Hobby information access 1 1

[RWB]

It appears that digital information access is gradually being limited to the internet. Fewer people have computers capable of reading USBs or CD/DVDs. If correct, this means we are gradually limiting society to a single point of access and a single point of failure in day-to-day communication.

Does this present potential problems or opportunities for numismatics?

[World Colonial]

Maybe a minor negative for numismatics. 

I'm waiting for the day when the only consumer option will be storing data in the cloud and computers won't come with hard drives  or USB ports anymore.

[Alex in PA.]

11 minutes ago, World Colonial said:

Maybe a minor negative for numismatics. 

I'm waiting for the day when the only consumer option will be storing data in the cloud and computers won't come with hard drives  or USB ports anymore.

Then who will have access to ALL your information??????????

[World Colonial]

2 minutes ago, Alex in PA. said:

Then who will have access to ALL your information??????????

Exactly, that's the point.  Not like there will never be any breach or unauthorized disclosure.  Or "channel surfing" sys admins.  No, of course that would never happen.

[GoldFinger1969]

3 hours ago, RWB said:

It appears that digital information access is gradually being limited to the internet. Fewer people have computers capable of reading USBs or CD/DVDs. If correct, this means we are gradually limiting society to a single point of access and a single point of failure in day-to-day communication.

Does this present potential problems or opportunities for numismatics?

You telling me that PCs and laptops don't have USB drives ?  CD's and DVDs I understand although I think most PCs (desktop or laptop) still have a Blu-Ray option.

I know streaming mitigates the need for a disk player and my last 2 cars did not have a CD player (had to put my favorite music on my smartphone) but I don't think that they are going away entirely and I don't think that impacts digital information for coin enthusiasts.

I continue to put key information on my PC in Word and PDFs......then I can read them on my smartphone.  Easy to backup, too.  

[GoldFinger1969]

What bums me out is that Heritage won't release a PDF or digital copy of Roger's Saints book.  I think I am going to have to manually type the key COMMENTARY section out if I want it on my PC/smartphone, which amounts to about 150-160 pages or so (estimate).  Gonna take me a few weeks or more to do that.  I might even hire someone to do it. 

At least then I can read it leisurely on my smartphone and I'll always be able to access it.

Edited July 2, 2021 by GoldFinger1969

[RWB]

1 hour ago, GoldFinger1969 said:

You telling me that PCs and laptops don't have USB drives ? 

No, only that is a decreasing segment of the total information consumer market have routine USB or CD/DVD access.  I would have preferred to include a CD with the book but it appeared that would have limited access of book buyers who wanted to search subjects.

[World Colonial]

28 minutes ago, RWB said:

No, only that is a decreasing segment of the total information consumer market have routine USB or CD/DVD access.  I would have preferred to include a CD with the book but it appeared that would have limited access of book buyers who wanted to search subjects.

Notebooks I use at work have not had a CD drive for years.  The PC tower I bought for myself recently has both.

[VKurtB]

Almost no laptops have optical drives anymore. Certainly Apple has abandoned them entirely and their market share is rapidly gaining. My oldish Mac Mini has none, but it still has USB and Thunderbolt ports for external drives. My tower server has media drives attached of most legacy formats, including several Iomega products. 

[Henri Charriere]

I am ashamed to say I have no idea what any of you are talking about, but with the exception of @GoldFinger1969 whom I assume is approaching mid-life status, do any of you truly expect to have enough healthy, active and productive years ahead of you to warrant the unbridled intensity of scrutiny of gizmos as referred to hereinabove?

[RWB]

Yes.

[Henri Charriere]

@VKurtB

Et tu, Brute?

[VKurtB]

1 hour ago, Quintus Arrius said:

@VKurtB

Et tu, Brute?

I’m now a retired senior citizen and in my public school years, we were taught computer programming. High school class of 1973. Ironically, my 4-year “Pennsylvania Little Ivy League” college founded in 1787 did not have programming courses. I stood truly on the cusp of computer adoption. 

Edited July 4, 2021 by VKurtB

[Revenant]

On 7/2/2021 at 2:48 PM, GoldFinger1969 said:

You telling me that PCs and laptops don't have USB drives ?  CD's and DVDs I understand although I think most PCs (desktop or laptop) still have a Blu-Ray option.

My wife's new MAC only has 2 thunderbolt (micro-USB-C) ports. Not one full USB port and no optical Bay

My last couple of laptops have had only 2-3 USB ports and no optical Bay. One did come with a CD reader that plugs into a USB and I use that when I need to read off a disk.

PCs still have them, but I haven't bought a desktop/ tower in 12 years.