Hi Bill, I may be different from some people in that I spend a lot of time researching whatever interests me or what I need. I'm kind of hard wired that way, perhaps something I picked up from my parents or grand parents. Funny thing is, my brother and sister are that way as well. I've seen my brother spend twenty minutes at a market reading all the information of packages of light bulbs before deciding which would be best suited to his needs.
But - and maybe they are different from "most people" - my friends spend a fair amount of time researching their major purchases as well, reading magazines, asking friends and associates about this brand or product or another, and so on. I suppose there are those who just walk into a Best Buy and ask for a computer and take home what the droid sells 'em, but I know very few people like that. As for my being a jamoke, well, I don't know if that's really the right word to describe my level of competence, but I do feel very much the dunce in many respects when it comes to certain areas of computer savvy. For example, I've never formatted my hard drive and reinstalled the operating system, and am uncertain as to how that's done. I don't understand flash photography, and there are features on my DSLR that I've never used and probably will never use. I use the darned thing like an old manual film camera. I can go on and on about what I ~don't~ know or understand. When Godders or John Francis describe things, I'm often lost. Others here seem to get what they're talking about. Maybe I'm a little above average in some areas, but compared to others on this list I feel very much like the kid in the back row struggling with the Dick and Jane readers (See Dick run. Run Dick, run. See Jane. She is watching Dick run. Watch out Dick. Oh! Too late. Poor Dick. Poor, poor Dick.) Shel > [Original Message] > From: William Robb > I wonder if Shel, had he not discovered the PDML, or any other mail list > devoted to technology, would be as well versed and as confident. He > professes to be a jamoke about this stuff, but the reality is quite > different.
