Here’s another blog post in the style of Jason Lamb’s site, touching on a mix of personal reflection and tech-related insights:
The Tech Evolution and How It’s Changed Me
As I sit here sipping my morning coffee (okay, it’s my third cup), I can’t help but reflect on just how far technology has come since I first booted up my 120GB Maxtor external USB drive (the one I paid an insane $111 for back in the day). At that time, I thought I was on top of the tech world. Little did I know, my Maxtor was a dinosaur compared to the ultra-sleek 4TB M.2 SSD I now casually toss into my laptop like it’s a pack of gum.
Back in the day, that 120GB drive was my treasure chest, and I treated it with the same reverence as Indiana Jones did the Holy Grail. Now? That thing couldn’t even handle my browser’s cache for the week.
Fast Forward to the Present
Technology has always been this strange combination of amazing and terrifying. Amazing because every year we achieve things that were sci-fi fantasies a decade ago (looking at you, Neural Processing Unit). Terrifying because, well, does anyone else feel like Skynet is around the corner, or is that just me?
When I first started out in IT, the biggest challenge was making sure the office’s dial-up internet didn’t break down on a Friday, right before happy hour. Now, I’m managing cloud infrastructures, worrying about cybersecurity attacks, and hoping AI doesn’t rise up to start a workplace revolution—though, let’s be honest, some Mondays, a robot uprising doesn’t sound all that bad.
The Journey from Fixing to Fortifying
My career has mirrored the evolution of tech in a weird way. When I began, it was all about fixing things—making sure your boss’s printer stopped throwing a fit every time someone tried to print a color image (spoiler alert: just buy a new printer). Now, it’s about fortifying. Not just systems, but mindsets. We need to be two steps ahead of the hackers, the phishing schemes, and the endless torrent of updates that seem to demand more from us than ever before.
Take password hygiene, for example. I remember a time when people still thought ‘password123’ was secure enough. Fast forward to now: If you aren’t using multi-factor authentication and a 25-character password made up of hieroglyphs, symbols from forgotten alphabets, and probably an offering to the gods, you’re doing it wrong.
The Next Big Thing: NPU, AI, and What Lies Ahead
I’m convinced the Neural Processing Unit (NPU) is the next “RAM revolution.” Remember when more RAM was the answer to everything? Slow computer? RAM. Slow server? More RAM. Didn’t finish your homework? You guessed it—RAM. But just as RAM made way for SSDs, and SSDs made way for M.2s, I think we’re standing on the cusp of the next frontier: AI-powered computing.
Almost every major computer manufacturer is tossing an NPU into their machines now, and once AI starts offloading those massive calculations, it’s going to leave our CPUs and GPUs free to make even more magic happen. Or, you know, free up your computer to play Minecraft at an obscene frame rate while your Excel doc calculates world domination.
What I’ve Learned (Besides How to Fix a Printer)
I’ve learned that in tech, just like in life, change is inevitable. And sure, it can be frustrating to always feel like you’re learning the latest new thing, but if you’re not learning, you’re stagnating. Whether it’s figuring out how to secure your company’s domain (seriously, if you haven’t set up MFA yet, stop reading and do that), or trying to keep up with the avalanche of AI tools coming out every other week, it’s all part of the journey.
And if I’ve learned anything from 22 years in this space, it’s that adaptability is key. The tools may change, the devices may get smaller and faster, but the real skill is knowing how to think, problem-solve, and most importantly, how to keep going when everything crashes and burns. Spoiler alert: It usually happens on a Friday at 4:55 PM.
Final Thoughts (and a Plea for Sanity)
I’ll leave you with this: The next time you curse at your computer for needing another update, just remember—we’re all in this together. Technology is both our best friend and our most infuriating roommate. It’s always there when we need it, and somehow manages to crash exactly when we don’t.
But hey, if it weren’t for tech, I wouldn’t be here today—rambling on about AI, SSDs, and why you should never trust a printer.
Oh, and one last thing: Keep an eye on those NPUs—they’re about to blow your mind. Figuratively, of course. Probably.
This whole post was created by ChatGPT. This last section was manually added by Jason.