HALLIE EPHRON: Recently I’ve been traveling, and three times in 10 days I ended up with an Uber driver in a TESLA.
Have you seen one in the flesh? They’re… sleek. And inscrutable. You need a manual to figure out how to open the door. Every time the driver had to come around and let me in (or out).
Where’s “human factors” when you need them? Because, seriously folks, if you need to watch a Youtube video in order to open our car door, that's a safety issue.
It got me thinking how complicated the world has gotten. Everyone expects you to be able to interact with their PORTAL. Phone calls are answered by machines with algorithms that seem designed to get rid of you as quickly as possible.
I’ve been lucky technology-wise, having worked for computer companies for decades. We had MAIL long before it was a basic component of every laptop. Before there were laptops, and long before there were cell phones. And I’ve managed each transition.
Still, these days it seems as if they make it harder than it needs to be. You get a link to their system so you can PAY YOUR BILL. Click the link and you need to enter your password AND a security code to get in. Seems like I spend half my time online retrieving passwords and typing in security codes.
Are you just sliding happily and glitch-less-ly into an increasingly technology-driven world or going there kicking and screaming?
HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I have had lots of Uber Teslas, too and I think they are incredibly cool and gorgeous and fun to ride in. I KNOW, AND I AM AWARE OF THE PROVENANCE. I’m just saying, that aside, cool.
Paying bills on line is weird to me, although when it works, it’s amazing. It always feels like a roll of the dice, though, about whether it’ll work. And I am in love with online grocery shopping.
Do not get me started, though, about “customer service” and not being able to get a person on the phone. It’s often so much more efficient to talk to a person, but that's me, the one saying “agent agent agent agent agent” over and over, in hopes the software will obey. And sometimes it does.
JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I find most modern technology super helpful. I love how I can have my plane ticket and boarding pass and everything else I need for my trip right on my phone. I love being able to chat, voice and video call my daughter in The Hague with just the press of a virtual button. I love washing machines that sense how big the load is and adjust the water amount without me fussing over it.
What I don’t love? AI. Not that I’ll never use it - I’ve found ChatGPT saves a lot of time in pulling together resources and suggesting itineraries. It does the same thing I could, but a lot faster, which is genuinely helpful. But for the love of all that’s holy, PLEASE STOP TRYING TO JAM “AI” INTO EVERY APP AND WEBSITE I HAVE TO DEAL WITH!!!! No, I don’t need an intrusive chatbot when I’m looking at my latest insurance bill. No, I don’t need a summary of a three sentence email. No, I don’t want it randomly popping up on my phone like an overly attentive waiter - “Can I help you now? How about now? Now?”
I’ll tell you when I want you, Clippy.
RHYS BOWEN: Hank, you should hear John shouting “Agent, agent, for God’s sake give me an agent” when he has a problem.
And I go mad when I have to get through to my doctor and there are so many hoops to jump through..If you are a patient press 1. If this is for an existing appointment press 6. If your big toe is hurting press 9 etc etc. Then The Wait time is twenty minutes…. Grrr.
There are certain aspects of technology I really do appreciate: Uber is so easy when I’m in a strange city. Having the boarding pass in my Apple Wallet is so much better than trying to find a piece of paper. Paying people who work for me with Paypal is so simple. Having a credit card I just have to touch on a pad makes it so much safer. However I refuse to do any banking or financial transactions online.
LUCY BURDETTE: totally giggling about Hank and Rhys’s John shouting ‘agent, agent!’ Sometimes I have to take the phone away from my John because he becomes so upset about something he’s trying to do.
I do love the Apple wallet however. And I’ve gotten smug about paying for things with my phone, the way our son does. He NEVER carries cash, which occasionally gets him in hot water.
About AI, did those of you on the Reds and Readers group notice that AI started posting in the group? We did not ask for this or approve of it, and it took a little hunting around to find a way to turn it off.
JENN McKINLAY: I’m torn. I love technology when it works as intended but being the sort of person who forgets to charge her phone, having to order food off a QR code at the restaurant can be problematic. And I hate putting in my credit card info constantly.
Like Lucy, I need to get hip to using my phone to pay for things but I’m also lazy and I feel as if nothing is easier than buying things with cash. It also makes you fiscally responsible – you either have the money or you don’t. Now that they’re planning to chip away at our cash-based monetary system with the Genius Act (encouraging the use of stablecoins) well, I think I’m doomed.
DEBORAH CROMBIE: Yes, Uber Tesla’s are very cool, but I’ve never managed to open the door, either!
