Tags
advertising, business, communication, environment, green, insanity, mobile phones, printers, technology, telephones, waste management
I prefer to do all my own printing for customers, as it allows me control over the quality of output, sizing, and the types of ink and paper I use, and have a preference, through experience, for the products of Epson, especially for larger prints. For the lesser work, I have older units from Lexmark, Dell, Canon and others, but have some ‘end of life’ printers which I use periodically to rattle off stuff for personal use.
I changed systems, computer wise, and went from Windows to Mac, and had not used anything other than the big Epson, and a Lexmark all in one unit for some time, but needed to print out some invoices and new catalogue sheets, as well as the accounts – however, when we moved here recently, it took three lorries (OK, so they were not large, due to the limited access) to move us, plus what the wife and I brought over in the preceding 12 months by car. This amounted to a lifetimes worth of assorted ‘stuff’ for me, and filled an awful lot of boxes – these were carefully labeled when I started, and I was meticulous about ensuring stuff would be easy to find, as it all had to go into a barn for storage whilst we worked on the house and other buildings on the site. Well, I reckon I’ve shifted these boxes a dozen times, been through almost every one, and still cannot find the printer I want to use. I also have to complete a photographic order, so have had to buy yet another!
The end of life units, the Dell 720 won’t work on the Mac, and even though I have put ‘new’ cartridges in, fails to print properly in Windows either. My Epson 1290 has got damaged in the move, and the platen is bent badly, so jams. Heaven only knows which box the old faithful Lexmark 1000 is in – odds are, I don’t have any spare cartridges for it any more anyway. Ever the good boy scout, I used to buy lots of spare cartridges when I could get a good deal from a supplier – my advice, is DON’T buy and store –they dry up – and what once was a good deal, is now a white elephant and a waste of money.
It seems that printers are so cheap nowadays (the ones for general use are often cheaper than a replacement set of inks), I won’t be hunting round for spares in future. I consider my business to be ‘green and eco/environment friendly’, but sadly, have to face the fact that our society is throwaway – particularly in regard to ‘convenience’ technology.
It is similar with phones – I have only ever bought one – and it still makes phone calls as well as it did the day be bought it! It is a little old Samsung clam phone, on pay as you go, and it just keeps chugging along.
In a household of two of us plus a dog, we have FIVE mobiles including my clam – one the missus bought me, which I cannot use as the buttons are too small, an LG she found when out one day we’ve re-carded, a Skype phone which doesn’t skype any more, and another…… We have a 4 dock system for the house – but there is never one fully charged up as they never get hung up! Even if they did, BT have left us with no reliable line for over three weeks, and we cannot get a mobile signal here on any of 4 networks without climbing the hill behind us… So much for modern technology – anyone out there got a pencil? Or two cans and a bit of string?
I so hate being beaten by inanimate objects, and find both our seemingly insatiable need for constant technological improvement, and our blanket acceptance of advertising hype for the latest product, a saddening reflection on us as a society – why don’t we just talk face to face sometimes like we used to, or send a hand written letter now and again – try it – you might be shocked at the response you get.
