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What's Better Nowadays?

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  • What's Better Nowadays?

    A popular theme here and at HawaiiStories is the way a lot of stuff isn't as good as it used to be. However, it's just not possible that everything about living in Hawaii is worse now than once it was, is it?

    So, what has gotten better in the last ten, fifteen, twenty years? Sure, we miss some of the old hangouts, but are any of the new hangouts better? What about TV shows, beaches, roads, neighborhoods, restaurants, bars, and recreation?

    Something's gotta have improved, right? Who's first?
    But I'm disturbed! I'm depressed! I'm inadequate! I GOT IT ALL! (George Costanza)
    GrouchyTeacher.com

  • #2
    Re: What's Better Nowadays?

    I think TheBus has improved over the years and I think it has to do with the introduction of the A, B and C Express routes.

    I also think the Ward Theatre and Dole Cannery complexes improves movie watching choices, however for business around the theatres, Ward seems to have more places to eat.

    And Stone Cold Creamy.

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    • #3
      Re: What's Better Nowadays?

      The Apple Store is in town! Macs are faster and better than before. MacMouse Club and Mac Made Easy are still around. A lot of Hawaii people are still using Macs.
      I'm still here. Are you?

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      • #4
        Re: What's Better Nowadays?

        Nice start, especially the Ward stuff. I agree that for what it is, the area's getting much more interesting. It's a nice blend of stuff of local interest and visitor interest.

        I think a huge improvement is the fact that we get to watch television shows on the same night as folks on the mainland. It used to be that we saw all the prime-time shows (except stuff like Monday Night Football) a week late, including the late-night talk shows. Even MTV was a week behind here.

        Local coverage of local sports today is miles ahead of where it was in the late eighties, not only with UH-Manoa sports, but with other universities' programs and local high school athletics.

        Still on the rise is the move toward distinguising division 1 and division 2 schools in high school sports. This gives the small schools a shot at some recognition and a more reasonably level playing field, too.
        But I'm disturbed! I'm depressed! I'm inadequate! I GOT IT ALL! (George Costanza)
        GrouchyTeacher.com

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        • #5
          Re: What's Better Nowadays?

          Kahala Mall got better from the Waialae Shopping Center days.

          Kakaako is getting much better with the improvements.

          And yes the Super Block is a definate improvement from the old days of massage parlors, Korean Bars and auto shops that populated the area.
          Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

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          • #6
            Re: What's Better Nowadays?

            I think improvements in transportation technology have greatly "shortened" the distance from Hawai'i to the mainland. (I'm not going to argue the negatives of this). It used to be, that if one was going to travel anywhere on the mainland, via air, one had to go through mostly SF or LA, with air fare prices that were prohibitive for most. Now it's possible to travel from as far away on the mainland as New York on non-stop flights to/from Honolulu, at low fares. I booked a NY/HNL non-stop R/T (for December) two weeks ago on Continental for just over $600; I can remember when I couldn't even afford a HI-CA R/T. Technology is still expanding. Boeing announced a couple of months ago that it's rolling out a new 777 that will have the capability of flying New York to Australia NON-STOP! 18 hours of sheer flying joy!

            Also: It seems Matson and CSX have greatly reduced the rail and at-sea times of their cargo containers. I recall when it was a roll of the dice predicting when a container would arrive at Sand Island. With the new computerized tracking, better rail technology, and ( for instance) Matson's expanded presence all over the mainland, I have to think that the cost of goods, in terms of relative affordability compared with inflation rates, has actually dropped. The better cargo container management has allowed, in my opinion, the "Big Box" retailers, i.e., Wal-Mart, Costco, etc., to thrive in HI where in the past, they could not, giving islanders a far greater selection of goods and merchandise that they could not get at the old general stores of the past, no disrespect to establishments like the beloved Hasagawa General Store, which I hope will continue to have their place in the HI retail scene.

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            • #7
              Re: What's Better Nowadays?

