Square Testing 'Pickup' App to Speed Up Ordering of Takeout

Awesome. Even less social interaction. Who needs to talk to people, or go to a restaurant, when you can just text your order, pick it up, and wander home to your computer for Facebook "social fun".

Sometimes tech convenience can lead to unforeseen consequences, just look at the [lack of] social skills with the younger generation. It's an HR nightmare. Pretty soon, we'll regress to grunting with texting, who needs to talk?

I think you missed the broader implications of my comment, as it wasn't just about ordering take-out. Forest from the trees, and all. :)

Based on your comment and your signature, I couldn't help but think about the "I Robot" stories where in the future people can't even imagine being physically in the presence of another person. Brings back some great memories of reading science fiction that now is gradually becoming science fact.

You'd have to be pretty damn hungry to travel 7951.2 mi to pick-up some food.

That's if you want to order REALLLLY far ahead.

Based on your comment and your signature, I couldn't help but think about the "I Robot" stories where in the future people can't even imagine being physically in the presence of another person. Brings back some great memories of reading science fiction that now is gradually becoming science fact.

Seriously, great observation on my signature and my modest opinion. 'Course I have nothing wrong with technology, yet as a 37 year old I'm in between the non-tech savvy older generations and extremely tech savvy younger generations. Tech should [ideally] be an extension of oneself, not in lieu of human contact and thus humanity. The H.R. stories I hear from friends interviewing college grad's who text, don't make eye contact and lack the skills to eloquently verbalize why they would be an asset to xxx company in an interview is astonishing. The pendulum always swings, I hope for humanity's sake it finds a resting place in the middle. :)

The fact is, I've never in my entire life had a meaningful social interaction with someone taking my food order!

Most of the time, if you so much as started to, the person's manager would come over and start prodding them to "stop holding up the line"!

The only real purpose of that particular interaction is to detail your order and receive a total price for it -- something done much more efficiently by computer.

People go to restaurants and dine-in, in the first place, as a social thing. Even if you're just eating there by yourself, you're probably doing so, vs. eating at home, so you can take in some different sights and do a bit of "people watching" while you eat.

There are definitely some concerns one could have about social media, the proliferation of smartphones, and so forth causing society to communicate in person less than we should. But this application only addresses a very specific interaction, designed to accomplish a single goal -- and improves on the "old way".

I think you missed the broader implications of my comment, as it wasn't just about ordering take-out. Forest from the trees, and all. :)

Lack of social skills with the younger generation has less to do with tech and more to do with parenting. I would love to have an app like the one mentioned in the article so like others say I can mull over the menu and place my order the way I want it and pay for it. Does not mean I will goto the restaraunt and grunt while showing my phone with a picture of the order so they know its mine.:rolleyes:

Have you, yourself, noticed a social decline with person-to-person interaction be it over the phone or actually in person verbally communicating in your day to day life? What about your own communication with others?