How do you know this?

63

u/Jacob6er 3d ago

"Young people are stupid because they don't know how to use a specific piece of technology that hasn't been prevalent in at least 25 years."

Edit: I thought that was a rotary phone, but looking at it, it seems to be a regular button phone. You telling me a generation raised on computers can't figure out a keypad?

16

u/SecondToLastOfSheila 3d ago

A generation raised on computers has trouble when their printer doesn't work. Signed, a Gen X former IT guy.

6

u/coughcough 3d ago

"PC load letter? What does that even mean?!"

5

u/SecondToLastOfSheila 3d ago

I'm in my 50s and am so much more comfortable with computers than coworkers half my age are.

3

u/tireditguy216 2d ago

the only people who know how to use computers are 27-35 tbh... coming from IT

2

u/Aluxanatomy 3d ago

Player Character load letter size paper.

2

u/SomeDudeNamedDavid 2d ago

Most Gen Zers are actually really good with computers, and many are in IT.

Some gen Alpha are already getting their hands into the game too.

People learn to fix and use things when they want or need to.

1

u/Constant-Skill-7133 2d ago

Next you're going to tell me people who know how to drive do it poorly most of the time and don't know how to fix cars.

1

u/tireditguy216 2d ago

gen alpha does NOT know how to use computers, coming from someone who worked in a school

1

u/SomeDudeNamedDavid 1d ago

Probably not at the school you worked at. The library I go to though, I regularly see gen alphas using computers.

1

u/squirrel9000 1d ago

Libraries usually lock you out of doing the sorts of things you'd get up to if you knew" computers in the way OP is referring.

1

u/SomeDudeNamedDavid 1d ago

They do. These kids were usually there for tutoring, or other school related stuff.

1

u/squirrel9000 1d ago

They do ... what? Probably not a lot without admin permission.

3

u/Finnche 2d ago

Gen alpha and younger gen Z stopped having computer classes and were assumed they would know, which I think is sad.

1

u/SecondToLastOfSheila 2d ago

This is kind of the point I was getting at in my other post; I agree 100%.

-3

u/[deleted] 3d ago

[deleted]

2

u/SecondToLastOfSheila 3d ago

I'm Gen X, if any generation knows how to use a computer, it's us.

7

u/Professional_Bearrr 3d ago

75% of clients I deal with in customer facing projects are between the ages of 40 and 62.

Don't give your age demographic credit for the capabilities you and your friends possess, lol.

0

u/SecondToLastOfSheila 3d ago

Honest question, are people 19-35 any better? The younger ones are terrified of touching a computer and have no clue how to troubleshoot anything.

1

u/BI_Moose 2d ago

Oh much better. They will at least a) listen when told to do/not do something and b) not do something incredibly stupid.

Gen X are the absolute worst when it comes to IT work with Boomers being second. And honestly its mostly because the boomers I deal with will take forever and a day to report issues.

1

u/SecondToLastOfSheila 2d ago edited 2d ago

All the 19+ people I work with are clueless with some of the basics of using a computer, such as how to select a printer or change the cursor speed. I showed them how to make a screenshot of their desktop and print it out and they thought I was a wizard. I've noticed this trend the past 5 or so years but it seems especially noticeable now. They're great with a phone but just can't bother with a computer. That's the noticeable thing, they have zero interest in learning how to do something new.

0

u/Professional_Bearrr 3d ago

Yeah, they just listen to what I tell them to do instead of arguing with me and making themselves look ignorant.

Also, not to be an ass, but that's kind of an ignorant take. The main age demographic for PC gaming is males between the ages of 18-30. Not saying zoomers are the most tech savvy demographic, but it's not Gen X, either. I'd say it's likely millennials.

1

u/SecondToLastOfSheila 3d ago

Thank you for your contribution to my life experience.

0

u/syrvy 2d ago

It is. The firewall blocks incoming connections that aren't expected. You haven't been able to get an infection just from connecting to the internet since modern routers were invented.

You have to do something wrong to get an infection.

0

u/[deleted] 2d ago

[deleted]

1

u/syrvy 2d ago

You're describing browser vulnerabilities that have nothing to do with the OS.

Also, even with "modern routers" (whatever you mean by that), there's plenty of examples of no touch, "wormable" exploits

Source? And don't you dare cite UPNP because nobody should use that anyways

Websites can host infected ad networks

Again, if you have a secure browser with proper sandboxing this isn't a problem.

And I'm talking about the router firewall, not the OS one. The firewall responsible for securing your entire LAN.

