Tag Archives: Technology

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From Floppy Disks to AI: How Technology Turned My Job Into Sci-Fi

How has technology changed your job?


When I was born, “technology” meant a calculator that could do basic arithmetic without smoke coming out of it. The personal computer was still a twinkle in some nerd’s eye, the internet was a secret government project, and a *mouse* was just a rodent that occasionally chewed through your cables. 

Fast forward to today, and I’m casually arguing with artificial intelligence like it’s my know-it-all coworker. (“No, ChatGPT, I did *not* mean to write that email in iambic pentameter.”) 

My Job Didn’t Evolve—It Shapeshifted!
When I started working, a floppy disk was considered high-capacity storage. (Yes, the ones that could barely hold a single JPEG of a cat today.) I studied Management Information Systems back when “the cloud” was just something that blocked the sun. The systems we used then were about as connected as two tin cans and a piece of string. 

Now? I work in Microsoft 365, a digital universe where documents multiply like gremlins in a rainstorm, meetings happen with people who might be on another continent (or possibly another planet—I don’t ask), and my job didn’t just change —it became something that would’ve been pure sci-fi in my childhood. 

The Speed of Progress? Ludicrous. Ha ha ha…or 😄😄😄😄,…now emoji’s is even cool in a formal report!
No generation before mine has seen such a radical transformation in one lifetime. We went from rotary phones to video calls, from encyclopedias to Google knowing exactly what I meant despite my terrible spelling, and from filing cabinets to AI assistants who still don’t understand sarcasm. 

Am I amazed? Absolutely. Am I occasionally nostalgic for the simplicity of paper memos? Maybe. But mostly, I’m just thrilled to have lived through an era where my job literally didn’t exist when I was born—and now I can’t imagine working without robots whispering suggestions in my ear. 

Technology didn’t just change my job. It turned it into something my younger self would’ve called magic. Neurolink, humanoid digital companions? Bring ’em on, I am ready for the future.



Now, if you’ll excuse me, my workflow just notified me of a new ‘must read” notification… Again.  I am afraid worked shifted from me being the driver of technology to me slaving for technology.

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Continuous Learning: My Journey with OneNote and Attention Management

What skills or lessons have you learned recently?

Learning a new skill is more than just acquiring knowledge—it’s a gateway to personal and professional growth. As we age, the imperative to maintain our learning momentum becomes even more critical. The landscape of skill development is particularly dynamic in the technical realm, where today’s cutting-edge knowledge can become obsolete tomorrow.

Recently, I embarked on a learning journey to master OneNote within the M365 ecosystem, transforming it from a simple note-taking tool into a powerful collaborative platform. This wasn’t just about improving personal productivity; it was about reimagining how technology can enhance team communication and leadership.

Learning how to integrate personal productivity apps and collaboration apps.

By diving deep into OneNote’s features, I discovered how to:
– Organize notes more effectively
– Integrate seamlessly with Teams
– Create shared channels for project collaboration
– Leverage digital tools to improve team information sharing

But with increased technological capability comes a crucial companion skill: attention management. In an era of information overload, the ability to discern what’s truly important, where to focus, and what demands immediate action has become paramount. This meta-skill is about more than managing notifications—it’s about maintaining clarity and purpose in a noisy digital landscape.

As a leader and innovator, I’ve come to understand that learning is not a passive activity but an active, deliberate choice. Each new skill is a stepping stone, not just to professional advancement, but to personal fulfillment. The technical skills I acquire today might evolve or become obsolete, but the learning process itself—the curiosity, adaptability, and resilience—remains invaluable.

My recent exploration of OneNote exemplifies this philosophy. What began as a quest to improve note-taking has blossomed into a broader understanding of collaborative technologies and strategic attention management.

Learning is a way of life, not a destination. It’s about staying curious, remaining adaptable, and continuously expanding the boundaries of what’s possible.

© Jurgens Pieterse. All rights reserved. 2024

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~ Tech madness ~

What technology would you be better off without, why?

Ah, modern technology, the gift that keeps on giving… and occasionally driving us mad. Among the many so-called advancements, there’s one invention I fervently wish had never seen the light of day: automatic calling technology. You know, the one that allows soulless robots to infiltrate our phones and disrupt our peace? If ever there were an argument for rolling back progress, this would be it.


