He would head out in the morning, often hiking many miles, in search of the stand of trees to cruise that day. Going would be rough as the forester scrambled over huge downed logs and through thickets in the virgin old-growth forests of the day. Upon reaching the stand, he recorded tree measurements with paper and pencil, data to later be used in the office with a slide rule to estimate volume. The forester's tool bag of the 1990s is completely different.
Cellular phones allow the forester to be in nearly constant contact with the office.
Ownership and boundary lines are established using a laser rangefinder rather than string lines. The tree measurements taken are greatly improved using a relascope and the data is recorded on a handheld computer, which Laptops, satellites, aerial photos and lasers have changed the way foresters work in the 90s. is later downloaded into an office computer for volume compilations. Growth estimates can also be made using huge data libraries from previous research. Technology impacts our lives slowly in ways only recognizable when one looks back at the changes over a longer period. It impacts not only how we communicate and travel, but also how we work and live.