Below is a list of skills considered 'obsolete' in this day and age. Link A * Adjusting a television's horizontal and vertical holds * Adjusting a television's color and hue adjustments? * Adjusting the dwell angle on the spark distributor of an engine * Adjusting the levels and song layout for recording to audio tape * Adjusting the rabbit ears on a TV set * Adjusting the tracking on a VCR * Adjusting a clock's pendulum * Aiming C-band satellite dish? * Aligning the heads on a 9 track tape drive * Aligning the heads on a five and a quarter inch floppy drive? * ALGOL programming? * Analogue radio listening and tuning in? * 400 * Attaching nose-guard and rails to your skateboard? B * Balancing the tonearm on a turntable * Banyan Vines? * BASIC * BBS administration * Be Kind - Rewind? * Bleeding patients * Blowing the dust out of a Nintendo cartridge * BSOD * Booting off a floppy disk * Bootloading with binary switches * Burning and Erasing EPROMs? * Building a computer from individual components * Building a log cabin as your primary residence? * Burnishing a cartridge connector with a pencil eraser to ensure a solid connection * Bust apart a long computer printout C * Calculating THAC0 * Calculating a square root using pencil and paper * Calculating sales tax? * Calligraphy * Calling collect on a payphone * Carving a nib into a quill or pen? * Cash Register used manually entering the prices * Cast Lead Miniatures * Cast Lead bullets? * Caulking your wagon to ford the river? * Cel Painting * Changing the ball or ribbon on your Selectric Typewriter? * Changing the battery of a Sega Dreamcast VMU * Changing the C120 Film Cartridge in your Instamatic camera * Changing the gas mixture on your car's carburetor * Changing the ribbon on a typewriter? * Changing the wheel on a daisy wheel printer? * Changing tracks on an eight-track tape * Changing vacuum tubes * Character codes: Baudot? * Character codes: EBCDIC? * Chipping flint or obsidian tools * Churn butter * Cleaning head of a VCR * Cleaning the balls inside a computer mouse for better traction * Clicking on the up and down arrows of a vertical scrollbar * COBOL? * Compiling source code by hand * Compiling the nucleus of a VM/370 mainframe? * Compressing a HDD to make vital space * Configuring Trumpet Winsock * Connecting to a BBS through an acoustic coupler at 300 baud * Converting a single-sided floppy disk to double-sided, using a drill * Converting your albums from vinyl to cassette tape? * Cooking your own meal from scratch? * Counting back change? * Corset - unlace before taking on the dress,gown,frock? * CP/M? * Cranking a telephone? * Cranking the engine on a Ford Model T * Cranking up or down a car-window * Crew a muzzle loading cannon * Cursive handwriting? * Cutting and setting parquet? * Cuff links - you needed them then to a party * Cycle Counting D * Darkroom photography skills * Darning a sock * dBase III? * Decollating 6-Part printer paper? * Debugging hexadecimal dumps * Defrosting the Icebox * Degaussing a 9-Track tape? * Degaussing a CRT monitor * Deice a refrigerator? * Developing photographic film? * Dewey decimal system? * Dialing a rotary phone * Double-speed Tape-to-Tape copying * Double de-clutching * Drafting with pencils and T-square? E * Extracting square roots * Extending The Antenna On The Cellphone * Edit with edlin * Editing dates and time source code for Y2K? * Editing AUTOEXEC-BAT and CONFIG-SYS to get as close as possible to 640K of free memory * Extensions: managing them on Mac OS 9 and earlier F * Faxing a document * fdisk <slash>mbr * Finding channels on UHF * Fixing a Disk using a hex editor * Flipping 'front panel' machine-code toggles? * Focusing a camera * Formatting a floppy * FORTRAN programming - though the logic is still good * Freethinking * FTP from a command line G * Gathering medicinal herbs and plants in the field? * Getting off the couch to change channels on your TV set? * Getting TSRs and CD device drivers to load into DOS? * Grinding grain with a millstone? H * Hand crank a car to start it * Hand lettering large signs? * Handwriting? * Harness a team of oxen? * Having Cash * Hayes Command Set * Hercules Graphics Card Programming * Hewing wood with an adze? * Hexadecimal arithmetic in your head ? * Himem.sys? * Hunting a woolly mammoth * Hypercard and Hyperscript I * IDDQD & IDKFA * Illumination? * Inserting a game cartridge at just the right angle to make it work * Installing a vampire tap on a thick coax Ethernet LAN cable? * Interpreting punch cards? * Interpolating logarithms? * ISDN? J * Jumpers on a Motherboard K * Kermit to transfer files * Killing all the megafauna on a continent * Knowing the alphabet by heart - see also citation under "S" * Knowing what part of town someone lives in by their phone exchange? * Knapping flint L * Laying out magazines using wax and bromides * Licking stamps or envelopes? * Lighting a carbide miner's lamp * Lighting a kerosene lamp? * Lining up paper on a dot matrix or line printer * LISP in AutoCAD? * Loading a 9-Track tape drive? * Loading a disk platter? * Loading a reel to reel tape drive * Loading data from a cassette tape * Loading film into a 35 mm camera * Loading film into a 60 mm camera * Loading the OS2 module for Netware 3.12 to get 64 character length file names? * Local Grocery Store? * Long division * Longbow - training * Look for a job in the classifieds * Looking up a business on the yellow pages * Low Format a Harddrive M * Mailing in the order form of a catalog? * Making a deer fat poultice? * Making a home movie with a cine camera * Making a nail art picture * 4" floppy double-sided? * Making apothecaries from recipes? * Making change in shillings and pence * Making chain-mail and amory? * Making electronic tubes * Making Ice-Cream with a hand-crank freezer? * Making ink? * Making paint? * Making oil-cloth? * Manage a MVS mainframe? * Manually loading ink on a fountain pen from an bottle? * Map Reading? * Memorizing Multiplication Tables? * Memory Management * Modem to Modem Computer Gaming * Morse-coding messages * Mounting a Computer Tape by hand? * Morse-coding messages * M? * Mailing in the order form of a catalog? * Multiplication using a Sliderule? * Munge parchement for re-use? N * Navigate by the stars? * Navigate using a LORAN * Navigate using a sextant? * Navigating using a compass? * Nested table web design? * Netware * Numbering your punch cards with a pencil, in case you drop your program O * Open and Administrate a Blog * Operating an IBM 010 manual key punch? * Operating an IBM 026 electric key punch? * Operating an IBM 029 key punch? * Operating an Overhead Projector * OS2? P * Painting cave walls? * Palm OS programming? * Parking a hardisk * PASCAL-TurboPASCAL * Paying for something with a check * PEEK and POKE * Peeling the developer layer off a Polaroid? * Peeling back a lid from an sardine can with a key? * Percolating coffee * Phrenology? * Placing a coin on a tonearm to prevent skipping? * Playing marbles? * Playing mumblety-peg * Playing solitaire with playing cards? * Poker games other than Texas Hold 'Em? * Polaroid photography? * Popping corn in a pot with oil * Preparing a galena crystal for radio-detection? * Preparing a goose quill for writing with an inkwell? * Programming an analogue car radio * Programming in dBase or Clipper? * Programming in MS Visual Basic? * Programming in machine language in your head and then loading the code by flipping front panel switches? * Propping an airplane to start the engine? * Punching a drum card for a keypunch machine * Punching a hole in the shell of a single-sided 5.25" floppy disc to make it double-sided * Putting a needle on a vinyl record Q * QBASIC? * Performing a Quirkafleeg? * Questing for Treasure? R * Raising an antenna? * Reading a dictionary or encyclopedia? * Reading a paper map * Reading a Sundial? * Reading a Vernier Scale * Reading Guru Meditation error codes? * Reading Gothic letters in newspapers and enclopædias * Reading Hollerith punch codes on an unlabelled IBM punchcard? * Reading Moon Tables or Tide Tables? * Reading printed newspaper? * Reckoning arithmetic without aid? * Recording television with a VCR? * Reinking a type writer or dot matrix printer ribbon? * Remembering keystroke commands in Visicalc? * Remembering telephone numbers? * Removing perforations off fanfold paper so it looks like normal typing paper? * Repairing an 8-track tape cartridge * Repairing small appliances? * Repairing wooden cart wheels? * Replacing Shoe Sole and Heels * Replacing the glass in the photocamera after each photo? * hectograph ? * Resoling shoes? * Resolving IRQ conflicts on a mother board * Respooling a chewed-up VCR tape or audio cassette? * Rewind VCR tapes * Riding a skateboard with wooden wheels? * Ride a penny-farthing bicycle * Ride an actual bicycle of any type * Ripping the little holes off the sides of the computer paper * Running a mimeograph machine? S * Saving tin for The War? * Saving your programs to a cassette tape? * Salting cod as a preservative? * S100 Bus * Searching a card catalog * Selling something in the Classified Ads? * Sending a letter * Setting a baud rate, parity and stop-bits * Setting up a modem using AT commands? * Setting up a screen saver to avoid burned in image on the CRT? * Setting the timer on a VCR? * Setting type for printing? * Shave with a straight razor * Shorthand? * Slaughtering Small Mammals and Birds * SmallTalk programming? * Starching a removable collar? * Spelling? * Splicing audio recording tape * Splicing out damaged portions of a VHS Cassette tape * Stacking a quarter on an arcade game to indicate you have next * Starting a fire by drilling a stick into another piece of wood? * Starting a fire by striking flint onto flint-steel? * Steam locomotive - how to run and maintain it? * Stenography? * Stirring the