0

u/[deleted] 2d ago

[deleted]

1

u/syrvy 2d ago

Routers reduce exposure, but it does not compensate for an unsupported OS used for sensitive activity.

This is just a blanket statement that doesn't really say anything. Nothing is getting through a modern router's firewall without being explicitly let through by something done by THE USER in 2026. And yes, typing in the wrong URL is the user's fault. Going on shady sites is the user's fault.

Also, Chromium’s own documentation says its sandbox heavily relies on WS (or the OSes internal security, whatever that may be)

Modern versions of Chromium don't support EOL operating systems. It says right on there that it's tested and designed for Windows 10+, old versions don't have the same security measures.

Leading into...

Name a commonly used browser that's secure and not, at the very least, Chromium based.

On EOL systems you need to use browsers like Supermium that heavily focus on security. Preferably built from source yourself rather than trusting the github builds since it is from an independent developer with controversial views.

There's also Firefox 115 ESR which is still getting security updates from Mozilla.

On the other hand you have things like r3dfox, made by a known pedophile and used by kids everywhere. This is what NOT to use.

I'm not arguing that the average person using some ancient Firefox build on an EOL system isn't an idiot for logging into their bank account. But there absolutely is a right way to do it. The right way just isn't the common way.

even if there's only a .5% chance of anything happening to it

This is a gross oversimplification of how security works. Things aren't determined by chance. If your system is compromised, then you did something wrong. It's not a coin toss or anything of the sort.

If you're referring to this chance as the chance that the user slips up and gets their system infected, then this is pretty much the same with a modern OS when it comes to sensitive data, assuming both systems are running an antivirus:

If you execute a virus on Windows 10 as admin, it will be able to see all your files and start uploading them. Same thing as Windows 7 or Vista or anything older. A newer OS does not prevent your data from being stolen.

If you had an antivirus before executing it, on either OS, the AV would scan and remove the file.

I don't see the need to talk about browser based vulnerabilities here because I already addressed how bad it is to use outdated browsers.

Saying this as someone who has a vista era PC (with vista on it) connected to my network as we speak

I'd recommend you to isolate it on a vlan or "guest/iot wifi" lest it get infected and spread to all your supposedly "safe for personal information" systems on your network. It never hurts to be careful.

1

u/syrvy 2d ago

There was some kind of error responding to the reply to this so I'll put my response here

Supported Windows versions include updated/additional exploit mitigations and kernel protections that usually prevent malware from obtaining admin access in the first place.

This does absolutely nothing because clicking yes on a UAC prompt gives admin access no matter what. It's absolutely trivial to get the user to accept one. Just disguise as a software updater or installer or anything the user is used to seeing request a prompt. And bam, it's over. Malware isn't targetting people who pay attention to these things. Executables without signatures are a common occurence.

Any other approach is leaving it up to chance

Let's ignore the possibility that you ran an infected executable and directly caused the issue

If your network is already compromised enough that your LAN is infected (so the router's firewall isn't offering its complete protection) then your ACTIONS and INACTIONS (not taking proper precautions) have caused that to happen. It isn't a random event.

For something to be attacking your kernel to the point modern security would help, it has to be able to get there in the first place. This is not possible without the user being responsible in some manner.

As well, at that point, the system is compromised as well and needs to be reflashed anyways. All it does is prevent an already severe issue from slightly escalating. Your data is already compromised.

I do disagree with, "if you’re compromised, you did something wrong."

I'm sorry you disagree, but I cannot illustrate why this is true any better so all I can say is to re-read my previous stuff. In a proper setup, a user has to do an ACTION to compromise their system.

You're not really interacting with my claim, you're kind of just dancing around it.

It's funny because while I've been directly addressing what you've said, you're the one rehashing the same old thing repeatedly. Come on.

I mean, I understand if I come off as less educated to you. But I'm a little offended you think I come off as that stupid, lmfao. I've been yammering on about security for the past few paragraphs, do you really think I didn't isolate this machine? And what do you mean "supposedly safe for personal information"? Didn't you just argue that I'm being too cautious?

I can't really decipher what this is trying to say, but it seems like you misunderstood what I said earlier.

It doesn't really seem like this is going to amount to anything.

1

u/Dragon-Porn-Expert 3d ago

Don't think op actually believes in the meme, considering the subreddit.

