The Importance of Caution in the Digital Age: A Rant from an Old Man

As I sit here reflecting on my life, I am reminded of the rapid pace at which technology has advanced over the years. Growing up, I distinctly remember getting my first internet connection through AOL and Prodigy, which was a huge milestone for me. However, I also remember that it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. We didn't have the luxury of social media like we do today, and our online interactions were limited to text-based forums and email.

Fast forward to the present day, and I'm shocked by how different things are now. Everyone seems to be glued to their smartphones, constantly snapping photos and posting them on social media for the world to see. And let me tell you, it's a whole new ball game. The other day, I had a friend come to me asking for my Facebook password, which was extremely uncomfortable and awkward. I was taken aback by how invasive that request was, and it made me realize just how much our personal lives are now exposed online.

The consequences of this can be devastating. A few years ago, someone asked an old acquaintance for their Facebook password, and they went through his photos from several years ago that might have been deemed inappropriate. The old guy didn't get the job because of those photos, and it was never publicly disclosed why he wasn't hired. However, one could reason that those photos certainly played a part in his decision not to hire him.

This got me thinking about Snapchat, which is taking a lot of flak lately for turning down a ridiculous amount of money from a tech company. I'm curious to know what people use Snapchat for - is it just a way to share silly moments with friends, or are there more sinister intentions at play? Let's have a talk about what you guys plan on doing with your phones.

Technology is everywhere these days, and it's hard to escape its grasp. As someone who grew up in the pre-internet era, I remember getting my first cell phone when I was 16 years old - it was a giant Nokia with no accessories except for a vibrating battery. If you wanted your phone to vibrate, you had to buy an additional battery, which is just wild to think about now.

Before we dive into the world of social media and online etiquette, let's take a moment to reflect on our behavior. If you're thinking about sending sexy pictures or posting a picture of yourself and your friends online, maybe you should take a step back and consider the consequences. That stuff is going to live on forever - even if you delete the picture, someone might have saved it to their desktop.

Don't do it. It's not fun to be mortified about something that was once so innocent. If you're thinking of showing your love for someone through a photo, think twice before sending it. You never know when those two people will part ways, and you'll be the one who has to live with the regret.

This is perhaps the first generation of kids who's growing up with access to this technology full-time, and we don't yet know what the consequences will be. Will employers look at our online presence? Will our photos be public or private? It's still unknown.

So here's my advice: just don't do it. Don't send that picture. Don't post that selfie. Just think twice before you hit send, and consider the potential fallout. Trust me, it's not worth it.

And with that, I'm going to take a break from ranting for a bit. But before I go, I want to thank our friends and sponsors at Forza Motorsport 5, which is coming out on November 22nd exclusively for Xbox One. If you're like me, you love video games, and I'm super excited about the next generation of consoles because of their power and graphics. The idea of seeing these gorgeous cars with next-generation graphics makes my heart skip a beat.

Forza Motorsport 5 looks absolutely stunning - the cars are rendered in incredible detail, with finite textures that make them look almost lifelike. If you're ready to get behind the wheel and experience what it's like to be in a real showroom, Forza Motorsport 5 is going to be available on November 22nd exclusively for Xbox One.

