What are you doing today?

[GaryE]

Another lovely symbolic moment in 2025 North America.

My little city has switched its parking payment system to an app, with a few very rare 'tap' terminals scattered around for anyone who doesn't have a smart phone. In many areas, you have to walk several blocks to find one, and you can get a ticket in the meantime.

Why? The junkies broke all the previous meters (2 per block, with tap or cash payment) in a search for change.

So you figure the only people who won't have smart phones are the very old, or very old in their ways. They'll have to walk far in a hilly uptown to pay for parking, if they go uptown to support local stores. The rest of us will be stuck with a yet another app - one not more efficient than the previous system, which was pretty smooth. The new app has some solid bugs.

So the tech world bumps head first into the drug world. Ah, 2025...

 

[Essjay]

Luckily for us older people with no smart phones, the parking machines round here take card payments

 

[anewbie]

Luckily for us older people with no smart phones, the parking machines round here take card payments

Most of the newer lots require a phone and worse they require you create an account which i refuse to do. Basically they want your credit card so they can charge as much as they feel like it and if htey make a mistake that is your tough luck.