In the middle of the summer, one event in particular roused the nation in unprecedented ways. The press, as it routinely does over new gizmos, inflated the news until it burst in a dewy explosion. People around the world, seduced by the media, left their homes and stood in the sweltering heat for hours on end for an object like no other. This was the summer of the iPhone. Of course, no surprise to anyone, Apple cuts the price two months later and releases a new version. Ouch. Having done most of my “growing up” in the 21st century, I will be the first to say that technology changes damn fast. It wasn’t until Apple first released the iPod (and subsequent versions), however, that I truly learned the meaning of “damn fast.” Sometimes, I still reminisce about the high school days when I saved up my summer earnings for the original iPod. They were bulky and monochromatic. They are now the dinosaurs of our age, seemingly out of place in a world of mini-this and mini-that. It’s at times like these when I start feeling old, as I try to remember what it was like living in a world where I wasn’t struggling to catch up with technology.

Rapidly changing technology is also prevalent on-campus. My first two weeks of school comprised of, for the most part, the usual: rushing to add and drop classes – summer frankly just wasn’t long enough – and waking up at 9am to meet my advisor only to find the room already jam-packed with students. What I didn’t expect were the presents a very nice Wharton Computing employee left for me on all the computers in the Huntsman building: Microsoft Vista. When I first noticed the new computers and accompanying software, my eyes lit up; everything looked so shiny and new! Logging in and seeing the new features load up was like unwrapping a present on the morning of my birthday. But, after logging myself out by accident when I tried opening Microsoft Word, I soon realized that this new version of Windows may not meet my high expectations.

Sure, I like some of the new parts. The widgets in particular make me very happy. I am one of those people obsessed with checking the weather every morning, and Vista conveniently displays that information for me on the right side of my screen. But the benefits end just about there. As I opened up Internet Explorer, four tabs immediately popped up – Wharton Spike, email, SpikeShare, and one more page that I honestly don’t even know because I never bothered to look. Frankly, I just wanted my Google. And WebCafe. This might be a long shot, but that’s probably why most people log onto these computers in the first place. Naturally, I decided to test out the Microsoft Office suite next. Excel 2007 looked completed different. The simplest functions took ages to find, often buried under new headings. Some menus were only activated if a specific item was selected, like a graph. Having spent most of my summer learning Excel, I was disheartened to think that I’d have to relearn the whole thing. That, or become best friends with the F1 button.

I would have to end my quasi-review of Windows Vista with “not too impressed.” Most of the dramatic changes are in the visuals – better colors and graphics. Using the programs themselves is actually more confusing on the new system. To follow up, I did some research at CNet.com, which didn’t like it very much either. Their reviewers wrote that the “bad” outweighed the “good,” and concluded that “there is no compelling reason to upgrade.” In fact, going through Windows Vista again, not much seemed new to me at all. Microsoft just seemed to have reorganized everything just to make our lives more difficult.

Now going back to the Apple iPhone – when it was first released, everyone treated Steve Jobs like he was the reincarnation of Albert Einstein. With the onslaught of clever newspaper headlines (i.e. “iPod Evolves from Sound to Sight”), consumers were drawn into something surreal. Although Microsoft Vista’s release wasn’t as publicized as those from Apple, it further proves consumers’ demands for the “new and improved.” As a society, we will never stop fawning over electro-gadgets. Our self-esteems constantly depend on whether we own what’s hot in the market. And, as much as we may try to deny it, the reflected glow of a shiny object continues to warm and brighten our lives