When I entered the world of work, it was the loud clanking of manual typewriters and ringing of dial me telephones filling the office. Then came electronic typewriters. Suddenly the buzz of computers were in the air. Some panicked, Some were excited and others feared of losing their job. I was curious, excited and wanting very much to know how this machine could make life easier. So we've had that being-stuck in-our-own-comfort-zone-as-comfortable all along.
As soon as pc's came in they were given only for employees in the executive grade. I would say its a kind of class differentiation to suit the appalling local mentality. After some time the employees who were given pc's to use, seemed to walk a few feet above ground level, the noble privileged class of pc users.
Their snootiness caved into me. I challenged myself that I would get down to learning everything about a pc. Since it was certain that I was never going to be given a pc where I was then working, I looked for jobs that gave a pc for the position I applied for.
The first time I used a pc was in a small office. The packaging of a brand new pc was opened before me and set up on my desk. I was excited as a father seeing the arrival of his first born. A brand spanking pc (clumsy looking in today's standards) sat on my desk. I was determined to learn everything about this thing occupying half of the table. This was '90s where technology began gradually crawling into our lives.
I vowed to learn everything about the technicalities, using and caring for it by myself. Every lunch break I used 5 minutes to have a quick snack and during the rest of the 55 minutes I used, to learn what this machine has to offer for someone who has been using a manual typewriter.
That was my first encounter with self study I guess, It was super fun, sometimes I goofed up and learnt how to fix it myself. Other times I was as jubilant as Archimedes in discovering features that I would see only in good quality publications. I typed out brief newspaper articles and applied the MS office features to get a hang of how it all fits nicely to produce faster and better quality work. I tinkered with different fonts, templates and layouts and put my creative nerves on a cardio workout. I was elated to discover the lightening speed responses a worksheet would generate when I gave in the formula. I was over the moon to learn how simple data could quickly be converted into a chart or a graph. I was thrilled to understand the filing system and how super easy it was label, create files and stack them neatly.
I went a step further in my attempts to learn. I clocked in early, had a quick breakfast and tinkled around the pc before I began work. Later I went browsing for a book in the local store that would simply not be a manual to instruct, but would let me know the logic of using a pc. I figured this would let me think beyond and produce even better work.
By the time I left the job in that small office, I was a pc warrior eager and anxious to use all my skills in the next role I was offered. I The world outside was spilling in many new technological inventions and I was even curious to learn and understand the developments. I wanted to take myself from a warrior to a pilot.
The office which first gave me a chance to learn using a pc closed shop within a few months. But I was glad that the challenge I gave myself was DONE. I had acquired a skill most wanted and could confidently pin it down in my CV.
I'd like to tell all those who snorted and miffed at manual typewriters that Dickens, Austin, Hemingway, Bronte, Twain and many other greatest literary genius masters produced the greatest masterpieces with simple machines.
To think also, that it's the same QWERTY layout that has come to stay on pc, laptop, tab and smart phone keyboards.
Darwin's theory of evolution is one that can never be pushed aside eh ?
