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Funny that the same could have been said about actual literacy several hundred years ago. Who ever needs to be able to read and write in their everyday life? Wh

Funny that the same could have been said about actual literacy several hundred years ago. Who ever needs to be able to read and write in their everyday life? Why should I care? It's a thing far removed from everyday life, unless you're a trader or a priest or a scholar or some other expert. Today you can't imagine an adult person being unable to read, in most of the world. Except the tech is already there, and you use it with or without understanding. You use a credit card, electricity, Internet and other communications, some kind of computing device, your entire life depends on it. And IT shapes your life way more than any other tech, so it probably makes sense to get a grasp on the general concepts at least. No need to become an IT expert, similarly to how there's no need to become a Shakespeare to be literate. And yes, being tech illiterate can fuck you up very visibly and personally, for example by losing money from a stolen credit card.

bonoboTP 7y ago
I think a better metaphor is driving. In many countries, like the US, driving is extremely widespread and most adults cannot function in the job market without being able to drive. However only a minority of them knows how cars work under the hood. Most people understand the pedals and the steering wheel and that's it. Same in tech. People understand there are screens, there are buttons you can click, text input fields you can type things in with the keyboard, on/off switch, sleep/standby, etc. All the things needed to operate it. > for example by losing money from a stolen credit card. I'm in Europe and I don't know anybody who had this happen to them, nor is identity theft a thing here. And this is mostly about phishing and social engineering anyway, not about understanding the tech background of package managers and digital signatures.

bonoboTP 7y ago

I think a better metaphor is driving. In many countries, like the US, driving is extremely widespread and most adults cannot function in the job market without being able to drive. However only a minority of them knows how cars work under the hood. Most people understand the pedals and the steering wheel and that's it. Same in tech. People understand there are screens, there are buttons you can click, text input fields you can type things in with the keyboard, on/off switch, sleep/standby, etc. All the things needed to operate it. > for example by losing money from a stolen credit card. I'm in Europe and I don't know anybody who had this happen to them, nor is identity theft a thing here. And this is mostly about phishing and social engineering anyway, not about understanding the tech background of package managers and digital signatures.