In-depth comparisons of older and modern technologies. Filter by category or period, sort by name, time or category, or search by keyword.
35 comparisons found
Navigation
Magnetic Compasses compared with Smartphone Navigation Sensors
Both a hand compass and the direction arrow on a phone respond to the same invisible field around Earth. This article follows how a…
Work and Productivity
Manual Drafting compared with Computer-Aided Design
Before screens, a design existed as ink on paper, copied by light and chemistry. Computer-aided design turned the drawing into editable data. This article…
Computing
Mechanical Calculators compared with Spreadsheets
A mechanical calculator answered one arithmetic question at a time; a spreadsheet keeps a whole web of numbers and recomputes it when one value…
Work and Productivity
Mechanical Cash Registers compared with Point-of-Sale Systems
The first cash register was built to keep honest books, and the ring of its bell was part of the design. Modern point-of-sale systems…
Access and Infrastructure
Paper Tickets compared with Mobile Passes
A ticket is a small promise that you paid and may enter. Paper made that promise something you could hold, tear and hand over…
Transportation
Paper Timetables compared with Real-Time Transit Apps
A printed timetable promises when a train should arrive; a transit app also reports where the vehicle is right now. This article compares the…
Photography and Media
Photo Albums compared with Cloud Photo Libraries
A bound album holds a few hundred chosen prints; a cloud library holds a lifetime of automatic uploads. This article compares how each stores…
Audio and Entertainment
Physical Game Media compared with Digital Game Distribution
For decades a video game was an object you carried home in a box. Now it is often a license attached to an account…
Communication
Postal Mail compared with Email
A sealed envelope and an inbox both promise that a message will reach the person named on the outside. This article compares how each…
Information Storage
Printed Encyclopedias compared with Digital Knowledge Platforms
Every encyclopedia promises to gather what is known in one place, and every one falls out of date the day it is finished. This…
Navigation
Printed Maps compared with GPS Navigation
A folded sheet asks you to work out where you are; a satellite receiver tells you and draws the route. This comparison looks at…
Photography and Media
Printing Presses compared with Digital Publishing Platforms
Publishing once meant casting metal, inking a bed of type and pressing paper against it. Today a text can reach readers without ever touching…
