[iDC] The 50-Year Computer
helen varley jamieson
helen at creative-catalyst.com
Tue Sep 30 23:21:08 UTC 2008
i would love a 50-year computer. shopping isn't something i enjoy, & i
get really tired of having to compare all the different possibilities to
find the "best" deal, when the truth is that most of what i use my
computer for hasn't changed in the last 10 years. speed is the main
improvement. i'm sure there's a way that any extra bits that were really
needed could be plugged in on an external hard drive or something like
that. i have a kitchen whizz and an electric drill that i've been
happily using for over 20 years & showing no signs of wearing out. my
car is 44 years old & i fully expect to be still driving it when it's 50
(unless the price of petrol prevents that).
i heard an interview on the radio a while back about very cheap power
tools; some bright spark had worked out that the "average" person only
uses their electric drill for 6 minutes a year (in new zealand),
therefore it was only necessary to make a drill that would last for 18
minutes of drilling in order to sell it with a 3 year guarantee. if
someone used it for more than 18 minutes & the moving parts wore out, it
could just be thrown away & replaced, because it was so cheap to make
(all the moving parts being only designed to last for such a short
time). the interviewer asked what one should do if, for example, you
were building a deck and knew that you would need to drill for more than
18 minutes. the answer was, just buy 3 drills - they only cost $15 ...
somewhere out there, beside that huge pile of obsolete computers, is a
huge pile of worn-out 18-minute drills ...
h : (
Patrick Lichty wrote:
> I find it interesting that introducing such a polemic consistently
> creates this sort of response.
> Please read closer; note that I say that I have no real expectation of
> destroying Intel, but perhaps to create another class of computing,
> and shifting the crux of innovation to software craft.
>
> In addition, I also understand that technodeterminism will remain. I
> merely polemically question the real value of what we have done, and
> whether other models could be useful.
>
> I also argue that in many ways (not all), much of computer use since
> the 1980's has NOT fundamentally changed, given certain constraints.
>
> Ned Ludd has not channeled through me, lads. I'm thinking about
> sustainability, reduction of toxic production, streamlining of
> ubiquitous computation, futurism vs. 30-year old evolitionary trends,
> etc. I am not necessarily calling for my slide rule, but perhaps for
> my Gibsonian "Sandbenders" computer. While some are thinking that I am
> being regressive, I feel that this could be very forward thinking, if
> executed in the proper way.
>
> On another list, someone asked if I were drunk...
>
> Good, good!
>
>
>
> *
>
> Simon Biggs <s.biggs at eca.ac.uk> wrote:
>
> *
>
> John is right. Turing’s idea of the universal machine works (as an
> idea) in so many contexts because it is both simple and low-tech.
>
> It could be argued that any socially relevant technology needs to
> change constantly, just like the society that produces (and is
> enabled by) it. I would cite language as a technology which is an
> exemplar of this. It is important that it is fixed enough that we
> can share a degree of understanding in its use. However, it is
> equally important that it is fluid and motile, allowing for new
> formations of signification and community. If it sometimes get
> broken or abused as a result of this – well, that’s not so bad. It
> is part of change.
>
> Bill Gates may have argued that operating systems should be like
> the interfaces we employ to drive cars (all the same) but one can
> just look at this idea in practice (Windows) to see how wrong he was.
>
> One could argue that it is cars and traffic systems that are
> unsustainable in their fixity. I accept that without clear shared
> rules, that change with due preparation, our transport systems
> would cease to function (one outcome of this would be the use of
> less carbon and thus enhanced sustainability) however we have only
> had cars and roads, in their current high density/performance
> form, for less than one hundred years. That is not a long enough
> period of time to evaluate the sustainability of such a fixed
> system. In fact, it looks like as a system it will be redundant
> before we have that opportunity.
>
> The 2nd law of thermodynamics may be relevant here...
>
> Regards
>
> Simon
>
>
> On 29/9/08 04:38, "John Hopkins" <jhopkins at tech-no-mad.net> wrote:
>
> >The 50-year Computer
> >Manifestos for Computational Sustainability, I
> >
> >I have a proposition to make - when I am ready for my first
> mind/body
> >transplant in 2058, at age 95, I want to be using the same
> computer I am
> >today. Upon first look, both may seem outlandish by today's
> standards, but
>
> but this IS techno-determinism in the form of a
> 'sustainable-user-centered-design' exercise...
>
> fingers and toes and perhaps an abacus on the side should do
> nicely, or perhaps consider a slip-stick.
>
> jh
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>
> Simon Biggs
> Research Professor
> edinburgh college of art
> s.biggs at eca.ac.uk
> www.eca.ac.uk
>
> simon at littlepig.org.uk
> www.littlepig.org.uk
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> Edinburgh College of Art (eca) is a charity registered in Scotland, number SC009201
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helen varley jamieson: creative catalyst
helen at creative-catalyst.com
http://www.creative-catalyst.com
http://www.avatarbodycollision.org
http://www.upstage.org.nz
http://www.writerfind.com/hjamieson.htm
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