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Snail Mail Tech
Paul03244 writes "I found a fascinating Smithsonian Institute page about snail mail technology, part of the SI's National Postal Museum. Great stuff; everything from 'perforating paddles' used during the process of fumigating mail during the Yellow Fever epidemic of the 1880s; to a number of items used in Rural Mail Delivery. A great page to make us realize that even a dialup Internet connection is a great improvement over what our forebears were accustomed to just a generation or two ago."
what our forbears were accustomed to just a generation or two ago.
Why you young whippersnapper I'll have you know I ain't your forbear and I *was* accustomed to this just a generation or two ago!
Infuriate left and right
18th century....
Am I right?!?!
Yes, as a researcher here at [insert important-sounding college with "tech" in the name here], and I must say, it did take us quite a while to figure out how to get the snail in the envelope.
This new technology, the "hammer" they call it, is getting more snails in the mail, more efficiently.
From paddles for perforating snail mail to paddles in my boss's email:
o ups.msn.com, size=13028, nrcpt=2 (queue active)
Nov 19 05:02:32 gw postfix/qmgr[241]: 0D91C17442: from=VeralsisWorldofOTKSpankingDrawings-bounce@gr
On the other hand, it is very similar to the proportion of emails that don't contain viruses or other nasties.
How are Michael Simms, Michael Jackson, and McDonalds all alike?
They all put 40 year old slabs of meat in ten year old buns.
ROOFLE.
Never underestimate a donkey train load of cuniform tablets.
And talk about archive-ability! Proven multi-thousand year durability in readable condition!
u used 2 b able 2 send babypowder thru the mail.
Just try it now.
Dare ya.
From the Desk of the Postmaster General:
In an effort to respond to competitive market forces, from now on all carriers will be required to shout in a loud voice, "You Have Mail!" upon successful delivery.
Thank you.
try { do() || do_not(); } catch (JediException err) { yoda(err); }
Unless it's sent by a super-parabolic trans-atmospheric US Mail Cannon, physical mail has and will always take at least as long to get there as it would for you to go yourself. Mail can only travel as fast as the conveyances they put it on, and most of those conveyances are used to move people as well.
If a job's not worth doing, it's not worth doing right.