by
Jaron Lanier
xxi
Introduction to the Paperback Edition
0
terms
1
notes
xxvii
A tablet doesn't really enable one to fully run one's own affairs on one's own terms. A personal computer is designed so that you own your own data. PCs enabled millions of people to run their own affairs. The PC strengthened the middle class. Tablets are instead optimized for delivering entertainment, but the real problem is that you can't use them without ceding information superiority to someone else. In most cases, you cannot even turn them on without giving over personal information.
He shies away from what I think is the larger problem here, which is that tablets make it very hard for you to go under the hood. They are expressly designed for an easy-to-use UI at the expense of allowing the consumer to understand how it all works. You're not encouraged to tinker or write your own commands. If you want to build an app for it, you'll have to get a separate development device.
A tablet doesn't really enable one to fully run one's own affairs on one's own terms. A personal computer is designed so that you own your own data. PCs enabled millions of people to run their own affairs. The PC strengthened the middle class. Tablets are instead optimized for delivering entertainment, but the real problem is that you can't use them without ceding information superiority to someone else. In most cases, you cannot even turn them on without giving over personal information.
He shies away from what I think is the larger problem here, which is that tablets make it very hard for you to go under the hood. They are expressly designed for an easy-to-use UI at the expense of allowing the consumer to understand how it all works. You're not encouraged to tinker or write your own commands. If you want to build an app for it, you'll have to get a separate development device.