People born before 2000 get nostalgic as they reveal skills that have become obsolete now

The world has seen tremendous technological advancement in the past couple of decades. Gadgets, as well as, the internet have transformed the way things are practiced. Since a new set of skills is needed to navigate this connected world where tech such as AI is playing a larger role, a lot of things that people learned in the 90s are becoming obsolete. Shedding light on this, a woman who goes by @hashjenni on X has started a thread that involves people born before the year 2000 sharing skills that were useful in their time but are now useless. 

With more than 3,200 comments, people shared experiences and skills, some unheard of and some super interesting. Many from the older generations also pointed out things from the 2000s that younger generations may miss. @KeithOlbermann mentioned, “Editing audio with a razor blade and adhesive tape,” as a skill, while @gldstwmn wrote, “Writing in cursive and the ability to use a rotary phone.” Mentioning things that were normal back then but seem primitive now, @El_Bohemio added, “Push starting a manual transmission car,” and @rocketbird_79 listed, “Knowing how to load a film roll into a camera.” 

People even pointed out social skills and personal etiquette that younger generations are lacking. With the advent of technology and automation, everyone is bent on learning things digitally rather than in person. @JamieLSaunders lamented how, “Being able to sit through a movie without pulling out my phone,” was normal, and @RCAnnaKate added, “I still have the numbers of both my parents’ houses as well as several friends and cousins.”

@JamesFallows noted, “Reading a map without GPS,” as an essential skill, while @0xMawuku shared, “Telling the time with an analog clock.” @106th exclaimed, “Playing 'Mary Had a Little Lamb’ with the touch-tone sounds of the buttons on a phone,” recounting something that'd be considered silly in the smartphone era. @Carolina37177 added, ‘I can peel an apple or potato with a parking knife in one piece.” 

As thrilling as these skills sound, it's unfortunate that they have almost disappeared in today’s time. Millennials and younger people born before the 2000s shared a newer set of skills that the current generation might never learn. @Bayou1947 reminisced about, “Sending thank you cards,” as a kind gesture, while @LucasShiavani mentioned, “Blowing game cartridges to make them work again,” which was a common practice. @OnyxJaiide listed out multiple skills suc as, “How to set up a VCR. Cursive handwriting. Fixing CDs that skip. How to get a TV antenna to pick up the perfect signal. Get free samples by calling the 800 # on the back of the product.” @WillKramer mentioned the more technical, “Knowing which side of the paper faces up when sending a fax.”

Many others had skills to share that were more abstract like making the most of their time, being in touch with nature rather than spending time on devices, and so on. @MusingGee wrote, “Remaining unaffected during an electricity outage and staring at the skies.” @Octim1 added, “Being a pen pal with real letters and stamps back and forth. That was our “social media.' We also knew which songs skipped on a record and to avoid them.” Although there's a long list of skills that Gen Z and Gen Alpha are missing out on, who knows they might revisit some, the way they have adopted cassettes and polaroid cameras as part of the old world charm.