Inverted computer culture: A thought experiment

> Computers are seldom privately owned – they are considered essentially communal rather than personal

This struck me as true of most people's use of computers now. Almost everyone I know who isn't either an old fashioned developer or a gamer uses a mobile phone or tablet merely as a graphical terminal; the actual computer is some mysterious entity elsewhere on the Net.

The golden age of computing when 'everyone' had one of their own that was useable offline is now long past.

I am not sure when it happened but I discovered that every game I played over the last twenty years, reduced to it's bare minimum functional components, was aligning a pointer on an X/Y axis and pressing the correct button within a time window.

The goal of computers, reduction or multiplication of work, is often lost because the output does not last longer that the work required to generate.

Computers are tools. They are used as toys, or at best, substitution of physical activities. Thankfully I only print paper twice a year. Yet why at all? Clearly I'm trusted enough to enter into a contract with companies yet can't be trusted to complete trivial tasks like sending a package without paperwork.

I'm curious if we reserved computers for qualified owners and operators like firearms or vehicles. I personally would love to operate one but without certification or training the ability to have negative impact upon the population or needless self harm outweighs the enjoyment of

I started driving at ten. I was also a teen with unfiltered internet over dial up but that isn't the same as personalized curated streaming video aligned to my habits or an exploitative corporate/State.

If we can not determine when we're getting manipulated, can not agree on what truth is nor speak against the authority without being labeled an enemy how we can adapt as a people to the growing power of computers in every pocket?

[dead]

All the comments here are so negative for such a beautiful essay!

This paragraph at the end in particular really struck a chord with me:

> In the real world, people associate computers with many different things: corporate dehumanization, overwhelming consumer capitalism, alienation from the material world, shortened attention spans, ridiculously short obsolescence cycles, etc. etc. It is often difficult to tell these cultural biases apart from the "essence" or computing, and it is even more difficult to envision alternatives due to the lack of diversity. Thought experiments like this may be helpful for widening the perspective.

Computing is a fundamental part of the world and crazy exciting to play around with. It allows us to experience whole new spectrums of reality! At its core, isn't this the essence of the hacker ethos?