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"Kids Can't Use Computers" is now ten years old, and it's only gotten worse
(www.coding2learn.org)
this post was submitted on 10 Jul 2023
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I love how everyone is acting like this is a new thing. People have never been able to use computers.
This article looks like it is seriously a decade or older at this point. The writer goes on about how phones can't be upgraded or repaired and go obsolete in two years but also buys a macbook pro.
Much of the article is some boomer going on about how they had no computers and they know computers better than people who do have computers. But I bet you this guy doesn't know how to make laundry detergent but they rely on it all the time. Bet you need manufactur-dad to the fucking rescue for you eh?
They know how to use computers much better than when I was a kid. Ultimately I feel we fixate on every kid knowing computers at some enthusiast level for no reason.
Life is often about being just good enough to get by and we don't fixate on kids knowing other parts of their lives. Cars are a great example because most people take their car into a tire shop instead of doing it themselves. Most people buy food instead of growing or butchering it themselves.
Calling a level of knowledge "enthusiast" is super subjective and I think the author is arguing that bar should be higher. Being able to "use" a computer (IMO and the author's) should include things like connecting it to a network, reading error messages, following basic instructions, and knowing what basic hardware components do.
Drivers should know how to deal with a flat and check their oil. A lot of people don't, but they should.
People should know how to cook a decent meal from ingredients. A lot of people don't, but they should.
All the users that say shit like "make it work" for tools they use every day of their lives are under-educated IMO and should want to learn more about those tools and develop their skills further to make their daily lives easier. I don't really get why people don't.
I agree with all of your reasoning here that people should be more knowledgeable about what they use and rely on.
I guess maybe I come from a perspective on computers that this is ultimately optimistic and not real. Connecting to a network can mean so many things depending on the network involved and in some instances needs you to know your MAC address. While on Android now you can share wifi network credentials with a QR code now.
Yes, I want people to be more knowledgeable but I don't know how to make sure people are. People come out of more than a decade of education thinking the world is flat and that capitalism breeds innovation. (For clarity I believe that capitalism only breeds innovation in extracting profit and the world is an oblate spheroid.)
You're an oblate spheroid!
heh heh heh
I feel like he addresses this quite well in the conclusion. In regards to cars, "this is not a new phenomenon" and admits to his reliance on salesmen and mechanics.
Ultimately, he's asking that the people who make decisions about how our world is shaped have some knowledge about the things that are going to shape the world. And that essential issue is still unaddressed. Remind me, how many years ago was it that US Congress was asking Google why the bad articles show up when you search their name?
Oh, and our car-centric society in the US largely sucks. That may or may not have anything to do with our general understanding of a motor, but maybe it's worth considering how much thought has really gone into the implications of these massively affecting technologies.
You're not likely to educate people on a torque converter just like you're not likely to educate people on subnet masking.