That's all for today, folks. Thanks for watching my video, and I hope you enjoyed it. Don't forget to subscribe and check out our other shows - Ash Ashley Escada answers your tech questions every week, and we also have a rumor roundup where yours truly breaks down the latest gadget rumors. Until next time, stay safe online!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enthis episode of techno buffalo is brought to you by forza motorsport 5 only on xbox one coming november 22nd what's up everyone welcome back to the episode of retingers rants i am your host john rettinger last week i got a little upset i might be using four letter words but this week i want to give you some advice on something that's going on in the world of technology those pictures you send everything you do online lives on whether you want it to or not so if you're thinking about sending sexy pictures listen up so i'm sitting here in the tech world at the ripe old age of 33 which i realize is probably a little older than most you guys watching this video so i'm gonna put on my grandpa glasses i'm gonna dye my hair gray i want to sit by the fireplace and let's have a talk i've got a friend who went to apply for a job and he was extremely qualified for the position and his employer asked him for his facebook password which was very very very uncomfortable and awkward and uh you can discuss whether it's right or wrong it's a whole other discussion but he gave them to them and they went through his facebook photos and they found pictures from several years ago that might be deemed inappropriate and he did not get the job they didn't write come out and say because of those facebook photos but one could reason they at least played a part in why he didn't get that job and i'm thinking about all the talk about snapchat turning down a ridiculous amount of money and i'm thinking about what you guys use snapchat for so let's have a talk about what you're gonna do with your phone technology is everywhere i am probably part of the last generation that remembers not growing up with the internet it wasn't all that long i distinctly remember getting aol and prodigy for the first time and getting dial-up internet so i didn't have sort of these issues and i didn't have the technology available when i was you know 12 13 14 15. um and on up i didn't get my first cell phone i think until i was about 16 years old even then it was a giant nokia and the only accessory it had was a vibrating battery so you know somebody was calling you that's right if you want your phone to vibrate you had to buy a second battery that's a whole other story so before you guys are thinking about sending sexy pictures using snapchat or doing anything else or posting a picture of you and your friends online maybe you had a few too many drinks think about it before you post it because that stuff is going to live on forever even if you delete the picture someone probably hit that right click and hit save as it has on the desktop do not do it it's not fun if you let's say think that your boyfriend when you're in high school of a year you're going to be together forever and you just love him you want to show how much you love him by sending him a perhaps a picture just know that you're not going to be together forever probably and you're probably going to show that picture to other people and you're going to be mortified that goes vice versa if you're a dude you want to send a inappropriate picture to your gal just don't do it just think about it do not do it don't it's going to live on well after you this is sort of the first you know generation of kids that's growing up now that has access to this full time and what's going to happen it's not yet been known you know as far as whether or not employers are going to look at those pictures whether or not those pictures are going to be public or not facebook is sharing your passwords or whatever it just never worked it to just just don't do it that sort of my old man rants for the day maybe it wasn't what you wanted to see or to hear but it's good advice and you should consider taking it let me stop for a minute to thank our friends and sponsors at forza motorsport 5 only on xbox one coming november 22nd if you're like me you love video games and i'm super excited about the next generation of consoles because of the power and the graphics look incredible i'm also a big car guy and the idea of seeing these gorgeous cars with next generation graphics make me drool in the face if you haven't seen what forza motorsport 5 looks like you have not seen what the next gen console looks like they look freaking gorgeous the cars look awesome and as they would if you were staring at them in real life you can see really finite details like stitch leather the rims are shining back at you you can see the beautifully polished paint it just looks absolutely awesome and beautiful and the car is just rendered like you're in a showroom if you're ready to race forza motorsport 5 is going to be available on november 22nd and only on the xbox one thank you for watching another old man episode of retingers rants i'll be back with my glasses off talking about something much younger whatever whippersnappers are up to and i hope you guys enjoyed please give a video a thumbs up definitely appreciate it until next time i'm john randy from technobuffalo see you next my video what's up guys it's jon again just wanted to let you know that if you liked what you saw i hope you did we've got two other shows that go live every single week come rain shine sleet or snow ask the buffalo where ashley escada answers your tech questions and a rumor roundup where yours truly tells you about all the best rumors in the gadget world click the text below that says subscribe and check out our other shows by clicking right over here until next video thanks for watchingthis episode of techno buffalo is brought to you by forza motorsport 5 only on xbox one coming november 22nd what's up everyone welcome back to the episode of retingers rants i am your host john rettinger last week i got a little upset i might be using four letter words but this week i want to give you some advice on something that's going on in the world of technology those pictures you send everything you do online lives on whether you want it to or not so if you're thinking about sending sexy pictures listen up so i'm sitting here in the tech world at the ripe old age of 33 which i realize is probably a little older than most you guys watching this video so i'm gonna put on my grandpa glasses i'm gonna dye my hair gray i want to sit by the fireplace and let's have a talk i've got a friend who went to apply for a job and he was extremely qualified for the position and his employer asked him for his facebook password which was very very very uncomfortable and awkward and uh you can discuss whether it's right or wrong it's a whole other discussion but he gave them to them and they went through his facebook photos and they found pictures from several years ago that might be deemed inappropriate and he did not get the job they didn't write come out and say because of those facebook photos but one could reason they at least played a part in why he didn't get that job and i'm thinking about all the talk about snapchat turning down a ridiculous amount of money and i'm thinking about what you guys use snapchat for so let's have a talk about what you're gonna do with your phone technology is everywhere i am probably part of the last generation that remembers not growing up with the internet it wasn't all that long i distinctly remember getting aol and prodigy for the first time and getting dial-up internet so i didn't have sort of these issues and i didn't have the technology available when i was you know 12 13 14 15. um and on up i didn't get my first cell phone i think until i was about 16 years old even then it was a giant nokia and the only accessory it had was a vibrating battery so you know somebody was calling you that's right if you want your phone to vibrate you had to buy a second battery that's a whole other story so before you guys are thinking about sending sexy pictures using snapchat or doing anything else or posting a picture of you and your friends online maybe you had a few too many drinks think about it before you post it because that stuff is going to live on forever even if you delete the picture someone probably hit that right click and hit save as it has on the desktop do not do it it's not fun if you let's say think that your boyfriend when you're in high school of a year you're going to be together forever and you just love him you want to show how much you love him by sending him a perhaps a picture just know that you're not going to be together forever probably and you're probably going to show that picture to other people and you're going to be mortified that goes vice versa if you're a dude you want to send a inappropriate picture to your gal just don't do it just think about it do not do it don't it's going to live on well after you this is sort of the first you know generation of kids that's growing up now that has access to this full time and what's going to happen it's not yet been known you know as far as whether or not employers are going to look at those pictures whether or not those pictures are going to be public or not facebook is sharing your passwords or whatever it just never worked it to just just don't do it that sort of my old man rants for the day maybe it wasn't what you wanted to see or to hear but it's good advice and you should consider taking it let me stop for a minute to thank our friends and sponsors at forza motorsport 5 only on xbox one coming november 22nd if you're like me you love video games and i'm super excited about the next generation of consoles because of the power and the graphics look incredible i'm also a big car guy and the idea of seeing these gorgeous cars with next generation graphics make me drool in the face if you haven't seen what forza motorsport 5 looks like you have not seen what the next gen console looks like they look freaking gorgeous the cars look awesome and as they would if you were staring at them in real life you can see really finite details like stitch leather the rims are shining back at you you can see the beautifully polished paint it just looks absolutely awesome and beautiful and the car is just rendered like you're in a showroom if you're ready to race forza motorsport 5 is going to be available on november 22nd and only on the xbox one thank you for watching another old man episode of retingers rants i'll be back with my glasses off talking about something much younger whatever whippersnappers are up to and i hope you guys enjoyed please give a video a thumbs up definitely appreciate it until next time i'm john randy from technobuffalo see you next my video what's up guys it's jon again just wanted to let you know that if you liked what you saw i hope you did we've got two other shows that go live every single week come rain shine sleet or snow ask the buffalo where ashley escada answers your tech questions and a rumor roundup where yours truly tells you about all the best rumors in the gadget world click the text below that says subscribe and check out our other shows by clicking right over here until next video thanks for watching\n"