But if we’re talking gripes, one of my biggest is doctor’s office portals!!! Oh my gosh, they are so annoying. Every provider uses a different system, and they all nag you. You can’t make an appointment without signing up for the portal and going through all their hoops. On the good tech side, I use a password manager, so that makes it easier to keep up with them.
I pay all our bills online, I order groceries and takeout online. I pay for almost everything with my debit card, but I do carry cash. Partly for the farmers market because there are vendors who don’t take cards, and partly for tips in the hair salon/nail salon. I know I can put the tip on the card but I also know they would rather have cash, so I make the effort.
AI is such a huge thing, but just a “love” and a “hate.” I use an AI called Perplexity which is great for answering all sorts of questions and problem solving. But I do NOT want Google’s AI telling me how to write an email!! So very annoying!
HALLIE: What about the rest of you? Are you lining up with Rhys's John and yelling “Agent, agent, for God’s sake give me an agent” into your land line phone receiver? Or are you gliding ahead, taking technology and the depersonification of our universe in stride? (But seriously, when you need a Youtube video to figure out how to open your car door....)
I'm somewhere in the middle in all this, Hallie . . . I like the convenience of PayPal; AI makes me crazy; I despair over the phone system that is determined to keep me from talking to a real person. And I've never been in a Tesla, but the idea of not being able to open a car door is rather frightening . . . .
ReplyDeleteI am terrified at the idea of not being able to open a car door myself. How is that cool?
ReplyDeleteI am also shouting, "Agent, agent! For God's sake, give me an agent." Irwin wants to dump Verizon. I have had them since 1995, when I got my first cellphone. People used to answer their calls. Now they have a system that sends you in a loop, then, with a curt "goodbye," hangs up on you.
One of the most annoying additions to WORD is an AI that volunteers to write your paper for you. Huh? I'm writing a review. Has it even read the book?
Lastly, I want paper in my hand at the airport. Have you been behind the person whose phone decides to go blank every time she tips it? Well, that won't be me.
Generally speaking, I prefer all the old fashioned ways of doing things, but if there is an online chat box or portal messaging system, I much prefer to use that than trying to telephone.
ReplyDeleteUsing a card to pay is convenient, but we will use cash whenever possible if there is a fee for paying with a card. Small businesses usually prefer cash or even a check if they don’t charge you for using a card.
We have a smart home with TV and lights hooked up to Alexa but we usually just use the wall switches and remotes. I think it is weird to be in someone’s home and they are constantly telling Alexa to do things like preheat the oven, turn on the music, dim the lights or asking her everything… what time is it, what is the temperature…..
And I still make a list on paper to go to the store.
I am with you all on not wanting AI's unasked for help everywhere. When I google something now, I add -ai to the query (when I remember). I won't use ChaptGPT. I won't have Alexa in the house. I also basically don't use Uber, but Hugh has ridden in a friend's Tesla - I'll ask him about the door. And yes, "Agent" or tapping O, plus we go to the market with a paper list.
ReplyDeleteI don't pay with my phone, although I do love tapping my credit card. I always carry cash - I can't tip the hair or nail person on the card, and we like to leave a cash tip for our housecleaner. Yesterday we wandered around the (free) Lowell Folk Festival all day, taking in a bunch of fabulous international music. Everything except parking was cash - the food stands, the beer garden, the contributions to make the festival run.
That said, paypal is great. I find my doctor's portal easy to use. Two-factor authentication annoys me, but I know it's good for security. Boarding passes on phones are great, as is online bill paying (although I don't sign up for automatic payment).
Edith, I also find most portals easy to use. However in 2022-23 I had two years of hospitalizations and appointments in medical offices in four cities in three different states. Each used a different portal system and some used yet another system for bill-paying. I made loose-leaf notebooks for all of the bills and kept in those notebooks a cheat sheet for all of the websites and passwords. It was a lot of work. I have wondered how those who are less tech-literate manage the modern medical world! (Selden)
DeleteOh, thank you, all of you who are mystified by Tesla doors. A black car, a black door handle, poor vision. Ever tried one when your eyes are dilated?I want to scream. The Uber drivers are so helpful and so patient. And there are some Tesla’s with contrasting colors for the handles. Suddenly, those large cab F-150 Ubers make me happier than those sleek Teslas! (Vision problems keep me from driving, so I take what Uber sends me.) Elisabeth
ReplyDeleteI love certain aspects of technology but dislike others. I love my Macbook laptop. I enjoy my phone that doubles as a camera and audiobook player. I don't ever use my phone to pay bills, and have forbidden my husband to do so. In my case it's because I am absentminded and have to hunt for my phone regularly. In his case it's because he's brilliant but dyslexic and the small screen makes errors extremely likely. I've spent hours straightening out problems so it's simpler for us both to refrain.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate Facetime. Our oldest grandchild is profoundly autistic with intellectual disabilities and does not sleep. As a seven-year-old with zero danger awareness cannot be allowed to roam unattended in the night, our son does not either. We have a standing appointment at 7 AM for a Facetime so I can hear how it's going.
