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It was day four of a week long intense standards writing session. As Sandy and I\u00a0reviewed documents to look at how we were presenting technology in the standards,\u00a0Barb came in cradling her laptop like a fallen comrade. It had fallen and a crack in the\u00a0display rendered the computer all but useless.<\/p>\n
The screen, however, hemorrhaged spectacular blips of light. When another committee\u00a0member pressed the screen with a forefinger, the screen spewed color like a fountain\u00a0of brilliance. As much as I felt bad about the loss of work for the group and of personal\u00a0equipment for Barb, I was transfixed.<\/p>\n
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A husband in another timezone was called by one committee member. An LCD was\u00a0pulled out to reroute the computer’s display. My own productivity came to a halt.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/farm6.static.flickr.com\/5143\/5844322904_d602fa6d4c_z.jpg\")
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As the majority of us stood around prodding and suggesting and generally not able\u00a0to do a whole lot about the situation, I was reminded of the calamities that befell the\u00a0travelers in the Apple II rendition of the Oregon Trail of my youth. Is this the Oregon\u00a0Trail of the Digital Era? Had our axle broken? Had we failed to successfully ford the\u00a0river? Improperly squandered our resources?<\/p>\n