Let me paint you a picture of my pet peeve. Imagine a tireless army of pesky robots, working through database after database, hunting for phone numbers to invade your privacy. You block one number, and—like some twisted game of whack-a-mole—they call you from another. But it’s not even a human agent you can scold or pity; no, it’s a monotone voice recording, chirping lifelessly at you to press buttons. Buttons! As if solving a problem they created is now your responsibility.


Before long, my phone ends up permanently on silent mode, not to protect my ears, but to safeguard my nervous system from yet another unsolicited call. And let’s talk about the masterminds behind these wretched technologies. Relentless doesn’t even begin to describe them. I often wonder, how on earth do they sell anything with such infuriating tactics? Honestly, have you ever met someone who joyfully proclaimed, “Oh yes, I made my last big purchase because a robot told me to”? No? Me neither.


So here we are, victims of progress, silenced by our own phones. If there’s any solace, it’s knowing we’re all in this together, united in our hatred of spam calls. Perhaps one day, humanity will rise up against the tyranny of automated telemarketing. Until then, I’ll keep my phone on silent and my fingers ready to block.

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A stone age nightmare

Your life without a computer: what does it look like?

Books, maps, shopping – without computers?


A life without computers? Impossible? You’re giving away your age, my young friend. I grew up in the heyday when none of these fancy gadgets existed. It’s not a dream from the stone age for me but a lived reality!


A life without computers was filled with the textured feeling and smell of a new book in your hands. Books were like the e-readers of their time, but without a screen.


There was the excitement of waiting for a newspaper to arrive at your doorstep. We actually had to go out to buy groceries and other items. Shopping was a social activity where people gathered to touch, feel, and taste products before buying them.

We could still remember our way to an address or figure out how to get to an end destination with a map. We had to fold them up and stuff them in our pockets. It was like a real-life adventure every time we went somewhere.

We met in parks, gave each other real hugs and heard our friends actually laughing. When we did not like something they did we told them straight in their face. Our friendships were real…. Authentic!


It’s easy to take for granted all the conveniences and tools we have today, from smartphones to food delivery apps to e-books. But it’s also important to remember that there was a lot of charm and simplicity in life before computers.

You might see boredom and lack in a life without computers, but let me tell you it was a life of many blessings. The skills and dexterity of times gone by might be forever lost for future generations.

© Jurgens Pieterse. All rights reserved. 2024

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Youper – your AI assistant

Will you trust you heatlth and psycological well being in the heands of and artificial intelligence psycologist? The knee jerk reaction might be to say no, definitely not. I had been playing around with a app called Youper which claims to assist you to become the best version of yourself.

Youper is always learning from scientists who study the mind and the brain to help people live happier lives. Apparently Youper is based on artificial intelligence and it continues to evolve and learn from you the longer you use it.

This fancy little programming helps you by entering into a conversation with you. Unfortunately the dialog is more scripting than intelligent. I would have liked a variety of responses rather than the same boring conversation. However Youper has some interesting conceps. It helps you to become aware of your daily moods, very much like Daylio but it does a bit further in helping you to connect your emotions to one of eighteen emotions and then guide you to a mindfullness technique based on the emotion you identify with and to note the factors that contribute to your emotion.

The mindfulness techique good because it either enforces a positive emotion or assist you to deal with a negative emotion. Youper will also encourage you to say what your intentions are and what you are grateful for. I have not seen yet that it is actively using this information or whether it is just assisting you to think through the process. Unfortunately each discussion ends up in the same questions. Youper also has the ability to draw up a personality profile that seems to be fairly accurate as well as see a summary of factors that influence different emotions, equiping you to deal more effectively with some life areas. In the end it gives you a nice diary that can remind you of what feelings you had over time and what factors you associated with it.

Youper might still be clanky but it is the first steps in a new way of dealing with information. Youper certainly can help you to deal with negative emotions by guiding you to an appropriate mindfulness technique. I think in future apps like Youper will become more flexible in greeting you based on your typical pattern of behaviour, it will do information discovery to talk to you about the things that interest you. Off course somewhere there will be a marketing strategy to sell you a product or service that is just right for you based on these artificial conversations.

I see a time when we do not read books or search the internet but where we talk about our daily lifes and we are fed information that we need in the instant. It will teach us how to behave what to do to live a better life but it might also put inadvertably blinkers on our eyes to see only that which appeals to us directly. Artificial intelligence will develop a whole new way in which information is treated.

Will you trust you heatlth and psycological well being in the heands of and artificial intelligence psycologist?

Read some more:

  1. What is artificial intelligence?