I have a Friend who thinks I’m technologically challenged. Let me explain.
Recently he called me up & said that he was trying to create a VCD out of
the pictures he took at my kid’s birthday. Isn’t VCD supposed to be video?
What the hell has it to do with digital photos?

Of course I dare not ask him that question for fearof coming across as a
Moron.

"Well ... I want to know what the model number of your DVD player is"
I’m at the office & cant look at the DVD player to get the damn model number.

So I plead "DCR PC115 ... ?" or something to that effect.

"Isn’t that your Camcorder’s Model number. What I want is the one for your DVD player ”? He says.

Huh? Even I’m impressed with myself. At least I hit some mark I think.

"Oh? You meant the DVD Player, did you? I know that it starts with
a P " I lie trying to salvage some honor.

" You see the index is there but the data is gone in my mind" I say,
making a poor attempt to Joke.

"Anyway I bought it more than 3 years ago you know so I don’t remember "

"Isn’t the make Sony?" He persists.

Ah hah! This is where I have the upper hand. You see all the gadgets, (The Major ones at least) that I own, are made by Sony. Maybe I had a premonition that I would be in this situation, when I bought them.

"Yes, it is definitely Sony" I say with a very confident voice.

"Then there aren’t any models by Sony which start with a P" He insists.
The persistent brat!

I mentally make a note to compile a handy reference of model numbers of all the gadgets that I own & carry it in my wallet - knowing him, I might have to index it by Model number & year. You never know what his line of questioning would be.

"Are you on the line?"

Well at that moment I would rather have been anywhere but there!

"I’m very much here ..."

"Look the reason I want to know the model number is I want to know if it can read CD-RW or CD-R. Do you know?" he asks.

That question translated into my mind as "Do you want to be in the Frying Pan or the fire The devil or the deep end ..... Why don’t I get such analogies when I’m in the creative writing class I think. I jerk myself to the present with Some effort. Now, knowing him, I know that this is a loaded question.

I would personally like to strangulate the guy who invented abbreviations. One gets no clue whatsoever (Not even from the context of the sentence) as to what they really mean. I try to select … ennie meenie ...

"CD-RW .... "? I say - That definitely sounded better than CD-R.

"Are you sure? The earlier models didn’t have CD-RW .... It is a relatively
new technology" he says.

"Huh?! ... CD-R"? I Plead, after all, he gave me a choice.

"Well then again some older models have both ...."? he again persists.

" Hey, Tell you what, by 5:00pm my wife will be back in the house - so I’ll call her and ask her to look & find out"

"Well .... But by that time I will be beyond doing the process" he says.

I mentally picture him in a lab in white overalls dipping CDs into a liquid (why liquid you ask? He is trying to get the digitals photos onto the CD isn’t he?).

Of course I dare not ask him what this ’process’ is.

"Err ... Can’t you do this ’process’ tomorrow’"? I ask.

"Never mind! I will be out of town tomorrow - I just thought YOU would know the Model number of YOUR DVD player, I’ll see you later" he says in an accusing tone underlining the ’you’ and ’your’. Click.

Look, If my memory were better I would definitely remember the model number and Then some, like its dimensions. But then again I’m quite content just playing movies, on my DVD player, thank you very much!