Obsolete skills

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Brad Kellett has created a list of obsolete skills.  Things that we no longer do.

Here are a few examples:

  • Rotary_PhoneAdjusting the rabbit ears on top of a TV
  • Be Kind – Rewind
  • Change the ribbon in a typewriter
  • Darkroom photography skills
  • Dialing a rotary phone
  • Handcrank a car to start it
  • Licking postage stamps
  • Mail in the order form of a catalog
  • Threading an 8mm film projector
  • Proping an airplane propeller to start the engine
  • Putting a needle on a vinyl record
  • Raising an antenna
  • Running a mimeograph machine
  • Sending a telegram
  • Starting a car with a manual choke
  • Testing radio and TV tubes
  • Tuning a radio
  • Using a fountain pen
  • Wearing a girdle
  • Wearing nylons

(I added a couple myself)

The complete list is here

via

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10 thoughts on “Obsolete skills”

  1. How about Spellchecking blog items before posting them?

    What’s a rotart phone?

    How do you main in a catalog order form?

    Sorry. Typos bug ne. Er me.

  2. I’m 39 and I’m glad I was able to do a lot of those things, and also glad I don’t have to do most anymore. I actually miss rotary phones and the click click click as the dialer thing spun around. Pushing buttons just isn’t the same. I also miss the crank start of my dad’s old tractor. The day I was able to finally get it to run for the first time, I knew I wasn’t a little kid anymore.

  3. Oh Dear! I just realized ow behind the times I am. And I’m only 32! I still own a car that has a manual choke (in fact we have three!)and one of the cars can be started with a hand crank! I still have a TV with rabbit ears. Also if you buy a single stamp here you have to lick it. I’m not even going to go into the rest of the list that I still do!!

  4. HEY! Some of us guys still like to see a woman wear nylons(pantyhose)!!! Especially since there are so many pale legs out there now!

  5. eroe777,
    Thanks for catching those…. and pointing them out. There were two more too. Sometimes I get in too big of a hurry.
    Jonco

  6. I still change typewriter ribbons at work for some accounting purposes. I sometimes, somehow end up with lick-able postage stamps. I still have and use a record player (and I order vinyl records online). I raise antennas on different things, but most of them are musical-gear that connects “wirelessly.” I have and use a fountain pen. …and I’m not sure if cursing at my stereo when it goes fuzzy between states counts as tuning it or not… 🙂

    …the more things change…

  9. Umm…so what do women wear now if nylons are a lost art? Maybe I haven’t been watching women’s legs closely enough.

  10. Upon examination of the full list…it’s mostly just a list of stuff THAT GUY doesn’t do anymore…a lot of it is still fairly frequently done.

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