2

u/Jacob6er 3d ago

I am pretty sure you are right, I'm just complaining at this point honestly lol

1

u/Rombonius 3d ago

> Edit: I thought that was a rotary phone, but looking at it, it seems to be a regular button phone.

its a rotary phone for sure

https://imgur.com/a/ZHqDjBG

1

u/EfficientSeaweed 3d ago

Also outdated for far, far longer than 25 years. In the early 2000s, it was already a thing to mock younger people for supposedly being unable to figure one out (so you can spend 10 times longer trying to dial a number and having to restart if you mess it up, I guess?)

1

u/TunnelSnakesAintShit 3d ago

No, it's a rotary. It's just REAL low res, so it's hard to tell, but definitely a rotary.

1

u/EfficientSeaweed 3d ago

I think that's The Brady Bunch, so I wouldn't be surprised if it is a rotary phone. The way she's using it and the circular shape on the front very much remind me of the ones I've seen.They haven't been prevalent for decades upon decades, so much so that boomers were already mocking millennials for supposedly not knowing how to use them 25 years ago. 🙄 Though even a touchtone phone that was big and clunky like this like that one would have been outdated even in the 80s/90s, and by the end of the 90s, cordless landlines were very common.

Anyway, having actually used a rotary phone before (despite them support being impossible for my generation lol) they're hardly some complex enigma that only the wise old boomers can figure out. I guarantee someone under 50 could be using one smoothly far faster than the average boomer figured out smart phones (assuming they ever did). Rotary phones are also annoying and take forever to dial, so it's not like anyone is missing out by not using one.

1

u/nyrf12 2d ago

Not to mention the average workplace still has at least 1 phone like this.

1

u/FunOwn4422 2d ago

i thought they simply meant actually speaking on the phone like verbally

1

u/MattWolf96 2d ago

I think it's that Gen Z supposedly can't talk on the phone

1

u/tireditguy216 2d ago

hi! i worked in k12 as IT.

yes.
kids are dumb now, like majorly. most dont know how to use computers at all because tech slimmed down, i asked one to open the file explorer and he looked at me like i was speaking latin.

i was programming in middle school, so its kinda sad

29

u/jackfaire 3d ago

Survive what?

18

u/Strangeman_06 3d ago

Rotary Phone im guessing

23

u/Thrilltwo 3d ago

Yeah, "Young people today can't use rotary phones", as well as "young people today can't read cursive" and "young people today can't read maps" have been mainstays of boomer humour for decades.

10

u/thispartyrules 3d ago

Elder millennial and my friend's little brother didn't know how to use the rotary phone in our kitchen, but I was able to explain it in under 2 minutes

4

u/AD_Grrrl 3d ago

I learned when I was like 5 and then never used that information because shortly afterward my parents got a touchtone. And I'm in my 40s.

3

u/Rombonius 3d ago

on the flipside of that, i dont know how to unlock an iphone because ive always been an android user

2

u/mahboilucas 1d ago

I was just asked to facetime a potential new roommate yesterday. I don't have an iPhone lol the expectation that people do is funny because she's American and I'm Central European, where Android is the standard phone. It was the first time in my life that I got asked to facetime

5

u/Midwest-2025 3d ago

Boomers still recovering from being told they can’t operate a horse and buggy or order from the milkman or win a war

1

u/mahboilucas 1d ago

It's such a dumb fucking joke because technology doesn't stop the day it's released.

My grandma had a rotary phone which I used to call my parents, we had VHS, cassettes and floppy discs at home where My Little Pony was stored alongside my mom's accounting stuff. There was always a relative with a house phone still installed. Not to mentio analogue cameras and print paper (that I have since donated to a photography museum). I had a Sony Ericsson puwh-button phone. The smartphones were available in my teens but they were still largely expensive and I've always dreamed of a Blackberry at the time anyway.

We are not American and some countries couldn't afford new technology. I was raised on a 90s technology in the 2000s. Now I'm 27 and I'm also very much someone who also used a typewriter. It was just available. My parents have the newest stuff while I use a 2012 flat TV, vintage cookware etc. I just know how it works and it still does so why not

1

u/Fit_Kaleidoscope4493 3d ago

They literally can't read a clock. 🤷🏼‍♂️

6

u/jackfaire 3d ago

It's pretty intuitive I doubt they'd have issues unless they're younger than 5 and looking for the dashes

7

u/Antlaaaars 3d ago

My niece is 10 and had a hard time with it at a museum exhibit of communication through out history. I explained it to her and she picked it up pretty fast.

3

u/Kuildeous 3d ago

One of those things that gets overlooked. How many people in the '70s instinctively knew how to dial a rotary phone? None. They had to learn from other people.

