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I've thought about this often. My conclusion is that ~all humans "waste" time in some manner or other -- and that this is natural, probably necessary, and good.

I've thought about this often. My conclusion is that ~all humans "waste" time in some manner or other -- and that this is natural, probably necessary, and good. The same argument can be made for sleep. And there might be a useful analogy there... Psychologically "sleeping" (i.e. directing your energies in not-obviously-productive pursuits) bends your brain in a way that a relentless focus on "useful" work does not. This is probably true of all entertainment. Objectively, the person who spends 500 hours getting a 6502 emulator working in JavaScript and then blogging about it, has added more to the world than the person who spends those same hours streaming The Simpsons. ...and also more than those of us who spend 500 hours reading the blogs of people who made crazy useless things happen... But maybe the personal value of the diversionary time spent has some sort of parity..?

borepop 6y ago
It occurs to me to that sometimes "silly" projects can also lead to practical applications. Mainly I think I'm struck by how many techy people have the impulse to pursue these quirky projects, and how there is sort of a poetic spirit to it under the techy exterior. As you say, it's certainly a more interesting and creative use of time than sitting on the couch watching TV.