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I think equating "only using F, A, and G" with "don't know how cars work" is plain wrong in this metaphor. Not knowing how cars work would equate more to "don't
by black_puppydog 6y ago
I think equating "only using F, A, and G" with "don't know how cars work" is plain wrong in this metaphor. Not knowing how cars work would equate more to "don't know what a router/switch does" which is... fine I guess, for most users who just plug a plastic box into an outlet.
Only using the 2 or 3 major websites, in car speak, would likely more look like "only know the road to the mall, the job, and the daycare and doesn't even realize there are other places one might conceivably go" which is... not fine in my book, and yes, I'm frustrated about that.
- jacobwilliamroy 6y agoDropping the metaphor. People don't use their network equipment to its full potential, because they think the web == internet. So they have all this crazy equipment with functions they never even imagined, and only use it to browse a few websites. So I actually think the issue is even worse than what you describe and I'm frustrated about it too.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- xnyan 6y ago>People don't use their network equipment to its full potential, because they think the web == internet I see that a lot of my fellow nerds have this feeling and I'm honestly, non-trolly curious about why this is. People have wants and needs (get email from boss, watch video, lookup a recipe) and they learn how to do that specific task. Most people don't know what the internet is, or what a even what computer is beyond a simple mental model that allows them to do what they think they want to do. For most things, this is exactly how you I and everyone else lives their lives too. Like everyone else I'm sure there are systems that you use on a daily basis which you don't understand beyond the specific steps that you need to know in order to accomplish your task. I don't have anything beyond the most basic pharmacological understanding of how the prescription drugs I take work, and I probably never will yet I depend on them daily. Most people will never understand most things. I see that as utterly normal.
- nefitty 6y agoTo me, the unusual part is that there are people who live with and use systems on a daily basis without ever becoming curious about them. I mean, hours and hours of every day, dependent on the internet and people never stop and ask, “What is this thing? How does it work?” In that vein, I was pretty impressed the other day by the Wikipedia article on traffic lights.
- Larrikin 6y agoWhat kind of functionality are you referring to? Ad blocking at the network level? Local network of files? Wouldn't mind a weekend project for something cool.
- jacobwilliamroy 6y agoYes all of those things. One thing about this network illiteracy that I actually like, is that I can go on craigslist and pick up some pretty kickass hardware for 10-20$, because no one knows what it is, its true power, what its worth.
- Larrikin 6y agoI was hoping for more examples than the two I just thought of off the top of my head.
- jacobwilliamroy 6y agoTry load balancing your internet traffic over an array of directional wifi antennas, all connected to different, legally accessible, networks.
- nix23 6y agohttps://freifunk.net/en/ https://freifunk.net/en/ It's actually a cool project, but never got really big.