The world of alternative operating systems was foreign to me before this class. I had heard of Linux but had never really looked at an alternative operating system or known anyone who uses one. As we were shown examples throughout class, I could see why you would want to use one. The idea of free software is quite compelling! In an age when we are continually asked to cut more and more from school budgets and further constrain our spending at home, it only seems to make sense that if viable options exist for alternative operating systems, why not pursue them? That said, I understand the comfort and familiarity that comes with using something that you've always used. I consider myself pretty open to trying new things but had a little bit of a set back with an alternative operating system this week. I downloaded the Slax Operating System this week and had every intention of using it for 3 days for the assignment. Ten minutes into using it, I became frustrated with my inability to access the Internet from the OS. (I checked my network connections and all that good stuff). I have enough experience to know that this is probably just a fluke and either my disc didn't burn correctly or there is a glitch with running Slax on a Mac. However, most people I know would give up after this one experience. (If anyone has a solution for me, I'm all ears!) In typical human fashion, I pretty much have given up on Slax after that experience, and am typing on my Mac with the MacOS configuration. There definitely is comfort with something familiar! That said, I'm interested in trying another system and will do so in the next week. Time seems to have gotten away from me this week!
The Triumph of the Nerds video is compelling to me for one main reason . . . I can't believe that anyone could be so committed to "an idea" that hasn't been done before! And not just one person, a whole group of likeminded people who networked really well! As I watched the video, I kept questioning whether ideas prosper now like they did in the late 70s and 80s. Since I'm fairly young, my perspective on whether this has changed is somewhat naive. With that in mind, I feel like corporate America today does not allow for this fairly free sharing of ideas and collaboration. Although, the Open Source community seems to be the exception to this. I'm assuming we're watching the conclusion of this video for next week. I look forward to seeing how it ends and keep pondering what it would look like 10 years later.
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4 comments:
I know exactly what you mean about questioning whether ideas blossom now compared to how they did in that time and place. I guess the word I keep coming up with is zeitgeist. It was just the spirit of that time that allowed for that kind of collaboration and productivity with computers. It seems like a unique thing that we may not see again anytime soon.
I agree with what you said about so many like-minded people coming together to pursue an idea. Its sad, but I think that spirit is becoming rare due to competition and greed.
While I was watching the clips, I was also thinking about the level of collaboration and does is exsist today. I don't know that it does, just as Bill stated I think competition and greed is a factor.
When I read your question about whether ideas would fly today like they did in the 70s, I am torn. On one hand, I think there's no way because of all of the hoops to jump through. On the other hand, I think it's happening every single day and we are living right in its midst. When I think about Wikis, Nings, Twitter, Social Networking, Social Bookmarking, Kindle, not to mention all of the other things that I don't know about, it's clear to me that innovative ideas are indeed popping up all over. I think the Internet has made the sharing of ideas so fast and widespread that the potential is even greater than in the 70s. Then they were all working in the same building with like-minded people. Now people can be 5000 miles apart and collaborating on a new idea. Lots of innovative technology nerds are making fortunes, but will never be as famous as Bill Gates; just think about the nobodies who started YouTube.
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