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The tech monoculture is finally breaking

jasonwillems.com

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Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#221

Post by snvzz »

at1as wrote: post #212
snvzz wrote: post #206

>They’re now working to bring a “next-gen” CRT monitor to market. Wait what? Who? Why have I not heard of this? Did the AI hallucinate? There definitely is interest in next-gen CRTs.

Palmer Lucky mentioned in an interview that they were looking into making a TV, in part because of how much he hated all the adware slop bundled into modern TVs. He then followed that they were investigating whether they could build a modern CRT. I can't immediately find the except, but I had previously watched the interview

This is the one and only instance I am aware of.

I was hopeful I'd get a different pointer. There really is a market for this sort of thing.

Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#222

Post by bigstrat2003 »

endorphine wrote: post #204
mxuribe wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> ... If there was going to be any year where Linux made strong gains it should have been 2025 with the forced retirement of the "forever OS" Windows 10. But the needle barely moved at all. I beg to differ...I have a feeling the needle will indeed move, but it won't be a single big jolt. Overall, I think it will be oh so very slow over this and the next couple of years. Sure, some percentage of windows users will mig…

> I beg to differ...I have a feeling the needle will indeed move, but it won't be a single big jolt. [...] Then it seems you're not disagreeing with parent: they're saying "needle barely moved", you're saying "it will move". They're talking about the present; you're talking about the future.

Technically, the parent is saying "the needle barely moved, therefore it will never move appreciably in the future".

Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#223

Post by safety1st »

MarkusWandel wrote: post #17

I'm not sure I agree with all of that - that single-purpose tech is making a real comeback. But I do have one example in my daily life that supports this: A Garmin watch. Unlike "full" smartwatches (arbitrarily defined as: You can browse the web on them in some fashion) Garmin devices are intentionally limited but in return, what they do works very well and seems fully debugged. I spent several years recording outdoo…

The root problem isn't really multi-purpose tech. It's the perennial coercive tendencies of monopolies being multiplied by their modern capability to update software in the blink of an eye.

If a company develops a monopoly in virtually any part of your life these days, and if a $1 network connected SoC can be added to their product, they can start abusing their position within a matter of months. The standard playbook is some combination of advertisements, notifications, and subscription charges (sometimes for stuff that used to be free!). None of those things are met with enthusiasm from consumers. But if the consumer has no other choice, it's almost a guarantee that the business will add them eventually.

Lock in and abuse. This isn't a new business model, we've just watched it spread from being a Microsoft PC thing in 1990s IT departments to pretty much everywhere now. (Speaking broadly about MSFT's business strategy back then, but they were also literally the first ones to try and shove unwanted Internet ads down your throat by streaming Active Desktop Channels on top of your wallpaper in 1997...!)

Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#224

Post by nonethewiser »

californical wrote: post #95
Aurornis wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You cannot buy a dedicated MP3 player today with the software polish and quality of life that an iPod had in the early 2000s I could see how many people would assume this, but it’s actually false. There’s actually a big selection of dedicated audio players that do the job very well now. The battery life and audio quality are extremely good because there’s a niche market for them with a lot of competition. If you th…

I looked pretty hard - I specifically don’t want an android OS called an mp3 player. I want a dedicated media player that has physical button controls (not touch screen), is very snappy, has a good UI, and has a purpose-built OS specific to only playing songs and podcasts, and maybe movies, which I can sync with my computer (maybe with rsync or whatever else). No apps. The only option that I could find was an iPod cl…

here you go: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FPQZR6XJ/?coliid=IVRLIWZTTAHHK&c...

Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#225

Post by 4gotunameagain »

christianqchung wrote: post #196
arandomhuman wrote: post #79

>Looking at my own purchases from 2025, the pattern becomes obvious... Is it me or does this list really goes against almost everything preceeding in the article?

I mentally checked out by the time he mentioned buying ray bans as some radical personal statement on privacy and tech nostalgia.

The best thing about the internet is that it gave everyone a voice.

The worst thing about the internet is that it gave everyone a voice.

Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#226

Post by pastel8739 »

nonethewiser wrote: post #224
californical wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I looked pretty hard - I specifically don’t want an android OS called an mp3 player. I want a dedicated media player that has physical button controls (not touch screen), is very snappy, has a good UI, and has a purpose-built OS specific to only playing songs and podcasts, and maybe movies, which I can sync with my computer (maybe with rsync or whatever else). No apps. The only option that I could find was an iPod cl…

here you go: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FPQZR6XJ/?coliid=IVRLIWZTTAHHK&c...

“Currently unavailable”…

Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#227

Post by microtonal »

mwigdahl wrote: post #12
torlok wrote: post #8

What a weird techno-optimist blog post, full of cherry-picked examples, with a twist of consumerism. Refreshing take in a sea of nihilism, but saying people are interested in Pokémon and N64 games again when it's mostly post-NFT "everything is an investment" mentality is cute in its naivety.

It was the "growth of Linux on the desktop" that broke my suspension of disbelief. If there was going to be any year where Linux made strong gains it should have been 2025 with the forced retirement of the "forever OS" Windows 10. But the needle barely moved at all. The author paints a nice picture but there's a lot of wishful thinking and projection there.

I feel like the needle is moving, but maybe not because of the retirement of Windows 10, but other factors:

* Proton got really good and the Steam Deck is making inroads for Linux on the desktop. We are at the point were even gaming publications start to say: you could as well run Linux.

* The disintegration of the 80-years long transatlantic alliance. This really has a lot of people thinking about their big tech dependence on the east side of the ocean (and perhaps Canada?). Currently a lot of OwnCloud pilots are being started in European universities and other organizations. I see more and more people in my country buying Fairphones, the adventurous people even with /e/OS. There seems to be more interest in the Linux desktop.

The change is not very fast yet, but awareness is increasing and the ball starts rolling.

Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#229

Post by wao0uuno »

idiotsecant wrote: post #44
sylens wrote: post #29

I think the author is correct to a point but I don't believe the examples they've chosen provide the best support for their case. Gen Z buying iPods and people buying N64 games again is not evidence of the monoculture breaking apart - it's a retreat into the past for the enlightened few because their needs are not being met by modern goods and services. You cannot buy a dedicated MP3 player today with the software po…

>You cannot buy a dedicated MP3 player today with the software polish and quality of life that an iPod had in the early 2000s wat. I'm curious how an ipod from 2000 is better than, for example, the Fiio jm21. It's worse in pretty much every possible way, other than the ipod might be appealing to a certain kind of 'old man shakes fist at clouds' type of user.

It's just a clunky android phone without modem. Looks terrible.

Re: The tech monoculture is finally breaking

#230

Post by raffraffraff »

Aurornis wrote: post #139
californical wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I looked pretty hard - I specifically don’t want an android OS called an mp3 player. I want a dedicated media player that has physical button controls (not touch screen), is very snappy, has a good UI, and has a purpose-built OS specific to only playing songs and podcasts, and maybe movies, which I can sync with my computer (maybe with rsync or whatever else). No apps. The only option that I could find was an iPod cl…

> I looked pretty hard - I specifically don’t want an android OS called an mp3 player. I want a dedicated media player that has physical button controls (not touch screen), is very snappy, has a good UI, and has a purpose-built OS There are a lot of DAPs in this style. They're just not popular because the Android-based units are perfectly fine and don't feel like Android phones with an MP3 player app installed. Most…

For me it's not arbitrary. An android device is a general purpose handheld touchscreen computer that happens to be used for music. That means a bunch of things to me:

1. "Touchscreen first" UX

2. Heavier than it needs to be

3. Worse battery life compared to a non-Android device

Using a touchscreen in the rain is impossible. Running out of battery sucks. Going for a run with a 240g brick is no fun, it'll pull your pants down to your knees and trip you.

Compare the specs:

    Hiby R1
    Dimensions: 86.9 x 60.6 x 14.5 mm
    Weight: 118g
    OS: HibyOS
    Battery: 19 hour play time
    Price: $159.00

    Hiby R4
    Dimensions: 129.6 x 68.3 x 18.5 mm
    Weight: 231g
    OS: Android 12
    Battery: 11 hour play time
    Price: $249
These are the things matter to me, in addition to the UX, sound quality, Bluetooth support, expandable / removable storage and sane file-based playlists.
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