Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Are you suffering from 'technological involution'?
In Letter From America (IHT) Richard Bernstein wonders if we're suffering from technological involution or, in other words, being swamped by too much technology, useless widgets and the like.
He's struggling with Windows Vista (apparently a lot of people are) as it has so many more requirements added to it which in turn slows the whole system down. Most people use very few of the many features now added to mobiles.
Bernstein is putting forward the general idea that once a good system is put in place or a useful product is out on the market, on the whole it should be left alone. It's serving its purpose well and doesn't need to be tampered with but, of course we aren't satisfied unless changes are made because this is meant to represent progress.
Bernstein gives many examples of systems so complex they've ended up getting us all in a pickle. Here are a couple;
The court system is so clogged with litigators and their lawyers that it takes years for cases, whether civil or criminal, to get to their conclusions — this despite the indisputable truth to the old saw that justice delayed is justice denied.
The financial crisis brings home the national clutter like almost no other event, except, perhaps, the advent of Windows Vista — that tremendous profusion of unregulated new financial instruments that got us into such an incomprehensible tangle that the very people who created them have to be paid extra to get us out.
Even after all these months of crisis, examination, and analysis, how many people would actually recognize a credit default swap if they saw one?
But hey, it may just be a generational thing.
He's struggling with Windows Vista (apparently a lot of people are) as it has so many more requirements added to it which in turn slows the whole system down. Most people use very few of the many features now added to mobiles.
Bernstein is putting forward the general idea that once a good system is put in place or a useful product is out on the market, on the whole it should be left alone. It's serving its purpose well and doesn't need to be tampered with but, of course we aren't satisfied unless changes are made because this is meant to represent progress.
Bernstein gives many examples of systems so complex they've ended up getting us all in a pickle. Here are a couple;
The court system is so clogged with litigators and their lawyers that it takes years for cases, whether civil or criminal, to get to their conclusions — this despite the indisputable truth to the old saw that justice delayed is justice denied.
The financial crisis brings home the national clutter like almost no other event, except, perhaps, the advent of Windows Vista — that tremendous profusion of unregulated new financial instruments that got us into such an incomprehensible tangle that the very people who created them have to be paid extra to get us out.
Even after all these months of crisis, examination, and analysis, how many people would actually recognize a credit default swap if they saw one?
But hey, it may just be a generational thing.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by John D on
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Remember the original meaning of "sophisticated" - something where the original simplicity and effectiveness has been ruined by the addition of unnecessary complication.
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Permalink Reply by matt on
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I bit like unnecessary street signage, poles, railings, markings, flashing lights, beeping lights, talking buses .... no entry, one way, no way. Maybe we should revert to Egyptian style anarchy. Maybe not. :)
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Permalink Reply by Sapphireblue on
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Hmm well hate to break a stereotype but my daughters friends tried to treat me like a techno egit when she was a teenager - whereon she pointed out to them that I was more of an expert at texting than them and if they had a techno query they should ask me. I always took to technology like a swan chick to a lake!
However i have to say that 6 months ago I thought my life would not be complete without the latest LG phone the all singing all dancing MGA Vario III. I drooled over it for months online desperate for its always on Internet access, its calendars, appointments, MS Word, Excel . Games, Twitter,pull-out keyboard, touch screen etc and whatever whatever....in the end with a lot of haggling I got one at a knock down price from my service provider - these phones cost £600 when they first came on the market. Two months later I was ready to THROW that phone out the window - everything worked - if I had ever had time to use it - EXCEPT the phone features - it was so complicated to save a number I often resorted to pen ad paper, the touch screen was anightmare everytime I put it in my handbag or took it out it went into something and rteset something - I was ready to jump o it eventually. So I flogged it (shhhhhh!) and for 35 squid bought a secondhand slider phone from the market in WG - it works as a phone, has a simple camera and radio, tells me loudly when there is a missed callor sms (the other one NEVER did) and it is a megarelief to get rid of all the other features which, as I said, I never had time to use.
Phew.....
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Downgrade? Heavens no, they'd go out of business! Humans have to keep digging holes in the ground (for minerals) and razing forests to the ground to keep the factories going with materials for production .... otherwise our whole reason for existence (shopping) would implode. At least it's free to walk in the park (well kind of, but lets not mention council taxes!).
Oh and the world has been ruled by computer geeks for far too long in my opinion!
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