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If Google has their way, a big chunk of the web will be absorbed by AMP. I don't understand why so many talented people at Google continue to support this kind

by ksk 6y ago

If Google has their way, a big chunk of the web will be absorbed by AMP. I don't understand why so many talented people at Google continue to support this kind of takeover. It goes completely against the hacker ethic that built the internet.

zepto 6y ago
Why would you expect Google’s to behave differently? Anyone who had an old school hacker ethic retired from Google years ago.
- stephenhuey 6y ago
  Yes, it’s true that the faceless corporation would allegedly not care, but there are still human beings working there who would benefit from keeping the open web alive (so would their grandmothers, grandchildren, friends, etc). Google isn’t completely run by Skynet yet.
  - zepto 6y ago
    Sure but google selects against those people.
- xg15 6y ago
  So, where did the old school hackers go to then? Also, this seems odd. Being inside Google is still the position where you can influence this stuff the most.
  - zepto 6y ago
    They got rich and retired, and were replaced by hungrier people with less of the old school mentality. As this process continued, the amount of influence the old guard had diminished and the appeal of retiring and working on hobby projects increased.
- pdonis 6y ago
  > Anyone who had an old school hacker ethic retired from Google years ago. Some of the Go developers fall into this category, and they aren't retired yet. However, they are walled off inside one particular part of Google, and it's a part that is carefully isolated from the kinds of things that raise the issues under discussion.
- ksk 6y ago
  I would expect someone with principles to behave differently. There certainly are principled people at Google (the recent-ish google walkouts come to mind). Maybe the principles I'm thinking of are no longer valued at Google.
finnthehuman 6y ago
>I don't understand why so many talented people at Google continue to support this kind of takeover. It's easy talk yourself into a position that boils down to "I trust us." Not only are people disinterested in designing around that, most people don't think of it as a problem. Partially because they don't always engage system thinking to that extent, and also it's grueling to admit that your ability to make decisions should not be trusted. Sure, it's easy to say "I don't trust myself" when asking someone else for a code review. Its expected to miss some things and motives are not really at question. Removing the ability to change goals after the fact, mislead or break promises is different in kind.

by ksk 6y ago

zepto 6y ago

Why would you expect Google’s to behave differently? Anyone who had an old school hacker ethic retired from Google years ago.

stephenhuey 6y ago
Yes, it’s true that the faceless corporation would allegedly not care, but there are still human beings working there who would benefit from keeping the open web alive (so would their grandmothers, grandchildren, friends, etc). Google isn’t completely run by Skynet yet.
- zepto 6y ago
  Sure but google selects against those people.
xg15 6y ago
So, where did the old school hackers go to then? Also, this seems odd. Being inside Google is still the position where you can influence this stuff the most.
- zepto 6y ago
  They got rich and retired, and were replaced by hungrier people with less of the old school mentality. As this process continued, the amount of influence the old guard had diminished and the appeal of retiring and working on hobby projects increased.
pdonis 6y ago
> Anyone who had an old school hacker ethic retired from Google years ago. Some of the Go developers fall into this category, and they aren't retired yet. However, they are walled off inside one particular part of Google, and it's a part that is carefully isolated from the kinds of things that raise the issues under discussion.
ksk 6y ago
I would expect someone with principles to behave differently. There certainly are principled people at Google (the recent-ish google walkouts come to mind). Maybe the principles I'm thinking of are no longer valued at Google.

finnthehuman 6y ago

>I don't understand why so many talented people at Google continue to support this kind of takeover. It's easy talk yourself into a position that boils down to "I trust us." Not only are people disinterested in designing around that, most people don't think of it as a problem. Partially because they don't always engage system thinking to that extent, and also it's grueling to admit that your ability to make decisions should not be trusted. Sure, it's easy to say "I don't trust myself" when asking someone else for a code review. Its expected to miss some things and motives are not really at question. Removing the ability to change goals after the fact, mislead or break promises is different in kind.