              Long Distance Calling rates have significantly improved, first with the calling cards and now with Cellular Phones offering free long distance calls. I remember racking up $100+/month long distance bills when I went away to Kansas to work.
              Whoa, Mista Buss Driva, eh, you can stop the buss o wat?

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              • #8
                Re: What's Better Nowadays?

                Cell phone service and pricing have improved. When I hooked up to Verizon (then GTE Mobilnet) back in 1985 you had to buy your phone outright. I paid $1300 for my Radio Shack car phone then another $1300 for a Diamond Tel 99x (one of the first truely pocketable phones then). Peak rates were $1.50 per minute and $0.75 off peak. There were no plans, no free minutes just minutes charged. Waikiki was a dead zone and GTE didn't have their cells up yet so they "roamed" from AT&T (formerly known as Honolulu Cellular).

                But talking about phone service, those of us who can remember dialing a number and party lines will also remember pulse dialing and then tone before digital central offices where punching in a number fast meant still waiting for the analog central office to complete the number sequence.

                Now the number takes as fast as you can punch it in.

                Oh and computer speeds have gotten better including modem speeds! Imagine a baud rate of 300 being "lightning fast" over the more common 150, then the Haye's 1200 made modem speeds fantastic. Right now the fastest dial up speed is what 56,000 or 56k as we all know it. Phone technicians new it as Switch 56 back when 56k was limited to commercial applications only. Now we're up in Broadband speeds.

                Computer speeds have gone up from a meager 2.4Mhz to what is it now over 4Ghz processor speed? Ram has improved from core memory to $100 per megabyte (back in the late 80's) to $90 per Gigabyte!

                Computer video has gotten better from eight blinking lights to GUI on DVI screens.

                Yeah we've come a long way baby (Virgina Slims TV commercial)
                Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

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                • #9
                  Re: What's Better Nowadays?

                  The registration process at UH has improved. If you're old as me (UH 85), you would remember registration week was hell week. Running around Klum gym like a maniac.... ugh.

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                  • #10
                    Re: What's Better Nowadays?

                    been there!
                    Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: What's Better Nowadays?

                      For TheBus the HEA web site sort of helps determine if the bus you need is coming soon or some time later.

                      For TV watching at least thru Spectrum's Silver you get their On Demand service which allows one to view the major network shows at some point later on. There are some trade-offs like they will keep the last 5 episodes of series available, can't fast forward thru the commercials, but you don't have to remember to set the record for the episode.

                      For movie watching in a theater, at least for Ward there is assigned seating, don't have to scramble for the seats.

                      For electronics the price of controllers have gone down. Used to be in 2006 that a controller would run for about $50 to $75. Now some of them run in the $12 to $25 range.

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                      • #12
                        Re: What's Better Nowadays?

                        For computers, the concept of single board computers like the Raspberry Pi.

                        Going back to movie watching, web services like fandango.com for buying movie tickets on-line, self service soda and Icee machines at the Ward Theater. For before the movie starts there is something on the screen that pasts the time as opposed to a blank screen with music in the background (or slides showing actors who passed away).

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                        • #13
                          Re: What's Better Nowadays?

                          decent laptop computers are v affordable now, but with every electronic gadget's function it represents another worldwide humanitarian tragedy.
                          good quality bass guitars at the $100 level are prevalent now, used gear is a buyer's wonderland. but suicidal deforestation is rampant, I always buy used.
                          sure wish I could think of more good things...
                          https://www.facebook.com/Bobby-Ingan...5875444640256/

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                          • #14
                            Re: What's Better Nowadays?

                            Digital cameras and smartphones have certainly made photography reachable to everyone with those devices and at less cost over the film days. So for better or worst, everyone is a photographer and millions if not billions of photos are shared online every day in an instant. That is good but can also be bad.

                            The downside too is that digital photography and video surveillance allows businesses and government to keep an eye on us all the time. I relish for the days when some surveillance camera isn't in a building or even outside when traveling in an urban area.
                            I'm still here. Are you?

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                            • #15
                              Re: What's Better Nowadays?

                              HD television on a big screen tv. It's better than going to the game live.

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