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Editorial/Column
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Death To The Desktop
he sales of the desktop
computers continue to decrease each year. Last year less than one hundred mil- lion desktops were shipped to new buyers. However, the sales of laptops continue to hold steady for the most part. Mobile electronics such as the iPhone and Samsung Galaxy continue to be in huge demand. It seems the desktop has outlived its use- fulness.
Consumers, no longer want to see a big black box sitting on their desk, despite the new compact sizes. Large businesses continue to rely on the PC desktop in part be- cause of the expense in- volved with replacing them with laptops and tablets. On a large-scale, employees must be trained on new de- vices which may go beyond their comfort zone.
Obsessed gamers con- tinue to buy and build desk- top components, yet the gaming industry has taken a
huge hit. Consumers have become more comfortable with sending e-mails on their mobile phones and tablets. Tablets and mobile phones also now have bigger drives and can host hundreds of apps including games and music files.
The younger generation of computer users no longer sees the need for a desktop computer and in some cases consider their size a big joke. In defense of the desktop, it’s still a more comfortable compromise to type word documents and design pub- lishing projects. The older generation of computer users also prefers the large screens, so they won’t have to squint their eyes.
The appeal of using a wired mouse is also an ad- vantage over mobile elec- tronics. In 1981, IBM introduced us to the first PC desktop which was slow and bulky. But over the years the processing power developed
every twelve to eighteen months. Then a faster chip was released to keep the desktop alive in the main- stream.
The demand for the per- sonal computer in the 1980’s was enormous. Bill Gates seized on the opportunity by introducing the first win- dows-based computer in 1985, the GUI display made it a must have in every home.
The desktop has come a long way and is still a vital part of the sever family. Cloud computing, sending e- mails, accessing web pages, etc., all rely on a fast desktop server. Desktops are easy to expand and upgrade, so they will still be useful for the pri- vate business in some man- ner. Home users will continue to bark at the desk- top as seen by decreasing sales across the board. Hope- fully, the desktop will not one day become an antique.
Eric Hall holds a Mas- ter’s Degree from the Uni- versity of South Florida in Instructional Technology and Cybersecurity Digital Forensics. He has been a computer technician for over twenty years. He is for- merly the manager and owner of Comptech PC, Inc., in Fort Pierce, Florida. Fol- low him on Facebook.
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Would Martin Know Tampa?
icture an elderly white haired, Black man walking
aimlessly down a closed-up, lonely street. The name of the street is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boule- vard, Tampa, Florida. The day is Dr. Martin Luther King Day. The man wearing a pair of faded bib-overalls and scuffed shoes is none other than Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., himself . . . back from the dead . . . lost and broken-hearted.
But why is he sad? Since King walked in the original flesh, America had been the stage for a Black president. Indeed, prosperity for Black folks could be seen on every level and in every form imaginable.
However, the great edifice of Black prosperity did indeed have cracks and fissures. Race hate still wore a white robe, police violence against Black innocence was still a common phenomenon, and presently, a racist commander-in-chief manned the White House and carried his scepter, the cross of fear and contra- diction.
Furthermore, in certain public schools, history teachers no longer spoke in length about America’s Civil Rights Movement or about who King was or why King died.
Indeed, on the eve of yet another MLK anniversary, polls posted the sad truth that by and large, Black Americans had stopped going to the polls. It seemed, say some that the dream once talked about, walked about and worked for, had become simply an archive footnote or a comic book resource.
But, Dr. Martin Luther King, back from the beyond, has come back to Tampa to walk the street that bears his name. A car stops, window rolls down and a woman offers him a dollar. But she doesn’t recognize the face of the man who once said, “I have a dream.”
The diminutive man continues his walk until he reaches East Tampa. It isn’t like it used to be, but some- thing is missing. What is it?
For a moment he wonders. Then it comes to him. The spirit of the Black Experience is missing. As he fades into the mist, the ghost of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., weeps in the sunset.
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TUESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2019 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 5