Boomers and their video calling obsession?

[Finlesswonder]

Anyone else noticed this? Work and family members, if they're a boomer then 9 times out of 10 they try to video call you. I think they discovered this during lockdown and have now become obsessed
I'm a millennial btw

Gen X here. The coolest gen ....

Well going by my own experience I agree with you OP!

The only people in our family who ever want to face time are the ones in that gen (PIL in particular always always want to face time and spend ages farting about setting the phone up on the special table and stand AFTER you've answered but before you've had a chance to speak, so you then feel really bad if you have to say you can't spend long talking!).

Everyone else in the family (teens 20s 30s 40s 50s) - whatsapp.
My mother (80s) - it's the landline or an email or nothing.

Baby Boomer is the non-insult term Op.

Clearly I am one of them. Not a fan of a video call, but was guilty of scheduling What’s App video calls in lockdown with those I could not meet.

Not a fan of voice notes - who wants to listen when they could be reading a text?

Perhaps you are unaware that boomer isn’t used solely to refer to people born during the post WW2 baby boom, it is used as a slur against those people. And no, people of the same generation don’t develop similar habits. Some do some don’t, some develop habits similar to older or younger people. But all people of any age who make slurs against a bunch of people based on age etc.. are bigots

I'm sorry if "Baby Boomers" feel sensitive about being identified by their generation, its not a problem that seems to affect ant other generation, we have plenty of people on here happily stating they are Gen X, Gen Z or millennial...

The only place I use videocalls is at work, there are no baby boomers there, I have a few in my family and they’d never video call. I don’t know anyone who would do this outside of work.

You do realise boomers are age 70-80?

Yep. I'm a boomer and I hate video calls. All the people in my life who initiate them with me are millennials.

There is nothing worse than a voice note.

My dad and husband are both huge fans of a video call.

I prefer a WhatsApp (text) message.

This.

There are a lot of generalisations on this thread and other threads that are negative, mainly about young adults and older people. It’s much better if you see people as the individuals they are.

I find it odd that so many people are happy with this older v younger people thing when families are made up of different generations and surely most of us have people of all generations that we care about.

I hate seeing older people being made out to all be a certain way but it’s disheartening to read/hear older people calling young adults useless and lazy too. All traits will be in some people of all ages.

Not a fan of voice notes - who wants to listen when they could be reading a text?

I much prefer voice notes, so me! 😅 We’re all different.

Gen X here and don’t really like them unless with the DCs at uni as I like to see their faces occasionally!
i Teams call my manager if I’m wfh if I’ve got something more complicated to say.
Wouldn’t just video call someone randomly.

I just hate it, I don't want to be seen and if someone's chatting away, (okay, usually mum and I'm just there to listen) I can't quietly fold laundry or whatever.

I remember being told that video calls were the future and dreading it.

I have to do it for work, sure. Can't get out of that.

My personal phone is set so that it either can't accept them or they'd see a blank space or something? I don't have FaceTime enabled, nor the camera on my WhatsApp. I have had messages saying people have tried to Facetime me but I don't know what they get on the other end when they try.

What career are you enjoying where your colleagues are in their 70's? Unusual in my field, yet the fact you can genuinely generalise means you often communicate with those aged 59 to 77.

See if you can guess why that might be?

🤔

I don’t think you know what discrimination means.

You have grouped people together based on a shared characteristic and then applied an unfounded generalisation as to how they behave.

@TheBraves Those were just 2 examples from recently. I had a 3rd, different friend around at my house last week. Her DD (29) video called her even though she'd told her she'd be out at my house. I'd think that's a pretty good sample study of my friendship group. The one thing they all have in common though, is that their offspring are all female. My adult DS, who still lives with us, will only message if he needs to know something now eg, if we're out, he might message to ask if he should cook tea for us or just himself. Or if he's travelling back from somewhere by train, he'll message to say which train he's catching and if there's any chance of a lift from the station. But anything non urgent waits until he sees us at home. Unlike friends' DCs who seem to have to download the minutiae of their lives instantly.

Yep. Sadly not unusual on Mumsnet.

Imo less busy people like a sit down video call, the mega busy multi task on the phone and cannot be bothered.
The weirdest is using speaker phone on calls and holding them out in front of you in public. That seems to be mixed age but mostly under 40s

A bit of a generalisation, also ageist as per usual.

As a baby boomer, I quite like seeing my grandchildren, who live away, from time to time.
I am also aware that on FaceTime, you don't have to put the camera on, if you don't feel like it.

@Clarabell77 Boomers are born up to 1964. They are most definitely not all 70 - 80. I am about to celebrate my 60th birthday.

But you are inviting ageist comments (and yes, I know the definition of ageism, which can include discriminatory acts as well as attitudes and statements.)

For what it's worth, I am a member of the Baby Boomer generation and I have never video called anyone, even during lockdown. I do, however, participate in virtual meetings for work.

I'm Gen X and proud. 😄

If someone video calls me I don't answer.

Unless it's prearranged and for a very good reason, such as teaching my neices and nephews during lockdown.

Absolutely

And how desperate to keep up with the Jones's "What are WE calling them now?"

So annoying if it is in a public place, like a bus or a train, and the people who do it NEVER have earphones.

I'm gen x and hate it but it's mostly millennial friends who want to do it and my sister also a gen xer.

Edited myself, wrong thread!