I must say that I hugely dislike the infiltration of Elon Musk, a sociopath, and his tech-worshipping ilk into my daily life. I won't ever ride in a Tesla after reading about the serious safety concerns the company has deliberately hidden (among them: those disappearing door handles do not open in a crash and passengers have burned to death; in Germany it is recommended that you carry a window hammer). https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jul/05/the-vehicle-suddenly-accelerated-with-our-baby-in-it-the-terrifying-truth-about-why-teslas-cars-keep-crashing .
I close all AI chat boxes. I have never used a QR code. But I'll give up that stand long before I'll ride in a Tesla. (Selden)
Selden, I think all of us love certain aspects of technology or we wouldn't all be greeting one another from 6:00 to noon every day on this writers blog. But I am with you and Edith and Brenda in your distaste for certain technologies. I wouldn't have a robot presence in my home for all the tea in China.
DeleteThe first thing I do when I call a company is press zero and then immediately ask for an agent. I've been known to ask if the person I'm supposedly chatting with "if they are human."
ReplyDeleteI dislike doctor portals too. At airport, I take the paper ticket, I prefer to not use my phone all the time. Do you recall the person that stole another person's ticket via their cell phone?
I'm getting use to using my debit card at stores. I do carry cash when necessary - I do need them for tips especially when traveling and on vacation.
oh I forgot - I've been in a uber Tesla and freaked out when I couldn't figure out how to get out the car.
ReplyDeleteI have never been in a Tesla and don't plan to. I use Lyft when traveling and love it. Not sure if there's much difference between it and Uber. I do online grocery ordering and curbside pickup quite a bit. When I go into the store, I use the Scan-and-Go option when offered. I feel smug when I can use Google Pay. And I kind of like my patient portals. I like being able to get test results so quickly.
ReplyDeleteHowever... I loathe AI and automated phone trees. And websites whose idea of customer service is a chat bot. If I can't get a real person, I stop shopping or doing business with that company.
Sidenote: How many of us writers are going to include a scene with our character stuck in a Tesla now that we've watched that video?
Hmmm, I have never been in an Uber Tesla. I am not sure if we have them in Canada yet.
ReplyDeleteI do pay all by bills online, and I like using my Google Wallet, especially when I am travelling internationally. And I also like having my plane ticket & boarding pass on my phone's airlines app.
And I think QR codes are here to stay. I used one on Tuesday night at a new restaurant. No paper menus, a continuation of an effect of pandemic times.
P.S. Yes, I noticed those AI posts on Reds and Readers. I did not reply and am glad you figured out how to stop their questions!
P.P.S. oh yeah, I also like that my Google Wallet holds most store membership card barcodes. I no longer worry about looking for the physical one before heading out.
DeleteOur new furnace and ac unit are linked to a wifi thermostat. No internet, no ac. I'm not a fan.
ReplyDeleteI like when telephone line-ups to get through have the option “If you would like us to call you back, leave your number.” The call often comes faster than waiting on hold – did you realize the terrible loop “we really appreciate your business” cuts in every 25 secs. I timed it.
ReplyDeleteThis week I had our prescriptions renewed for the next year. The dr faxed them to the pharmacy which is Costco by mail. They don’t call me to tell me that they have renewed the prescription – you have to call them. Then they activate it – maybe. In both our cases, most of the drugs were available to reorder – within the 10 day requirement to get the prescription reordered. They sent them which means for the rest of the year, I can order on line. However, the Ozempic which is out of sync with the rest, could not be reordered – it is over 30 days. Could I activate it and then order on line in 30 days? No – I have to call back, wait in line, listen to the music and then talk to the pharmacist. Ozempic is not allowed to be mailed so I have to make sure I can get it when a family member is coming our way (Talk in Tim Horton’s parking lot – Sous voice out the side of the mouth – “got any good drugs?” Handover accomplished.)
I still don’t know how to work the stupid Iphone.