

Technology ain't everything - budu
http://briancarper.net/blog/technology-aint-everything

======
petercooper
Technology _is_ everything, in terms of quality of life. Without the invention
of technologies like the wheel, masonry, the printing press, electricity,
sewerage, the light bulb, the computer.. we wouldn't be as safe, warm,
educated, and sanitary as we are today.

 _Is it really that hard to turn a handle for 10 seconds?_

No, Mr I'm Not Disabled. It's not hard for _us_ to get up and change the
channel on the TV by hand or to walk a mile to WalMart and carry our groceries
home each day either.

 _Do we really need computer-controlled robotic can-opening devices?_

Did we really need to go to the moon? Not really, but the effort of doing so
spawned a number of significant industries.

Did _pg_ really need to set up a small system for us to post links and
stories? Not really, but the relationships and knowledge that have come from
it greatly eclipse his plans for it at the time.

Did Linus Torvalds need to play around with making his own small operating
system? Not really. We all know what came of that, though.

With technology, intentions don't count for much; the unintended results can
easily reach a long way. Perhaps the e-book or the robotic can opening device
will inspire unrelated inventions.

~~~
Tichy
Still, I liked his can opener analogy. Yes, robot can openers might help the
disabled, but I bet that was not why they were invented. Let's call robot can
openers for the disabled a completely different product than robot can openers
for non-disabled. Then his point still stands.

But: nothing against tinkering, a ka creating robot can openers just because
we can.

~~~
petercooper
Automatic transmissions weren't invented for the disabled either. Would his
point stand for those? After all, driving stick is only a little extra effort.

~~~
Tichy
I am not a driver, but I assume automatic transmission make driving easier.
The can openers in his example made opening cans more difficult. I don't think
he is arguing against technological progress in general.

Anyway, I see it more as a poetical piece. People will vote with their
feet/money anyway.

~~~
petercooper
_The can openers in his example made opening cans more difficult._

Yeah, but his point was nonsensical (or at least hyperbole). He said:

 _and usually the can ends up half-open, half-bent up to the point where it's
un-openable short of dynamite._

Automated can openers _usually_ spoil cans? If that were true, people wouldn't
use them because most of their food would go to waste.

~~~
Tichy
Still, why do people buy automated can openers, or electric pepper mills?
Unless they are disabled, it just seems to be such a waste.

His experience was that the can openers never worked, but his parents kept
trying and buying new models. Maybe by now they work. Still I don't see why
anyone would want to have one. Call me a treehugger, but why waste energy and
produce toxic waste for something you could easily do manually.

------
fragmede
His two usage problems - reading in the bathtub and in bed are easily solved.

Bathtub: Zip lock bag. x2 for the safety conscious.

Bed: bent wire hanger <http://blog.xkcd.com/2009/04/13/the-pursuit-of-
laziness/>

The bigger thing to me is how the cell modem in the Kindle changes the
dynamics of books. An example: In conversation, one of my friends tells me
about a book they recently read.

Rather than a quickly forgotten mental note to look into it the next time I
make it to the bookstore, I can download the sample (if available) and start
reading. If I'm enjoying it, I can buy it and simply continue reading.

------
Jach
Flamebait. Some technologies are better hits than others, and anecdotes about
can openers and books don't seem like enough to generalize to the statement
"Technology for the sake of technology is a waste of time", which I personally
disagree with.

My own anecdote about can openers: I use an old-fashioned one, though my
friend's little old grandma has a cool electric one under which she just has
to hold the can while it magnetizes the top and cuts it off. She could
probably use the old-fashioned can opener, but arthritis is still annoying.

------
muffins
People create a lot of this "excess" technology not for its usefulness, but
because someone out there will buy it from them.

