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The joys of having a haircut

One of the great things about getting a haircut besides the feeling of freshness, is the enjoyable conversations that I have with my barber. The conversations usually span multiple topics, and are mostly random, but sometimes we chat about technology, and it is always great to get the perspective of someone not embedded in the field.

Last time we talked about how the younger generations are using technology to communicate. My barber made astute observations about the topic, gleaned from his observations on how his kids, nephews and their friends communicate. It was interesting to learn that despite having cell phones, the younger generation has forgone all types of voice communication on the mobile device, and instead has opted for text messages and instant messaging. My barber was complaining that his kids rake in thousands of text messages a month, and if he did not select the right cell phone plan he would have gone broke by now.

Despite not using voice communication on the mobile device, they did the opposite on the computer, using Skype to communicate exclusively through videos. When I asked him about where do they play games, I was surprised that he mentioned they were not interested in using gaming consoles for entertainment, but rather using the computer and the mouse, just like how we did some time ago. And of course they play games on their mobile devices, which does not bode well for console manufacturers, and specialized handheld devices.
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