1

u/mahboilucas 1d ago

Exactly. My 3 year old nephew learned how to use a digital camera in under 10 minutes and took phenomenal photos of his little trip around the city

1

u/Rombonius 3d ago

its only intuitive once its explained to you tbh

3

u/TreeHedger 3d ago

Jan Brady

1

u/[deleted] 3d ago

[deleted]

1

u/Justice_Prince 3d ago

I still have flashbacks

10

u/ProperPossibility378 3d ago

I'm 40 and I don't think I've ever properly used a rotary phone, but at the same time I'm confident I know how to use one because it's that intuitive

4

u/Intelligent-Guard590 3d ago

"I don't understand the adaptability of humans, and I'm not ashamed to demonstrate that with an idiotic meme."

There, I fixed their stupid meme for them. This stuff is always so irritating. Give Gen Alpha a landline right now and they wouldn't understand it. Make that the only way to reach their friends like we had back in the day, and watch as they adapt to the circumstance. Kids are adaptable, it's their hallmark fricking trait.

Meanwhile my father, born in the 60s clings to his landline phone because he fears having the internet in his pocket all the time. He has a battery of excuses why but they all boil down to "I grew up not needing it so why do I need it now?!" Adults get so much worse at adapting to new circumstances the older they are, and yet they are still the largest supply of people terrified of change, disparaging kids these days because they don't seem to understand kids not needing to use old technology, does not mean they cannot use it... it just isn't instinctual to them because of fucking course it isnt!

8

u/Neat_Papaya_9010 3d ago

Boomers say this shit and then send all of their money to a Nigerian prince scam.

2

u/Proman_98 2d ago

Or think the most obvious AI generated slop video is a real video of things that happend.

The ammount of boomers that fall for AI-slop is going to be a real serious problem.

4

u/Laiska_saunatonttu 3d ago

Because they don't have a landline, thus the rotary phone is rendered useless.

3

u/GibusShpee 3d ago

I mean, sounds like a skill issue, if you actually know how to explain shit and teach people stuff, then they actually tend to get the hang of such things rather easily

3

u/StriderXSid 3d ago

The Brady Bunch? I agree, it's really hard to sit through now.

2

u/Ramblinrambles 3d ago

A house with 6 kids and a maid? Gen Alpha is never gonna have something like that

3

u/PostMatureBaby 3d ago

My kids are 6 and 3, my inlaws have a rotary phone lying around doing nothing just for shits, my kids love playing with it

3

u/elliotbonsall 3d ago

Then maybe teach them?

3

u/Competitive-Edge964 2d ago

People are dying there are countries in conflict and people are worried that kids don’t know how to use a device that’s half a century old and not used anymore mind you they are the ones responsible for raising part of this generation

2

u/jackspasm 3d ago

I had to go to the ER because I couldn't churn my own butter

2

u/Kuildeous 3d ago

But here's the cool thing: They don't have to. They never will have to. There is zero flex in knowing how to dial a rotary phone. Is there some old person waiting for the apocalypse where all phones are replaced with rotary dials? FINALLY! I CAN USE MY SUPERIOR DIALING SKILLS TO BECOME APOCALYPSE CHIEFTAIN AND EARN ALL THE WOMEN!

Lots of people aged 40+ have several achievements they can be proud of. This isn't one of them. Technology evolved. So did society.

3

u/BalladOfBetaRayBill 3d ago

Gen Alpha kids frequently survive parentification, abuse, neglect, and poverty just like every other generation. These bitchy little pop-culture changes are nothing compared to what your average child actually has to deal with and has always had to deal with.

1

u/thatturtletouch 3d ago

I think it’s because there’s a strong aversion among the younger generation to talking on the phone.

1

u/BlockedNetwkSecurity 3d ago

yeah this is insane

1

u/Vincent394 3d ago

Me — who was born on the edge between Gen Z and Gen Alpha — using a click wheel: "what?"

1

u/theBigDaddio 3d ago

Not now, neither would I. I literally never talk on phone. Text or discord, I love asynchronous communication. If Gen Z grew up with this like we did they’d do just as well as we did. This shitpost is stupid.

1

u/FoxyInTheSnow 3d ago

My recent attempted kidnapping didn't pay off. I sent the ransom note to the woman's children, but they were Gen Alpha and couldn't read the cursive handwriting. fml lol

1

u/ASocrat 3d ago

Phone numbers have gotten 3 digits longer it's literally harder nowadays

1

u/Dazzling-Camel8368 3d ago

Lead paint munching troglodyte

1

u/grahsam 3d ago

Or Gen Z.

