---- — Remember when people used to go on vacation, and pretty much be out of touch with things back home? Except for a call from a pay phone halfway through the vacation, people for the most part were in the dark about news and other local events while they were away.

Boy, have times changed for most of us, and they keep changing more dramatically every year. In many instances, from a communications perspective, it seems like you never left home because the contact can be that easy as well as instantaneous.

We have been vacationing in Clearwater Beach, Fla., for more than 25 years, most of them during the Fourth of July. It wasn’t too long ago that as editor of The Herald, if I wanted to keep on top of the news while I was away, I had copies of the newspaper mailed.

It may sound weird to be on vacation and think about such things, but it’s hard to unplug editors and reporters from the news, especially the local news that they spend their lives covering on a daily basis. When I vacation, I have a blast, but it’s impossible to walk out the door and say, “I’m leaving The Herald for two weeks, and I don’t want to hear anything while I’m away.”

Short of having newspapers mailed, my knowledge of the news was limited. People used to vacation and spend a good portion of time catching up on what happened after they arrived home. For most of us, the Internet and electronic editions of newspapers have changed all of that.

When I got home Sunday afternoon after more than two weeks away, I didn’t have much catching up to do. It’s been years since I have had copies of The Herald mailed; I go online in the morning, call up The Herald’s electronic edition, and read my hometown newspaper with my doughnut and cup of coffee.

My wife and daughter are avid newspaper readers as well, and one of the daily questions without fail is: “Did you read that story in The Herald today about such and such and so and so?” You can’t get away from it, but that’s OK by me.

Of course, with sophisticated cell phones like the iPhone and the Droid and social networks like Facebook, photographs of your vacation can be viewed by hundreds almost instantaneously.

You can take a picture of the Florida sunset at 8:15, and depending how fast you can type, it can be posted within two minutes. I don’t do it, but I find such communication fascinating. As I have written previously, when it comes to staying in touch, we are moving at warp speed.

I fly Southwest Airlines when I can (which is most of the time). They have open seating, meaning you don’t have a seat assignment, but a place in line to get on the plane. You can check-in 24 hours before the flight, and the sooner you do it, the quicker your boarding pass gets you on the jet.

About 10:30 Saturday morning, I told my daughter I was going upstairs to log-in to the Southwest website and print our boarding passes. Under the thatched cabana and relaxing with a cup of coffee, she said, “My phone has a Southwest app for that. I can just do it from here.” When did you think a laptop would be an outdated piece of equipment?

Our daughter Jamie is 29 and grew up with such technology. She’s had a cell phone for more than half of her life, and like many of her generation, is in constant contact with friends and family. Because she is curious like me, especially when it comes to wanting to know what’s happening, she most times tells me bits and pieces of news and other developments within minutes after they have happened.

We live in a connected, fast-paced world. Some take it to the extreme and seemingly spend every waking minute on the phone or on Facebook. Others like me remain fascinated by it all, and being a newsman, appreciate how much it has helped our industry in delivering the news.

You can watch this technological roller coaster or ride it. Like always, I prefer the first car.

My old days, 40 years ago, are hard-wired, rotary phones and party lines. I am fond of asking that in 2050, if what we are experiencing today are someone’s old days, what will life be like 40 years in the future? Scary, isn’t it?



Jim Raykie is the editor of The Herald and his column appears on Mondays. You can e-mail him at jraykie@sharonherald.com or find him on Facebook at www.facebook.com