3 ms·

> Back then, culturally, being a computer person was not as accepted as it is now. One cool thing about the appliance computing revolution (phones and vg conso

by sneak 3y ago

> Back then, culturally, being a computer person was not as accepted as it is now. One cool thing about the appliance computing revolution (phones and vg consoles) is that now most people don't have computers again and "being a computer person" is a thing again.

rob74 3y ago
Yeah, the "computers for non-computer persons" evolved from iMac to iPhone to iPad (plus the Android variants). But the risk is that being a "real computer person" with a real computer might become as outlandish as being a "real photographer" with a real camera has already become.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- closewith 3y ago
  It never evolved to iPads or tablets. Phones are the only computing device for most people.
  - dumpsterdiver 3y ago
    True, unless you consider watching... uh, ASMR videos... as "computing". "I was meditating!"
  - grecy 3y ago
    Apple make more money selling iPads than HP and Dell make on PCs combined [1] [1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/briancaulfield/2011/07/19/apple-didnt-just-sell-more-ipads-than-macs-ios-has-now-eclipsed-dell-and-hps-pc-business-too/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/briancaulfield/2011/07/19/apple...
    - closewith 3y ago
      That just shows that both tablets and desktops are a tiny market.
      - grecy 3y ago
        I'll happily take the tiny market that is $26 billion a year [1]. https://mspoweruser.com/ipad-statistics/ https://mspoweruser.com/ipad-statistics/
- randallsquared 3y ago
  This is already the case. In 2019, I was startled to find that some incoming software engineers at my work didn't own a desktop or laptop... they just expected they'd use whatever computer their work provided.
  - ssully 3y ago
    Do you mean for work use, or for all their computing needs? I’ve never used a personal computer for work.
    - randallsquared 3y ago
      Everything that wasn’t doable on their smartphone. They would use their work computer for personal things because they just didn’t have a “personal” computer other than a phone. Hence my startlement.
      - asdajksah2123 3y ago
        Yeah, I'm seeing this with new hires as well. Several of them don't own computers and rely entirely on smartphones for their computing needs. It's frankly a worrying trend. Smartphones are consumer devices that do not allow the kind of automation, tinkering, scripting, and ownership that computers do. On the flip side it means that I will be more competitive in the job market as I grow older than I was expecting.

by sneak 3y ago

rob74 3y ago

Yeah, the "computers for non-computer persons" evolved from iMac to iPhone to iPad (plus the Android variants). But the risk is that being a "real computer person" with a real computer might become as outlandish as being a "real photographer" with a real camera has already become.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
closewith 3y ago
It never evolved to iPads or tablets. Phones are the only computing device for most people.
- dumpsterdiver 3y ago
  True, unless you consider watching... uh, ASMR videos... as "computing". "I was meditating!"
- grecy 3y ago
  Apple make more money selling iPads than HP and Dell make on PCs combined [1] [1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/briancaulfield/2011/07/19/apple-didnt-just-sell-more-ipads-than-macs-ios-has-now-eclipsed-dell-and-hps-pc-business-too/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/briancaulfield/2011/07/19/apple...
  - closewith 3y ago
    That just shows that both tablets and desktops are a tiny market.
    - grecy 3y ago
      I'll happily take the tiny market that is $26 billion a year [1]. https://mspoweruser.com/ipad-statistics/ https://mspoweruser.com/ipad-statistics/
randallsquared 3y ago
This is already the case. In 2019, I was startled to find that some incoming software engineers at my work didn't own a desktop or laptop... they just expected they'd use whatever computer their work provided.
- ssully 3y ago
  Do you mean for work use, or for all their computing needs? I’ve never used a personal computer for work.
  - randallsquared 3y ago
    Everything that wasn’t doable on their smartphone. They would use their work computer for personal things because they just didn’t have a “personal” computer other than a phone. Hence my startlement.
    - asdajksah2123 3y ago
      Yeah, I'm seeing this with new hires as well. Several of them don't own computers and rely entirely on smartphones for their computing needs. It's frankly a worrying trend. Smartphones are consumer devices that do not allow the kind of automation, tinkering, scripting, and ownership that computers do. On the flip side it means that I will be more competitive in the job market as I grow older than I was expecting.