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Umberto Eco on operating systems and religion, in 1994: The fact is that the world is divided between users of the Macintosh computer and users of MS-DOS compa
by zorpner 11y ago
Umberto Eco on operating systems and religion, in 1994:
The fact is that the world is divided between users of the Macintosh computer and users of MS-DOS compatible computers. I am firmly of the opinion that the Macintosh is Catholic and that DOS is Protestant. Indeed, the Macintosh is counterreformist and has been influenced by the "ratio studiorum" of the Jesuits. It is cheerful, friendly, conciliatory, it tells the faithful how they must proceed step by step to reach - if not the Kingdom of Heaven - the moment in which their document is printed. It is catechistic: the essence of revelation is dealt with via simple formulae and sumptuous icons. Everyone has a right to salvation.
DOS is Protestant, or even Calvinistic. It allows free interpretation of scripture, demands difficult personal decisions, imposes a subtle hermeneutics upon the user, and takes for granted the idea that not all can reach salvation. To make the system work you need to interpret the program yourself: a long way from the baroque community of revelers, the user is closed within the loneliness of his own inner torment.
You may object that, with the passage to Windows, the DOS universe has come to resemble more closely the counterreformist tolerance of the Macintosh. It's true: Windows represents an Anglican-style schism, big ceremonies in the cathedral, but there is always the possibility of a return to DOS to change things in accordance with bizarre decisions.....
And machine code, which lies beneath both systems (or environments, if you prefer)? Ah, that is to do with the Old Testament, and is Talmudic and cabalistic.
(from here: http://jowett.web.cern.ch/jowett/EcoMACDOS.htm http://jowett.web.cern.ch/jowett/EcoMACDOS.htm )
- vanderZwan 11y agoDid he ever say something about Linux?
- Shog9 11y agoLet's go with Mormons.
- Fordrus 11y agoAnciently, there was the UNIX. But the UNIX was held close by those who had received it, and the world trembled in darkness, because there was no UNIX to light the way. But then came Linus Torvalds, attempting to discover which of the systems was true, and, as he reviewed the ancient operating systems, discovered wisdom enough to seek the UNIX. And BEHOLD, as Linus went forth to meditate on which operating system was best, he was visited by the UNIX in a pillar of Code. The UNIX told him that all operating systems had departed from the best way, and informed Linus where he must go to seek a restoration of the true ways of UNIX. And Linus was led to the side of the hill Codemorah, wherein he discovered golden algorithms and clear glass compilers. And will the clear glass compilers, he translated the golden algorithms into this: the Linux operating system. It is evidence of his prophesional calling, and any who use it can attest the Linus was truly shown the best way, through the Spirit and Power of UNIX. (I will show myself out now :) )
- deleted 11y ago[deleted]
- aswanson 11y agoPaganistic druids without the priestly shroud, revealing all sources of revelation to man, existence its barest form, for all to extend, rewrite, and revise for the solitary path of revelation must bear the unique fingerprint of the journeyman.
- felipellrocha 11y agoBuddhism. Leading you towards the path of enlightenment!
- Xeiliex 11y agoGood luck understanding the terminology unless you get it from the source.
- keithpeter 11y agoI was thinking more of SmallTalk for Zen (Enso)
- nevada_smith 11y agoRastafarian, undoubtedly. Bigoted, pedantic, anarchist, minimalist, freedom-loving, authority-hating, splintered - the parallels are many. Irie mon!
- chippy 11y agoor TempleOS?
- weinzierl 11y agoFor those interested the the full text of the essay this passage is from: http://cliffarnold.com/macvdos.pdf http://cliffarnold.com/macvdos.pdf The Holy War: Mac vs. DOS Published in Espresso on September 30th, 1994 Umberto Eco
- bambax 11y agoWhat an utterly gratuitous comparison; that kind of thing could be said about almost anything (beef meat is Catholic, horse meat is Protestant! Reddit is Catholic, HN is Protestant! etc.)
- keithpeter 11y agoThat is sort of the joke. Eco's journalistic pieces are quite short and he tends to take an everyday thing and run with it making its absurdity show up more with each paragraph. There are collections in English of the newspaper articles available. Each piece can be quite entertaining but the books of collected articles were not intended to be read from beginning to end.
- elcapitan 11y agoSo with the advent of OSX, i.e. GUI+Unix, the Mac combined Catholicism and Protestantism again in one ecumenic world church of operating systems? ;)
- r0muald 11y agoThis is just one of many possible quotes giving a measure of how overrated Eco was and will be for the decades to come. An intellectual focusing mostly on showing himself as much more intelligent than others, either by literary exhibitionism, nonsense metaphors on subjects he barely understood and ultimately a love for manipulation of language. That said, his ability to do all those things with perfect execution and a not-too-well-simulated, ironic distance, makes him a top artist by any standard.
- wobbleblob 11y agoThere's an internet subculture that might appeal to you: people who write elaborate, thoroughly scathing reviews on Amazon for widely admired masterpieces. [1] http://www.salon.com/2010/04/03/mean_amazon_reviews_open2010/ http://www.salon.com/2010/04/03/mean_amazon_reviews_open2010...
- taneq 11y agoIf that quote shows how overrated he is, I should read more of his stuff.
- visakanv 11y agoInteresting. Mind recommending someone else we ought to read instead?
- galfarragem 11y agoI always recommend Italo Calvino. An underrated Italian writer IMHO. The Baron In The Trees or the Invisible Cities are a good start.
- pilsetnieks 11y agoYou might also like Neal Stephenson's In the beginning... was the command line (http://www.cryptonomicon.com/beginning.html http://www.cryptonomicon.com/beginning.html)