#096 Obsolete Communication Devices and Gadgets (ESL)
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Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.
Today we are going to be a bit nostalgic, and talk about some communication devices and gadgets that still exist nowadays, but are obsolete.
Let’s start!
Fax machine
How did we share documents and letters before the email existed?
Although many people sent a telegram or a letter, there was another device that we used, particularly in the professional field. Yes. I'm talking about the fax machine.
While some companies still use fax machines, no one has one of those machines at home. I guess we prefer to use an email because it's faster, takes up no space and it's free.
Nowadays, you can still send a fax without a fax machine. You only need to use your computer or a smartphone, because there are websites that offer this service.
Telegram
And by the way, you'll be surprised to know that people still send telegrams.
No. I'm not referring to the Telegram Messenger app.
You can send a telegram the old fashioned way or even online.
Landlines
How about landline phones? Do you still have one of those at home?
I can’t even remember when was the last time I had one of those. It was definitely a long time ago.
The landlines had no high-definition color display, no camera, and no Internet connection. They had a long cord so people could move it around the house. But that was inconvenient. I remember my landline phone was wireless and had a small black and white screen. I was happy to move around the house without a cord, but it was a bulky phone, and the battery didn't last long.
I just know that I’m grateful to have a smartphone now. :)
Phone Books
Have you ever used a phone book? I remember using one a few decades ago.
People used the white pages to find personal phone numbers. And the yellow pages were phone numbers for businesses and services.
Before the Internet, if you wanted to call someone on their landline, you could look for their number in a phone book. But thanks to the Internet, printed phone books are no longer useful.
Dial-up connection
Now some of you might be surprised to know that the internet wasn’t always fast or easy to access.
It turns out that some decades ago, if who wanted to connect to the Internet, you were required a phone line. You had to plug that phone line into your computer. Then your computer would attempt to “call” the Internet.
And guess what? You couldn’t make a phone-call while you were using the internet. Can you even imagine that?
The landline phone and the internet were connected to the point that when someone picked up the phone, the internet connection would get interrupted. How annoying is that?
Many young people today have never even heard of the dial-up connection.
However, not all areas have high-speed Internet access, and in some locations, people still use a dial-up connection.
#096 Obsolete Communication Devices and Gadgets (ESL)
READ the TEXT here: Speakenglishpodcast.com
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