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I was reflecting on old technologies that were supposedly revolutionary at the time, like palm pilots, and what value they really provided. Like, I can imagine
by uludag 2y ago
I was reflecting on old technologies that were supposedly revolutionary at the time, like palm pilots, and what value they really provided. Like, I can imagine a someone at that time using a palm pilot and claiming that it's making them more "productive."
Looking back though, such technologies are nothing compared to what we have. So there's a perceived gap between our current state of technology (LLMs etc.) and the past, yet the gains in productivity don't seem to match this perception (e.g. if our tools are 1000x better, why do I feel only like 1.1x more productive. revolutionary AI tools? still, I only feel at most 1.1x more productive in life in general).
My idea is that such technologies' utility is secondary to their signaling power. Like, users seeing value in Apple Intelligence isn't the point. Rather, integrating AI into your product is a signal of competitive prowess. And using AI, even if it makes you less productive and produce worse work, signals your faith in technological progress and innovation.
- grishka 2y agoThe productivity improvement is negative because of how much of everything is now a "product" instead of just a tool. Whenever you open something, especially after not using it for a while, you're met with an obstacle course of in-your-face modals and popovers about new features that you don't give a shit about. Software used to let you get your job done more efficiently. Installing a new app and learning to use it felt like discovering a superpower. Now it feels like a chore. Now it feels like computers don't serve people any more, but the other way around.
- notsydonia 2y agoThis! Rather than focusing on a robust, bug-free "it just works" product - the original Steve Jobs vision embodied in late 90s/early 2000s Apple advertising, the offerings are desktop computers with hundreds of "cool" things you can do, like we're all teenagers. And once you click away all the pop-ups and disable the unwanted features, you're left with software that has a bug in it that's precisely the same as three versions ago. As for Apple Intelligence, I think I am really weird but when I am trying to find 'the answer' to something, I find the research process super informative and always get fresh ideas or new, peripheral input as I go.
- DamnInteresting 2y agoAgreed, I strongly dislike this trend of "new feature tours" on application startup. When I launch an application it's because I have a task I need to complete, and these dumb popups just step in the way and slow me down.