I know, I know, Skype is old news. But needless to say, it amazed me this past weekend. I was able to talk to my brother, who is in Afghanistan, at least 8,000 miles away. Across an ocean. Across miles and miles of land. Across several time zones. I was able to do this at the same time I was able to talk to my parents in Michigan. Across 60 miles of lake and about 200 miles of land. Across a time zone. All for free. You can’t tell me that’s not incredible.
While I was sitting there eating my breakfast and my brother was telling us what he just ate for dinner, there were times when the signal wasn’t so great. Sometimes the voices would freeze or we’d lose someone. I have to admit that during these times I became frustrated and asked, “Why in the heck is it doing this??” To which my fiancé replied, “Because it’s traveling across the world.” Oh yeah. Amazing how we get annoyed when things aren’t instant. The fact that it was working it all is like magic.
This was the first time I had used Skype in that way. I downloaded it only a few weeks ago when my brother left for the Middle East. I am a late adaptor to the program, which is probably why it amazes me so much.
Which brings me to my next realization. It is amazing to me how much communication has changed. If my brother was in Afghanistan five years ago, we would have been limited to e-mails. If he was there 15 years ago, we probably would have been limited to only phone calls and maybe the occasional e-mail if dial-up internet was available in the Middle East. If he had been deployed 20 or more years ago, we would have been limited to letters and maybe an occasional phone call. We’d probably just be getting a letter from him saying he safely landed. I don’t know how people did it back then. To not be able to hear someone’s voice, or to be able to see them on Skype would be so hard.
Yes, I realize Skype has been around for a while and many people have probably used it in more amazing ways than I have. But it doesn’t change the fact that technology never ceases to amaze me!
While I was sitting there eating my breakfast and my brother was telling us what he just ate for dinner, there were times when the signal wasn’t so great. Sometimes the voices would freeze or we’d lose someone. I have to admit that during these times I became frustrated and asked, “Why in the heck is it doing this??” To which my fiancé replied, “Because it’s traveling across the world.” Oh yeah. Amazing how we get annoyed when things aren’t instant. The fact that it was working it all is like magic.
This was the first time I had used Skype in that way. I downloaded it only a few weeks ago when my brother left for the Middle East. I am a late adaptor to the program, which is probably why it amazes me so much.
Which brings me to my next realization. It is amazing to me how much communication has changed. If my brother was in Afghanistan five years ago, we would have been limited to e-mails. If he was there 15 years ago, we probably would have been limited to only phone calls and maybe the occasional e-mail if dial-up internet was available in the Middle East. If he had been deployed 20 or more years ago, we would have been limited to letters and maybe an occasional phone call. We’d probably just be getting a letter from him saying he safely landed. I don’t know how people did it back then. To not be able to hear someone’s voice, or to be able to see them on Skype would be so hard.
Yes, I realize Skype has been around for a while and many people have probably used it in more amazing ways than I have. But it doesn’t change the fact that technology never ceases to amaze me!
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