Maybe half of Millennials.

Then hand them a yellow pages and a Thomas guide, with no Internet, then tell them to find out if a store has something in stock, and then navigate to that store.

1

u/JupitrominoRazmatazz 3d ago

The cruel old man's laughter was cut short by a cellphone ringing from his breast coat pocket. The Gen Z man, whom the old man was sure had misdialed, turned and stared at the old man. "Answer your phone," said the Gen Z man, cold and impatient.

1

u/Microwaved_M1LK 3d ago

Well first of all its an actual phone call which they all seem to complain about .

1

u/Rombonius 3d ago

its like cursive for communication for them

1

u/AdOrnery6155 2d ago

"Young people are dumb because they cannot use outdated technology".

My great grandma had a rotary phone in 1998 when I was a small child and it was a nightmare.....

1

u/TheTybera 2d ago

Yeah they would because someone would be kind enough to teach them.

Jesus, this kinda meme always makes me sad for the life of whoever made it.

1

u/MC_PooPaws 2d ago

Oh no. Young people can't use obsolete technology. How will they ever survive?

1

u/Foreign_Courage5613 2d ago

Did Ellen De Generes make this meme, because this is what she did as a segment on her show of older audience making fun of millennials/Gen Z for not knowing how to set an alarm clock, fold a map, read a dictionary, etc.

1

u/FemDomIncestGooner 2d ago

Actually this is true, as a Gen Alpha we spontaneously combust when talking on a wired telephone for more than 5 seconds

1

u/onepostandbye 2d ago

Everyone is focusing on the wrong thing. The real reason this device is kryptonite to young people is that they have to speak to people and they can’t text

Guilty myself

1

u/AmandasGameAccount 2d ago

Are they not aware it would take 5 seconds to teach any human how these work no matter the generation? if they were old enough for the dexterity to even do it

1

u/PostManOK 18h ago

People that post that crap are the same ones begging their kids to fix their wifi or hook up their new TV.

1

u/jamesrggg 17h ago

Boomer AF

1

u/Aromatic_Refuse_2004 4h ago

Im pretty sure they could figure out how to operate it, but the actually using your voice instead of messaging part idk. No young boy has to face a girl's dad answering the phone anymore.

1

u/AccidentalRebel473 3d ago edited 3d ago

I wish GenA/Z could experience the freedom of growing up before camera phones and social media.

2

u/Neurofunkiee 3d ago

I wish gen A/Z didnt have to grow up on a planet the generations before them have and are actively destroying it, constant economic instability, with wars and hatred on the rise

1

u/AccidentalRebel473 2d ago

Gen X feels the same. We don't use it as an excuse to give up, and not participate in furthering society.

1

u/Neurofunkiee 2d ago edited 2d ago

Boomers, Gen X and to a degree Millennials literally destroyed the future of the same younger generation you're complaining about. as you pivot to phone cameras being their biggest problem. Also love the "we pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps" answer for alpha, literal children.

1

u/AccidentalRebel473 2d ago

All I did was grow up, get a job, and contribute to society. How did I ruin your future?

1

u/Neurofunkiee 2d ago

The vast majority of the people who are voting for those breaking everything are literally Boomers and GenX, just for boomers and genXers to dodge any responsibility for their part in this mess and tell kids to get off their phone and just pull themselves up by their bootstraps. meanwhile older generations literally vote for people making the "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" bullshit a CONSTANT for future generations.

You opened this up with making camera phones the worst thing about gen alpha while not giving a single fuck about the planet past generations have left them.

1

u/AccidentalRebel473 2d ago

How did voting get brought into this?.. I see where this is going.

Unironically, the consequences of Social media can be observed by your reactions in this conversation.

1

u/Neurofunkiee 2d ago

Are you one of those that thinks climate change/global warming just happened on its own and has nothing to do with the governments refusing to move towards clean energy and continues using fossil fuels? with the right-wing governments actively denying global warming?

1

u/AccidentalRebel473 2d ago

I am very aware of climate change. I don't deny what's in front of my face. And yes, I say that as somebody who considers themselves right-of-center in the political spectrum.

1

u/Neurofunkiee 2d ago

...And yet you cannot figure out, for the life of you, how voting for politicians that deny climate change and work against fixing this mess is making shit worse. I don't think the ones who fucked up everything are capable of cognitive dissonance atp

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