Vintage ephemera: Best Western/AT&T Business Resource Guide

Alright, I’m probably stretching the definition of “vintage” pretty thin here.  But here’s the thing — even though this magazine (found in a Best Western in Quakertown, PA just last year) was published in 1996, it sure seems like a lifetime ago.  That’s because even more than clothes or hairstyles, few things can almost instantly date a publication like images of current technology.

Don’t believe me?  Well here’s just a sampling of the pictures and ads scattered throughout the 1996 Best Western/AT&T Business Resource Guide, a publication for the modern executive on the go…into a time warp.  (for fun slideshow action, click here)

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OK, this isn’t so odd I admit.  The only giveaway that this publication may not be super current is the AT&T logo, which was replaced by this in 2005.

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Ah, here we go.  America West, at one time one of the 10 largest airlines in the United States, is now known as US Airways as the result of a 2005 merger.  Still, you could always try to redeem the $50 off coupon found in the magazine.

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Finally, the secrets to having the WWW at my fingertips.  This tutorial covers advanced inter-tubes topics like Home Pages and search engines.  And they confirm that, yes, there really is a directory called Yahoo.  Crazy, man, crazy.

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Ah the ’90s, when laptops may not have been powerful but they were at least thick and gray.  This particular beauty (the Toshiba Satellite Pro) boasted a 90MHz Pentium, room for up to 40MB of RAM, a floppy disk drive, and Windows 95!  Clip that $50 coupon post haste and get one of these bad boys while supplies last.  Just add $80 for shipping this doorstop.

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Speaking of floppies, Kinko’s understands that cutting edge technology is the key to a satisfied customer.

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And there’s a satisfied customer right now! I’m not sure how he’s keeping that thing powered by plugging it into his chest, but I don’t pretend to understand this newfangled “mobile phone” technology.

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All out of outlets in your torso?  Try a cordless phone! Boy I sure do miss the days of cell phones so enormous they could counter your body weight as you rested against an invisible wall and checked for liver spots on the back of your hand.

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Whoa, Avis, slow down! I’m getting dizzy from all the beautifully rendered innovation. Don’t even try to explain how I could operate that thick, black gizmo from Texas Instruments. I’m still trying to wrap my head around this whole “Home Page” business.

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