The World Wide Web and Me
A Computer Can Be Much More Than A Glorified Typewriter
I hope the following sparks some interest with those of you who are as computer challenged as I am. See, I’m not the computer savvy guy you may think I am… far from it! I still struggle trying to figure out the difference between a gigabyte and donkey-bite, although both have sunk their teeth in me a time or two. It all started around 10 years ago, while I was still a cop. Hands trembling, I read the pink note over and over from my “In” box. I was going to email class!
My clipboard cronies and I weren’t happy. We didn’t hitch up with this outfit to be computer geeks! Sure, we knew how to run people for warrants, criminal histories and driving records, but getting tangled in this thing we call the World Wide Web? Egad! What could be worse?
We went, with all intents and purposes, to prove the pen was still mightier than the sword. Or any electronic device for that matter.
At My Fingertips
With trepidation I sat before the keyboarded catastrophe before me. Tickling the keys, I was able to log-in, thinking, “Dang, that wasn’t so bad…” Learning how the World Wide Web worked, I admit to having been impressed. I give the instructor credit. Knowing cops are as curious as cats, she tells us to “Google” something that interests us… Hmm?
So quickly I start Googling gun-related stuff. By lunchtime I had 3 bids on a gun-auction site. “Hey, maybe this computer stuff isn’t half bad,” I thought to myself.
By the end of the day, I’d learned to print out what I was reading and had amassed stacks of load data and articles from my mentors. This really got me thinking.
Imagine if Elmer Keith and his fellow co-conspirators had access to the Internet, instead of relying on the Pony Express while exchanging thoughts and theory amongst shadowy, secretive .44 Associates? Their ideas would have been spread far and wide at the speed of a lightning bolt, probably bringing the .44 Magnum to fruition a lot sooner.
Yesiree, maybe this electronic geek box isn’t so bad after all? My world has opened up, incredibly wide, because of the World Wide Web…
Tank’s “www.com gun” sitting atop an old can of Hercules 2400, along with some homegrown
cast 358429 bullets for Elmer’s “hot” .38 Special load, and a Tank favorite—a Rick Gittlein-carved
holster from Simply Rugged along with a belt Tank made. A promotional “Elmer Keith” knife from
the 1970s sits in the foreground.
One-Stop Shopping
The ol’ Internet has been very, very good to me. Imagine, by simply poking a few keys in the right sequential order you have almost instantaneous communication with someone or something. I’ve made many great friends, obtained guns, books and other gun-related paraphernalia through the use of this weird wireless system.
I’ve been entertained for hours on end reading and posting on various Internet Forums. By ordering things on-line, I receive them lickety-split from the comfort of home. I’ve saved money by taking advantage of sales, specials and closeouts.
I have exchanged ideas, debated, learned, taught and argued many ideas pertaining to guns, handloads, cast bullets and just about any other subject matter important to me. More importantly, I’ve learned from others on the Internet.
I’ve communicated with people across country — or living on different continents — along with meeting people who live close by. Being an old copper, I’ve been able to track down people to ask questions, buy or trade parts, molds and ideas, or to simply thank someone for their work and let them know how much I appreciated their efforts.
I’ve been fortunate enough to make several close friends, hunt with them, eat with them and always tease, chide and chastise them (good naturedly, of course). Forwarding a simple meme, those “funny saying” picture deals is a simple way to stay in touch and simply imply, “Hey buddy, how ya doing? I’m thinking of you…”
Just as I took a chance on the Internet, I hope you give yourselves a chance to get to know me as I introduce you to the friends, devices, vices and other gun stuff I’ve come across because of the World Wide Web in these pages. While the computer is handy indeed, nothing is cozier than reading from the original hard-drive — a good book or magazine — while sipping a favorite beverage.
You just never know what can happen when you try something new. Life’s full of surprises, and sometimes we actually enjoy those wonderments, like the Internet.
Oh yeah! Back to my initial email class when I was a cop. I barely passed, incidentally, but on a more important note, I won one of my bids that day and am the proud owner of an S&W 28-2 with a 6″ barrel. I call it my “www.com” gun.
Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks?
