnes. The whole family (parents and four kids) went missing overnight in 2011."

"Employers, schools, and the extended family received weird letters informing of their absence or departure (one of them saying they are going into a witness protection program). Two weeks later they found the corpses of the mother, the kids, and the dog hidden behind the house."

"They investigated and retraced the father’s whereabouts in the south of France. He was last seen leaving a hotel a few days before. The region was thoroughly searched, but he was never to be found."

- z4zazym

Branson Perry of Skidmore

"Branson Perry, aged 20, disappeared from Skidmore, Missouri in April 2001."

"He was working on his house with a friend, went to the shed to grab some power cords, and was never seen again."

- AdamR91

The Incomplete Story of Marshall Iwassa

"Marshall Iwassa. Good guy."

"He came back to his hometown to visit his family and friends, and everything by all accounts was good. He left to take the two-hour drive to where he was living and never made it. Instead, it was recorded he spent the entire night trying to get into his storage unit and then nothing."

"A week or maybe more, his truck was found 12 hours away on a back road in the middle of the woods burnt to a crisp with belongings thrown about everywhere, no sign of Marshal."

"From what I remember, the family was adamant that some of the things inside the truck, burnt or not, were missing, things they knew he had. The truck was even missing parts."

"It's been four years and there's never been answers. It makes me sad and fearful of long travels. From what I know of him, he was a fantastic friend; I hope they get closure one day."

- devbot8

Out Shopping Asha Degree

"Asha Degree."

"She went missing at the age of nine from Shelby, North Carolina, United States. In the early morning hours of February 14, 2000, for reasons unknown, she packed her bookbag, left her family home north of the city, and began walking along nearby North Carolina Highway 18 despite heavy rain and wind."

"Several passing motorists saw her; when one turned around at a point 1.3 miles (2.1 km) from her home and began to approach her, she left the roadside and ran into a wooded area."

"In the morning, her parents discovered her missing from her bedroom. No one has seen her since."

- EstateWeary5789

The Vanishing Marion Barter

"Marion Barter here in Australia."

"She boarded a plane overseas in 1997 and changed her name beforehand (didn't tell family). She apparently came back to Australia for a few days (according to passenger records) and completely disappeared."

"It's an ongoing investigation at the moment, there is a podcast about it called, 'The Lady Vanishes,' featuring her daughter."

"It's so tragically fascinating."

- CuddlySubject

The Grieving Bryce Laspisa

"Bryce Laspisa."

"He was driving to his parents' house (three hours) after an argument with his girlfriend, apparently due to his alcohol and video game addiction and abuse of prescription medication."

"Partway through the drive, he pulled off the highway and just sat there… from 9:00 AM to 3:'00 PM."

"A roadside assistance guy checked on him twice and said he seemed fine and coherent, and Bryce told him he would be carrying on back to his parents shortly."

"Sometime later, his car was found only a few miles away, driven off the embankment, and he was nowhere to be found. They never found him."

- Just_Raisin1124

News Anchor Jodi Huisentruit

"Jodi Huisentruit was a news anchor who disappeared in the early morning in Mason City, Iowa."

"There were signs that she was abducted and the investigation is still ongoing with new leads nearly 30 years later."

- Have_you_eaten_yet

Three-Year-Old William Tyrrell

"William Tyrrell. In 2014, the three-year-old boy went missing from his foster grandmother's yard whilst playing with his sister. His foster mother and foster grandmother were apparently watching them play outside, and the foster mother went inside to make a cup of tea."

"They then noticed they hadn’t seen or heard him in a while and searched the house and yard."

"In 2021, police began searching national parkland near the grandmother's home for human remains. They also revealed that the foster mother and grandmother were persons of interest in his presumed death."

"Earlier today, the foster mother pled not guilty to assaulting another foster child that was in her care (a 10-year-old girl). She has also been charged with intimidating and stalking a minor. Her husband has also been charged with the same crimes, but plead not guilty to all counts. The foster grandmother is now dead."

"Basically, police believe that William died whilst in the care of the foster family, and they disposed of his body to cover it up. Police are recommending that the foster parents be charged with perverting the course of justice and interfering with a corpse."

"His photos went viral at the time of the 'disappearance,' and he went missing whilst in a Spiderman costume, and the photo that was distributed was taken minutes before."

- Red_bug91

These stories are truly haunting, and it's no wonder that Redditors have worried themselves with what might have happened to these missing people.

We can only hope that answers come for at least some of these cases and that their closest loved ones achieve some sense of closure eventually.

If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988.

To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/

Senior citizen using a camera
Tiago Muraro/Unsplash

The realization you're getting older can smack you in the face at any given time, and boy-howdy is it fun!

It can be in the morning when you get up out of bed, and your body makes crackling noises, or when you can't seem to keep up at the gym and you cut short your running time on the treadmill.

