What Role Do Memory Systems Play In A Connected World?

There probably was a time where a person with a great memory had a fabulous advantage of their peers, coupled with other skills, one might become a sage, adviser to the king, philosopher, or some other learned role.

Do Mentat Wiki readers believe that MemoryTechnique can offer such advantages today or is it a parlor game? Are the advantages still there or more subtle? I'm fascinated by MemoryTechnique and have achieved moderate skills with several including the MajorSystem and DominicSystem (maintaining proficiency is another matter). I've also played with MentalMath. No doubt it's been helpful, mentally stimulating, and interesting, but in an age when an increasing number of people can Google any info from their Blackberry and have a calculator built into every cell phone, is it actually a useful exercise to invest time in (perhaps versus other mental exercises). To be even more sacrilegious, how about compared to using the same time to learn how to search the internet more effectively!)

Tell us about your use of MemoryTechnique impacts your life:

Remembering people's names definitely changes things. I have numerous situations in mind where I felt very uncomfortable, unable to remember someone's name. Remembering streets' name is as well very useful. I use a mental diary of two months (see "How to develop a perfect memory" from Dominic O'Brien), which has many advantages over palms. I must confess though, that I mostly use it for the sheer pleasure of exploiting the mind power!