My father continues to use an original decadic (dial) phone - when the power goes out, the cordless fails, when the cordless fried, the decadic soldiers on.
It is not necessary to have one old decadic boat-anchor phones if you want them to work with the power out. Any corded phone that only connects to the line (and not to a DC adapter) will do the job.
That said, I too like the old behemoths for their ability to stay on the table when the cord gets snagged... lighter does not always mean better.
And as for the bell ring, one can still purchase phone-less metal bells. You connect them to the line, and when someone calls you they make the same noise of the old phones. And they're LOUD.
Where have all the manual mechanical typewriters gone? there must have been millions that had disappeared over a short period of time.
They were made mostly of metal, so I'm guessing once people started trashing them most were melted down to recycle it.
What happened to the concept of "the paperless office"? with the advent of high-speed, cheap home printers, the local stationery supply store now has a 'wall of paper' - ream upon ream.
Apparently many people still believe that a paper document is more reliable than a digital one.
This is completely untrue, as both can be easily modified, but the world is full of places that need documents faxed or sent by snail mail, and won't accept digital versions or scans sent by email.
And I very often hear people claim they just can't concentrate on something if they don't have it in front of them in paper form. Stupid, yes, but what can you do?
If you are their employer you can force them to use a computer, but they'll just print everything out. And you can't just disconnect all the printers, because then your office won't be able to communicate with all the others that want snail mail and faxes.
So the paperless office can't yet exist due to ignorance and stubborness, IMO.
Microwave ovens haven't replaced conventional, convection ovens.
That's due to the different cooking types. You can't heat all foods in a microwave.
Washing machines continue to be glossy new versions of the original in general design
Well, there are ultrasonic washers, but I guess their performance isn't good enough if they haven't yet supplanted washing machines.
I wonder if one could make a standard washing machine that, alongside the rotating container, also had an ultrasonic washer...
As for video communication, I believe the big problem is that people don't
want it. Or to put it better: some really want it, some just want it occasionally, but the majority doesn't care.
And I sure don't want it. When I'm talking to someone I don't want them to see me making fun of them, or picking my nose (not that I do
), or whatever I might feel like doing.
