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KnowTechie Roundtable: What are some of your favorite tech memories from the past decade
Woah, a bunch of good answers this week.
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We’re an opinionated bunch here at KnowTechie. In fact, the only thing we enjoy more than expressing our own opinions is shooting each others’ down with vociferous, unrestrained vitriol. As such, we’ve decided to launch a new weekly series, the KnowTechie Roundtable, to do just that.
Join us every Friday to hear us dish dish, bish on our favorite topics in tech while hurling insults at one another but mostly Kevin.
So, we ask: What are some of your favorite tech memories from the past decade?
Ste
I’m going to well and truly show my age here and proudly state that my finest tech moment of the post decade was finally acquiring a robot vacuum cleaner. Having a cyborg minion that I can order to clean my house before I even step through the door was a genuine ‘internet of things‘ revolution for me, irrespective of the fact that David (one of my cats) was absolutely scared shitless of it in the early days.
I also recently acquired a “pet vacuum” to clean up the cat hair off the sofa and stairs as the robo-hoover is a bit like a Dalek and can’t ascend stairs. It can descend them but would probably end up in several pieces should it attempt such a maneuver…
Jake: So uh, “cyborg” is derived from “cybernetic organism.” I REALLY hope there’s nothing organic inside Roombas because that’s some Evangelion level shit if there is.
Curtis: There’s something organic inside Kevin’s Roomba. Well, dried up organic material.
Josiah
So, before everyone decides to say it – no, my army of Autoblow AI machines is not my favorite tech memory of the last decade. It’s my second favorite tech memory, thank you very much.
My favorite tech memory of the last decade is probably the iPhone 4. It was a pretty big step for me in the world of tech and really helped shape what I expected from a cellphone going forward.
Joe: I’m sure they’ll end up being your first memory of the next decade though, eh Josiah?
Josh
I’m kinda with Josiah on this one. This decade gave me my first real smartphone. It’s definitely one of my favorite tech memories.
At the turn of the decade, I lost my LG Versa VX9600 and was forced to buy a new phone. I decided that I’d get a Motorola Droid X around the same time my wife got an iPhone. I loved all the stupid crappy apps I could use and that I could browse the internet. Social media was the only really functional apps.
Nearly 10 years later and about five phone upgrades, I’m playing Final Fantasy Brave Exvius or Dragalia Lost more than I play traditional console games. I can play Fortnite or even Xbox’s substantial Xcloud library from my Note 9. Smartphones are pretty badass but this decade really is where it all happened.
Jake
My favorite tech memory is every time I’ve had to spend hundreds to thousands of dollars to replace technology, either because it broke or because it became outdated. Hell yeah, I love the ongoing tax of staying involved with the modern world.
Josiah: Jake, that hits too close to home and makes my heart sad.
Kevin: Damn, this makes my wallet sad.
Curtis
I dunno. My memory ain’t what it used to be. Let’s see, the last decade would have been 2010 so when did the Xbox One come out? 2013? That’s one for sure. I mean, what other device have I got more use out of than my Xbox? I don’t think any tech that I had in the early 2010s is even still around. I have a box of cables that are probably from the 1990s, but no tech. Every phone has been replaced, every laptop replaced, every PC and monitor replaced. The Xbox is still here.
So yeah, my favorite tech memory is the month after I got my Xbox One and being able to start forgetting where it came from and how I got it (that’s a story I’d rather not repeat because it’s terrible and tragic, personally at least). Other than that, I’ve stayed away from smart home tech, so no memories there. I guess having a pocket map is helpful, does that count even though I can’t tie it down to one memory? Whatever. Xbox 4life.
Joe
Thanks xXx_Curtis_luvs_xbawks_xXx for that insight, we asked for some memories and you gave us a full decade. That’s a lot of 360noscopes and people with an unhealthy interest in your mother.
Some of my best tech memories this decade are also via Xbox, but if I had to choose one, in particular, it would be the second-hand HP Elitebook that my dad got for me in 2010. I mean this thing was single-core, with a huge WiFi card because he couldn’t find the actual WiFi module that went in it. It was running WinXP, at least it was until it stopped reading the HDD and I managed to save it by installing Linux Mint.
Anyway, the real point of this memory isn’t the shitty specs compared to the beast I’m typing this on. The point is that using IRC on that laptop with a neighborhood open access point was how I met my wife. I mean, we talked daily, I proposed on Skype, bought plane tickets from it… Without tech, and that laptop in particular, my life would be drastically different.
Colin
Much like Joe, I too got an HP laptop in 2010 and it was also my first laptop. I think it was one of the more budget-friendly Pavillion models? While the price probably wasn’t THAT bad, for a 17-year-old working at McDonald’s part-time, yeah, it was a hefty sum.
Anyways, that laptop sort of became a real gateway into my own personal tech world. And looking back on it, it was kind of amazing that I was able to accomplish so much on it. But probably one of my favorite memories involving it is an anecdote where the “attorney” for the Foo Fighters has a role. Let me explain…
My first laptop was essentially BitTorrent and emulator that just so happened to be used for school work. So, I was going about my days as a “l33t h4xx0r” (I literally downloaded music and SNES ROMS like 99.9% of nerds…not so l33t) and torrented the entire Foo Fighters discography, because hey, who doesn’t love Dave Grohl and the song “Learn to Fly”? As I am about to finish up, my dad texts me with “Hey, did you download any Foo Fighters.” I respond to confirm this and he then sends me a cease-and-desist email from the alleged “attorney” of the band.
Come to think of it, that also might be the same day where I learned I have anxiety.
Another, more positive, tech memory comes from receiving a Kindle Fire on Christmas. Not only was I able to get back into reading much more, and discover how much I genuinely like Charles Bukowski’s writing, but it helped me out during my last two-and-a-half years of college. It turns out, most textbooks can be rented on Kindle for a fraction of the price. Which is nice.
Kevin
I see we’re saving the best for last, huh? For me, it doesn’t come down to a certain product or service. If I had to nail down one specific tech memory from this decade, it would be this very website. KnowTechie is roughly six-years-old now and I have to say, it’s been a wild ride that was worth all the effort.
Prior to launching the website, I didn’t really know how to, um, build a website, let alone run one. So learning the ins and outs of that was really exciting, as well as building a publication from the ground up. Not to mention all the relationships I’ve gained running the site. I would have never thought six years ago that we would grow to what we are today. So yea, KnowTechie is my answer, plain and simple.
But, if I had to pick a runner up, it would totally be Josiah getting his knob polished by a blowjob machine.
Alright, that about wraps things up for this week’s KnowTechie Roundtable. What do you think? Did we miss anything? If that’s the case, Let us know down in the comments or feel free to reach out to us personally. Seriously, whether it’s about Curtis, Colin, Jake, Josiah, Josh, Ste, Joe, or Kevin – we want to hear from you.
What are your favorite tech memories from the past decade? If you have any thoughts or suggestions, this is where you come in. Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.
Previous Roundtables:
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- KnowTechie Roundtable: Are you interested in the 2019 Motorola Razr?
- KnowTechie Roundtable: Was the internet better in the 2000s?
- KnowTechie Roundtable: What YouTube channels do you pledge your allegiance to?