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Earliest Digital Memories
I’m part of GenX, so we had very little “digital” technology in my early years. I remember the old black and white, manual channel change TV, the old school VCR, Speak and Spell, the Atari that my dad couldn’t hook up, Pacman, and Oregon Trail. I remember the beginning of chatrooms (it was fascinating, and also often very creepy), and dial-up internet (1992). -
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Elementary/Middle School
I honestly remember very little that would be considered “digital” in my elementary school years. We had carousel slide machines, mimeograph-printed handouts, and the TV on the cart that was rolled in to watch educational programming. -
Challenger Disaster
My 5th grade class watched the Challenger disaster on one of those TVs the teacher rolled into the classroom on the cart.
Challenger video -
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High School
Later, in high school, I encountered more “digital” materials, including laser discs in one of my history classes, and a computer programming class taught by the football coach where we learned how to make fireworks on the screen. I wrote essays on a massive computer with a tiny green-screened monitor, and print them on the ridiculously huge Dot Matrix printer using the continuous feed paper. -
Researching with a Card Catalog
Throughout Elementary, Middle, and High School, I did research using a card catalog. Research today is a very different experience. -
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Undergrad/Grad School
It wasn’t until my undergrad that computers really came to the forefront for me; my first computer as a college student was a Gateway Desktop PC, which went with me on my first foray into grad school (1997-ish). -
1st Laptop
I upgraded to a laptop while in grad school, so that I could travel with my school work, as my family lived 2 hours away. This was a game changer for doing coursework. -
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Teaching/Working
As an adjunct, I use Canvas LMS, utilizing the Inbox, video tools in the announcements, discussions, and assignments. I haven’t taught since last fall, as I’m working on my degree, but I have been learning so much in the program that will assist me when I do begin teaching again. Outside of academia, I work remotely for a law firm (starting in 2020), and we use web-based vendor programs and email to conduct much of our work, Zoom for attorney hearings, and Teams for training. -
Digital Entertainment
I cancelled cable in 2003 and signed up for Netflix, getting the discs in the mail until they started streaming in 2007. From there I've used other streaming services as they came available. -
COVID
On March 19th, 2020, the law firm I work for sent us home in response to COVID. 3 years later, we're still working from home, as they discovered it works really well for us.