# Have you ever held a job that doesn't exist anymore? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 28, 2024, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218 "2024-09-28T22:05:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/121 "2024-09-30T20:04:14Z")
It’s been a thing since the 1960s, though it really took a big leap forward around the time of the first Gulf War with the addition of worldwide color television. [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed\_EC-130](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_EC-130) ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/122 "2024-09-30T20:27:29Z")
I was a quality assurance guy on US Army tactical nuclear weapons. These were given up during the early 1990s as part of stand down of these weapons following the collapse of the Soviet Union. It was a good idea too. The actual situation was far closer to the Dr. Strangelove movie than the whole chain-of-command, PAL devices, codes, safeguards fiction. I also trained on toxic chemical munitions which have been destroyed. Never had an actual assignment; fine as I was not real excited by being cooped up in a rubber suit and bulky mask for hours at a time. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/123 "2024-09-30T20:43:22Z")
inserting! My first and only legal job …i did that every Saturday for 4 months for the Sunday LA Times via a subcontractor …I wasn’t fast enough and it was a boring job really … ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/124 "2024-09-30T20:56:22Z")
> [@pipperroo](#): > > I delivered newspapers on my bicycle before school. Then went door to door collecting the money from people once a month. Do they let kids do that anymore? Not in the Big Cities. It is all Morning deliveries with dudes throwing them from their cars. I was a Circulation/delivery manager for the LA Herald Examiner- which no longer exists. I have a feeling that whole thing will go away not too far in the future. I am sure small towns still have kids on their bikes. > [@Hampshire](#): > > We’ve seen in the wee hours of the morning cars go down our street and toss newspapers wrapped in sealed plastic bags onto a few folks driveways. I assume these folks subscribe on-line and some poor minimum wage driver goes all over town tossing papers out their window. We paid our guys as independent contractors, with a flat daily rate which included mileage. It wasnt bad pay, really- as you could do a route in a couple hours, get a nap, and go do your 9-5 job. > [@blondebear](#): > > Both the job and the place don’t exist anymore: I was a busboy in the [Silver Dollar Saloon at Frontier Village](https://alamedainfo.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Diamond-Lil-songstress-of-the-Silver-Dollar-Saloon-Frontier-Village-San-Jose-California-800x445.jpg). Well, there are still busboys, or bussers. My main profession, that I did for most of my life- will exist as long as there is cash. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/125 "2024-09-30T21:48:05Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > At most supermarkets around here, the bagging is done either by the cashier or sometimes just left to the customers themselves. Occasionally another cashier might help if they’re on duty and store isn’t busy but that’s rare. The few employees willing to work for minimum wage generally do things like rounding up shopping carts and moving them from the parking lot stall back to the store. Lots of baggers down here in SoCal. Almost all of them current or former students of mine, in fact. It’s a good first job for these kids. They do cart wrangling and clean-up as well as bagging and loading. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/126 "2024-09-30T22:09:58Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > My main profession, that I did for most of my life- will exist as long as there is cash. You were a bank robber? ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/127 "2024-09-30T22:14:47Z")
call girl/boy ? although unless your’e an on-the-corner type a lot of that’s moved to electronic billing too ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/128 "2024-09-30T22:40:24Z")
> [@nightshadea](#): > > inserting! My first and only legal job …i did that every Saturday for 4 months for the Sunday LA Times via a subcontractor …I wasn’t fast enough and it was a boring job really Boring is exciting compared to that job! 🙂 I was in high school and this was one of many jobs I did. It was the only one I did that started at midnight which also made it very tiring. Now, I’m very interested to hear about your illegal jobs! Please share 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/129 "2024-09-30T23:11:17Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > I operated radio and television broadcasting equipment from the rear of an EC-130. A guy I know was Flight Engineer for these missions. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Girlfriend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.girlfriend/32/193_2.png) [@Dr.Girlfriend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Girlfriend)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2024, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/130 "2024-09-30T23:23:42Z")
Oh for sure. Digital photography was in its’ infancy back when I worked at the photo lab and even then I figured it would replace film before too long. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2024, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/131 "2024-10-01T23:51:56Z")
Yeah, on paper I was an engineering intern, but in practice I was the courier, backup surveying crew member, computer wonk, and someone smart enough to do some engineering jobs that took a lot of time, but that weren’t critical or on a timeline. So I’d build piping models and do stuff like compile spreadsheets of estimate values over time, and stuff like that. And sometimes, if they really needed a couple of sets of drawings fast for a last minute meeting, I’d run the bluelines and get them ready to go. Which makes me wonder if now bluelines are even a thing with large format printers being far more common than even plotters were. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/132 "2024-10-02T00:28:00Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Which makes me wonder if now bluelines are even a thing with large format printers being far more common than even plotters were. Nope. I’ve only seen bluelines and blueprints in various archives. And since most of those have now been digitized, I don’t even see them in the archives any more. Everything these days is done electronically or printed out with a large-format printer (often in color). ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/133 "2024-10-02T11:08:12Z")
Gawd. I’ve run thousands of bluelines in my life. At one place I worked we had a monster blue line machine. We would set up an assembly line of sorts when a big job needed to be run. Map, after map after map fed into it without even cutting the blueline paper. that would be done as it spit the blue lines out one ‘the cutting’ table. So, two people feeding it, two people taking care of the product. At my current workplace, when we where converting over to digital/GIS I ran every single assessor map through a blueline machine. Twice. There where hundreds of them. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/134 "2024-10-02T13:42:16Z")
That’s generally what I see at work as well. (I’m a business relationship manager in IT for a city department with a LOT of civil engineering type work) They’ve got drawings that date back decades, so they haven’t digitized everything yet, but they’re in the process of doing so. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/135 "2024-10-02T14:48:19Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > I loved Flash Oh, yes, me too. Actionscript was my first love. I once coded (on paper) a reverse kinematics engine in AS that when I wrote it in code, performed flawlessly. (Fuck you, Bill Gates, Flash was amazing) ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/136 "2024-10-02T15:25:34Z")
> [@scudsucker](#): > > (Fuck you, Bill Gates, Flash was amazing) Actually, [Steve Jobs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Flash) was primarily responsible for Flash’s demise on Mac OS. Android continued supporting Flash player, but eventually dropped it. With the introduction of HTML5, the Flash platform was doomed. Adobe Animate is pretty much the same as Flash, with updated features, and it still uses Actionscript. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/137 "2024-10-02T15:36:48Z")
Oh god. It was Steve. I have completely failed in my anger, and I was wrong. Badly wrong. Mea culpa. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/138 "2024-10-02T15:39:20Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > I don’t know any store that specifically hires baggers any more. Yes, in California supermarkets baggers are still a thing although fading. One place local to me hired mentally disabled people to do. They were often the most cheerful people in the store. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/139 "2024-10-02T19:09:55Z")
Don’t feel bad. PC and Mac have been engaged in one long pissing war for the past 3-4 decades. That they actually reached an accord to have their files compatible with each other still amazes me. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2024, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218/140 "2024-10-02T19:19:33Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Don’t feel bad. PC and Mac have been engaged in one long pissing war for the past 3-4 decades It was so bad that Mac/PC debates were forbidden in the early days of this board. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-held-a-job-that-doesnt-exist-anymore/1008218.md?page=8)