A recent article in a Probus magazine speculated that this sharing of resources, services and goods will be our future. How many of us still have expensive tools we bought for a house renovation job and have never used since? In hindsight, we might have been better off hiring them in the first place. I still have such tools, even though I have long since sold the house and now live in a unit. I keep them ‘just in case’. I could have hired them from one of the Hire Shops at the time. These days, I can hire them from Internet sites. Not only that, I now can even use these sites to hire out my unused tools to others.
The Internet has certainly revolutionised the way we live and think. And not just in sharing tools. It has moved into other areas with a huge impact: Airbnb offers a cheaper holiday alternative to hotels; goget hires cars; openshed hires just about any household items; uber will taxi you; and airtasker will find someone to supply your need.
Of course there is an element of risk (such as quality, insurance), and I still feel loathe to try them out, but as time passes, and they become the norm, I, like many others, will weaken and accept them as everyday.
Moreton Bay History 