On 2 Jan 2003, Alex Shnitman wrote:
> On Thu, 2003-01-02 at 15:03, Gilad Ben-Yossef wrote:
>
> > So you think what your children need to be successful adults is full
> > knowledge of Word?
> >
> > Funny, I prefer my children to learn to think for themselves, be self
> > reliant, learn to solve problems and be creative, learn to protect their
> > rights and ask smart questions, not operate a word processor like good
> > drones. And for this they need tools they can take apart and put
> > together again like Lego, not closed source systems.
>
> Comeon, Gilad, you're being a bit of a demagogue here. Operating a
> computer or a word processor has nothing to do with being a drone --
> it's a skill, just like any other. Like knitting or cooking or juggling
> balls, it's something you learn, practice, and become good at.
>
> And you can very well think for yourself, be self-reliant, learn to
> solve problems, be creative, learn to protect your rights and ask smart
> questions, while at the same time using Windows for your computing
> needs. I respect and believe in the values of free software, but you're
> taking it way too far.
>
I agree with Alex. Using Windows does not make a person less liberal or
idealistic. There's nothing illegitimate about proprietary software. My
stance on it is that open-source is just a better strategy of managing and
producing software. (or at least seems so).
> Don't forget that not everyone in this world is meant to become a
> programmer. In fact, *all* the people in the modern world are mere
> consumers of most of the technologies and products that they use, be it
> computer software or canned tomato paste, and they neither know nor care
> about the way they're created. People do not expect to be able to take
> apart their cell phone and put it back together like Lego, and they
> don't expect to do that with software either. For you, as a software
> developer, it's a natural desire, but you must understand the other
> people who couldn't care less, and it's just fine for them to think that
> way!
>
Here I do not entirely agree. It is perfectly legitimate not to be a
programmer and to use Computers mechanically. However, I believe we will
see that programming is more and more becoming a necessary skill.
Everyone is expected to be able to read, write and do arithmetics. That's
because these are the essential skills needed to acquire other skills. I'm
not claiming programming falls into this category. Modern computer systems
are usually abstract enough to allow a person to comfortably use them
without the need to program. However, being a computer hacker gives you
the possibility to tweak, automate, control and customize your system in
ways that are not possible without it. This is as true for programs
like Excel and Windows as much as it is true for UNIX.
There is a limit to how much functionality you can give with a point and
click interface. Even in spreadsheets, you have to enter equations
manually. Building more and more complex interface to satisfy the needs of
hungry users who are just stubborn enough not to learn how to program, can
only work is bound to fail. I think we'll soon a world where most people
are able programmers.
A computer is not an ordinary tool like a hammer, a cell phone or a dish
washer. It's an all-purpose, Turing complete tool that simplifies every
storage, processing and exchange of data. Much like the human language and
conceptual thinking is an important tools of thought and communication for
us humans. As such, learning to interact with computers, in a way that
they understand will become more and more necessary. I expect that one day
we can easily rely on the fact that Aunt Tillie will be an able
programmer.
Regards,
Shlomi Fish
>
> --
> Alex Shnitman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> http://www.hectic.net/ UIN 188956
> PGP 0xEC5D619D / E1 F2 7B 6C A0 31 80 2863 B8 02 BA 65 C7 8B BA
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Shlomi Fish [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Home Page: http://t2.technion.ac.il/~shlomif/
Home E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
"Let's suppose you have a table with 2^n cups..."
"Wait a second - is n a natural number?"
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