yellow dye tablet into white margarine to make it look like butter * Sucking tokens from a subway turnstile? * Swapping floppy disks * Swapping plates in a hard drive? * Sword fighting? T * Taking the tape out of an answering machine? * Tape to Tape Video Editing * Telegraph Operator? * Testing radio and TV tubes? * Thinking for oneself * Threading a needle * Throwing lawn darts * Throwing with an atlatl * Ticket Conductors on Buses? * Tinning copper cookware * Operating a Treadle Sewing Machine * Trim the wick on an oil lamp? * Trimming a quill pen? * Tune the tape head on a Commodore 64? * Tuning a radio * Tying shoes with hook laces? * Tweaking your AUTOEXEC<dot>BAT and CONFIG<dot>SYS files? * Typesetting? * Typing "open door" and "Ken sent me" * Typing and sending a telex? U * U2? * Unlocking a car door using a key? * Untangling the cord of a telephone? * Upgrading to a 16550 UART? * Up-Up-Down-Down-Left-Right-Left-Right-B-A-Select-Start in Konami games * Using 'sacadm' to configure serial ports? * Using a 16 mm film projector? * Using a beeper or pager * Using an ink blotter * Using a card catalog? * Using an abacus? * Using carbon paper to make copies * Using correction fluid * Using a compass? * Using a Capt'n Crunch Secret Decoder Ring? * Using a Dwell meter to tune your cars engine. * Using a fax machine * Using a flash bulb? * Using a flash cube? * Using a fountain pen * Using a light pen? * Using a Logarithm Table? * Using a manual choke in cold weather * Using a microfiche * Using a newsreader * Using paper tape for programming? * Using a pay telephone? * Using a pay toilet * Using a scythe? * Using a manual twist-drill? * Using a slide rule * Using a pointer stick as "mouse" on laptops * Using a Timing Light * Using a Typewriter? * Using an abacus? * Using an adding machine? * Using carbon paper to make copies * Using correction fluid * Using punch cards * Using 'sacadm' to configure serial ports? * Using a Timing Light * Using a typescale? * Using a Log Table * Using a light pen? * Using a manual choke in cold weather * Using a sextant? * Using the Dewey Decimal System * Using the Readers Guide to Periodical Literature * Using an Odhner type pin-wheel calculator * Using the toggle switches on the front of a DataGeneral Nova 1200 to enable in octal the paper tape reader? * UUCP configuration? * UUencode usage to transfer binary V * Vantive? * VCR Programming * Viscously Vacuuming Verily? * Visual Basic 3 Programming? * Voice Mail W * Walking long distances * Walking stick for your Sunday stroll in the park? * Washing clothes with a washboard? * Watching a slide show with a slide projector? * Whipping cream with a whisk? * Whistling 2600Hz * Wikis * Wilderness Survival? * Winding a watch or clock * Winding coils for a crystal-radio set? * Winding up loose cassette tape with a pencil eraser before putting the cassette in the deck * Wire wrapping * Wiring an accounting machine plugboard? (e.g., IBM 402, 407) * Word processing with markup codes * Writing a check? * Writing email whilst offline and going online to send * Writing using a dip pen and powder to dry up the ink? X * X25? * Using xyzzy Y * YP commands? Z * ZIPping archives across multiple floppy disks * Zmodem to transfer a file? * Zone-system calculation for photographic exposures? * ZX Spectrum and "R Tape loading error, 0:1"?
Some of the older programming languages, while obsolete, still have markets. Many companies that were early adopters of technology still have old systems running somewhere that when they get retired, need people with those skills to decipher the code and replace it with new code.
* Hunting a woolly mammoth Sorry, but whoever has that skill is a badass, and should use that skill to full extent. * Degaussing a CRT monitor Since when was this a skill?
* Adjusting the rabbit ears on a TV set Rabbit ear antennas for TV's have had a renaissance since you can now pick up HD signals over the airwaves. And yes, you still have to adjust them.
Used a lot by Arcade Game owners that rent games to arcades. Discharging a CRT is an entirely different skill, still needed today because doing it improperly is a not so fun way to get killed.
what! this skill is more valuable than ever. as my old NES games get older, it takes ever more dust blowing magic to get them to still work. needed for macros in Excel. that's pretty much the only programming i do.
C# can do the same thing now with .NET Interop. I think VB gonna be gone in the next release of Visual Studio.
Hahahah I caught this too. Clearly a protest regarding the GARM I wish because Ginobili is still playing in the NBA. Stalkers still do this This is true with me, my handwriting actually gets worse and worse by the year
"Adjusting a television's color and hue adjustments?" Actually this is still an important thing to do to any TV/Projector that you purchase. Colors are almost ALWAYS wrong on a TV right out of the box.
