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I know several people, old and young, who do not currently own a computer, laptop or otherwise, and instead solely use a smartphone for any and all communicatio

I know several people, old and young, who do not currently own a computer, laptop or otherwise, and instead solely use a smartphone for any and all communication, internet, etc. I have two nieces that are high school aged and I do not think either has a computer. They use their iPhones for 100% of their activities. As someone who started with an Apple II in my bedroom and has had multiple machines at all times ever since, trying to do anything on a phone feels insane to me, let alone trying to do everything. Yet there are whole generations now that will know nothing but. And I have made older friends who are not incredibly well off, and thus a laptop would be a luxury item, but a phone is a necessity- where I live now, a phone number and Whatsapp are required to get almost anything done. Thus, the priority on the phone. It very much is a shift to me that makes me feel different; My nieces have only minimal typing skills because of this (although, they can text on a phone quickly, they aren't formatting multipage documents or consistently doing 90-100WPM for hours and end on their phones). They have no understanding of any modern operating systems involving windows or even multitasking. They spend so much time on their phones but I feel they are seeing considerably less of what's out there due to the nature of the device. They can spend hours on TikTok. They would never spend hours with 10 tabs of wikipedia open. Not on a phone. I know it's weird to think of 'productiveness' when it comes to just, 'being on the internet'.. but when I see young people only ever on a phone, and I think to myself at that age, having multiple monitors, multiple computers at home, all dialed in and reading different webpages, chat windows, PDFs, having docs open at the same time- I feel like that was "speedrunning learning" compared to what they are able to do now on only a 5" phone screen.

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chadlavi 4y ago
The things you're lamenting their lack of access to/familiarity with are things that won't be relevant when they're adults. These are old fogey things that will die with the likes of us. Desktop computing is the cursive handwriting of gen z+.
- mk_stjames 4y ago
  I'm fairly confident that at the pinnacles of most fields there will be desktop-looking machines in use for a while. I don't see engineers analyzing fluid dynamics simulations and designing jet turbines on a cell phone. Even if the cell phones of 2045 are as powerful as the most badass workstation of today. The UI matters. Aside: I love the term 'old fogey'. Because I think if you recognize that term these days... you've now become the old fogey.
- kortilla 4y ago
  > Desktop computing is the cursive handwriting of gen z+. Not really. Cursive handwriting was for efficiency of writing. Desktop/laptop computing just allows you to do completely different things. There isn’t a whiff of it going away in the professional world.
- snhly 4y ago
  > Desktop computing is the cursive handwriting of gen z+. Just because a generation hasn't had the time to upskill and branch out into alternative technologies yet doesn't make their consumer choices prophetic. Desktop computers are by far the better form factor, for the same reason that a spacious study room is better than typing in a closet. The main barrier is a financial one. Being able to do your work and your communication in a larger three dimensional space than the 5 inch smart phone window is a privilege. That's the main reason gen-z don't do it yet. They're mostly a bunch of broke people, at the bottom of the career ladder, near the bottom of the social capital ladder, and thereby still expected to reply immediately to bosses, colleagues, new love interests, additionally expected to do it all on their limited budget, which they choose to direct towards what they value most right now in tech: portability. Once they have a bit of money saved up, and less pressure on them to be 24/7 on-call, I'm pretty sure they too will start installing desktops into the corners of their private studies. Especially when the myopia and neck problems start to kick in.
- sneeuwman 4y ago
  It's not Desktops that are not going away, it's the keyboards which are still and for the foreseeable future the most efficient means of human-computer input. Not voice, not thought (which will be, expectedly, just a voice transmitted by other means) are not faster than key strokes. Swipes on the screen are debilitatingly slow and painful (crippling in the long run). Cursive handwriting is not going away either for paper diaries and similar things for the same reason: efficiency of input.

deleted 4y ago

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chadlavi 4y ago

The things you're lamenting their lack of access to/familiarity with are things that won't be relevant when they're adults. These are old fogey things that will die with the likes of us. Desktop computing is the cursive handwriting of gen z+.

mk_stjames 4y ago
I'm fairly confident that at the pinnacles of most fields there will be desktop-looking machines in use for a while. I don't see engineers analyzing fluid dynamics simulations and designing jet turbines on a cell phone. Even if the cell phones of 2045 are as powerful as the most badass workstation of today. The UI matters. Aside: I love the term 'old fogey'. Because I think if you recognize that term these days... you've now become the old fogey.
kortilla 4y ago
> Desktop computing is the cursive handwriting of gen z+. Not really. Cursive handwriting was for efficiency of writing. Desktop/laptop computing just allows you to do completely different things. There isn’t a whiff of it going away in the professional world.
snhly 4y ago
> Desktop computing is the cursive handwriting of gen z+. Just because a generation hasn't had the time to upskill and branch out into alternative technologies yet doesn't make their consumer choices prophetic. Desktop computers are by far the better form factor, for the same reason that a spacious study room is better than typing in a closet. The main barrier is a financial one. Being able to do your work and your communication in a larger three dimensional space than the 5 inch smart phone window is a privilege. That's the main reason gen-z don't do it yet. They're mostly a bunch of broke people, at the bottom of the career ladder, near the bottom of the social capital ladder, and thereby still expected to reply immediately to bosses, colleagues, new love interests, additionally expected to do it all on their limited budget, which they choose to direct towards what they value most right now in tech: portability. Once they have a bit of money saved up, and less pressure on them to be 24/7 on-call, I'm pretty sure they too will start installing desktops into the corners of their private studies. Especially when the myopia and neck problems start to kick in.
sneeuwman 4y ago
It's not Desktops that are not going away, it's the keyboards which are still and for the foreseeable future the most efficient means of human-computer input. Not voice, not thought (which will be, expectedly, just a voice transmitted by other means) are not faster than key strokes. Swipes on the screen are debilitatingly slow and painful (crippling in the long run). Cursive handwriting is not going away either for paper diaries and similar things for the same reason: efficiency of input.