If EN works for you I think that’s great. I left and returned to it a couple of times myself before saying goodbye. There was a lot to like.
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I know exactly what you are talking about. Here are my random ramblings based upon what I’ve observed:
Many people, even in 2022, don’t IMAGINE the computer in general as anything other than an expensive scratch pad, a filing cabinet analog and as a new incarnation of telephone and television. What did they do with a filing cabinet? Pile paper in it. What do they do with their computer? Pile digital documents in it. All on the desktop no less! The very CONCEPT of digital post-its is witness to this!
They don’t even begin to think about translating workflow (filing, bill paying, decision-making, etc, etc, etc) to a computer. To me, all of that means making the computer a part of a way of life, even A way of life. A lot of people are still resistant to that.
I think many people would not imagine a computer as a source of JOY.
Personally, if people are resistant to “going further”, show them SPECIFICALLY how something SPECIFIC that they do regularly could be eliminated or made easier. I find that showing works better than telling. If they are still not convinced, I leave it alone.
Many people don’t want to pay additional money for software.
Many people aren’t very interested in learning something new (in general, I find, actually).
Many people are still fundamentally afraid of computers.
I’m not sure that any of this will change very much. There will always be trend-setters, and “new ways” will be quickly learned by those who have no knowledge of the “old ways” and that’s how progress happens. But trend-setters are fairly rare. The rest of the world just follows.
Some brains are wired for technology, and others not. I don’t think the human brain has really changed all that much. The ubiquity of computers probably doesn’t change the ratio of people “cut out” to deal with such thing to the people who just are not. Probably that is why there is so much attention given to anything that can be run by “smart” software. So that those who don’t want to know can still partake (and thus spend money!).
I think there is actually some danger here. People who are not technically inclined become more and more dependent upon “smart” devices that they know nothing about and don’t want to know about. Topic for a whole conversation in itself.
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Spot on! What transformed my own thinking years ago was realizing that I was doing work that the computer should be doing. Since then, I’ve tried to find ways of allowing software to do the things software should, and leave me to do the things that I’m good at.
Like everyone else, there is still a sweet spot between developing a workflow where the computer is doing the work (i’m trying the avoid the word automation, but that really is what I’m talking about) vs. the ease of just grinding something out by hand.
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I stopped bothering. back in the day, I used to help a lot of people with computer stuff. I stopped. If somebody is really interested, the knowledge is a Google search or some YouTube videos away. I just deal with the fact that people don’t care and are completely happy with using amazing hardware to watch cat photos and text friends.
I care about my usage, knowledge, and efficiency. But I am not responsible for people’s laziness. And yes, it drives me nuts watching people using their hardware in completely inefficient ways. But, why waste my time.
I have the same approach with several topics. I care about them, I used to help people out or give out suggestions. I don’t bother any more. Examples:
- I love cycling. 90% of the people have the wrong saddle height. And 99% don’t wipe the chain clean.
- I care about correct driving. 90% of the people use terrible steering wheel technique, mirror technique, etc.
- I care about tools. And 90% of people buy the cheapest set of screwdrivers and wonder why they don’t last.
- Many more
And so on. YouTube videos available on all of them. If somebody asks and shows genuine interest, that’s a different story.
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