That's just the physical.

When you suddenly have the epiphany that you're suddenly the oldest one in a group setting, it's humbling.

Curious to hear from strangers online who are no longer the young whipper-snappers they imagined themselves to eternally be, Redditor redmambo_no6 asked:

"Redditors with younger coworkers, what was your 'I’m officially old' moment?"

These moments of realization never get old. But people do.

Senior Kitty

"My childhood cat lived to 21.5 so teaching (freshman biology lab, so students were ~18) became very weird when I realized my cat was older than my students."

– mollusck_magic

Aging In Reverse

"I'm a preschool teacher. It's been a TRIP to watch parents go from Soooo much older than me, to the same age as me, and now they're younger than me!?!?"

– Smart_Alex

The Shook Pediatrician

"My kids pediatrician was also my husband's pediatrician when he was a kid. He was the first kid she had to come back as a parent and she was SHOOK."

– trixtred

Older Together

"See, that's what really kinda drives it home for me."

"I'm not bothered that I'm 48. But that means my school friends are 48, and that's weird for some reason. Like, I went to school with a guy who was wild and crazy. That guy is 48 now, and has a new grandbaby. Somehow, he's old, and I'm just 'getting up there '."

– ThatWeirdTexan

Relics of the past don't just pertain to humans.

Dialing It In

"Had a co-worker ask me, 'Back before cell phones, did you just have to wait around at your house for a call?' Uh, yeah, pretty much."

– Status-Effort-9380

"Reminds me of having to explain the concept of collect calls to my kids. The whole speed speaking where you were for pick up during the recording so your Mama never accepted the collect call."

– DaraScot

Legendary Aircraft

"Various colleagues were debating whether the Concorde had been real. They couldn’t fathom that supersonic civilian aircraft used to exist and now they don’t anymore."

"The Concorde last flew in 2003, when these colleagues were toddlers."

– geckos_are_weirdos

Foreign References

"We were talking about where we were on 9/11, and my coworker went quiet. He wasn’t even born."

"We also had a band that was famous in the 90s stay at the hotel, and he had no idea who they were, meanwhile I was so star struck as they were my entire childhood!"

– Itsagabby

Gravity is not our friend, and not just because of its effect on our faces.

The Day It Went Downhill

"When i fell down the last couple of steps on a stairway. No one pointed and laughed like I expected, instead they helped me up and asked me if I was okay. That’s when I knew."

– day_of_duke

It's About The Recovery

"F'k. That has to be a bummer."

"You fall. You know you're fine. You feel like an idiot. You get ready to wave to the crowd as they laugh and clap. But then... a hand is placed on your arm and you hear 'that was a big fall, are you ok?' You stay in shock for a moment. Of course, you're fine. Everyone is looking at you. They all have concerned faces. Sh*t. Two weeks later, the soreness finally subsides."

– minimalfighting

Ice Slip, You Slip, We All Slip

"This happened to me as well....walking my dog the day after a huge snowstorm. There were some rowdy teenage boys having a snowball fight across the street (schools were closed that day, of course). I slipped on the ice, my feet flew over my head and I landed solidly on my backside. As I struggled to get up I braced myself for the laughter and catcalls, but all I heard was "Are you OK Ma'am??' 'Do you need help??' I was in my early 50s and had never felt 'old' until that moment."

– Ouisch

Conversations with younger coworkers can be fun.

You can quote lines from your favorite TV shows and talk about the latest CD you bought at Target and brag about your new digital camera that takes better pictures than a smartphone.

And then you can watch the blank expressions on your coworkers' faces because they haven't a clue about what you speak.

Yeah. This has never happened to me...

Old.

person getting a tattoo

Collins Lesulie on Unsplash

The art of tattooing has been practiced across the globe since at least Neolithic times, as evidenced by mummified skin, art and the archaeological artifacts.

The oldest tattooed human skin was found on the body of Ötzi the Iceman from between 3370 and 3100 BC.

Tattooed mummies were recovered in almost 50 archaeological digs across the Earth with locations in Greenland, Alaska, Siberia, Mongolia, western China, Egypt, Sudan, the Philippines and the Andes.

But while advancements in tools and inks have opened up endless possibilities for body art, some designs have garnered a bad reputation.

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surgeons looking down at patient

National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

"I shall do by my patients as I would be done by; shall obtain consultation whenever I or they desire; shall include them to the extent they wish in all important decisions; and shall minimize suffering whenever a cure cannot be obtained, understanding that a dignified death is an important goal in everyone's life."

~ English translation of the modern abridged Hippocratic Oath

It is the hope of those seeking medical help that the medical professionals providing it will be just that—professional.

But no profession is immune to bad days, bad attitudes or bad apples.

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