Maybe a lesser-known computer futurist
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As a big DEC fanboi, I often have to quote... "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home." Ken Olsen, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) 1977 (As I did a few moments ago on another thread.) But earlier this month I read a book by John Kemeny -- creator of BASIC. "Man and the Computer", 1972 He makes some predictions through the year 2000. Some pretty much correct, others not so much. Mainly he predicts people using teletypes or terminals at home to dial into their networks to work on a dozen or so central computers. Where he was wrong was that home computers were about to be a reality -- and few people would use a dumb terminal at home. But still, technology aside, he describes such activities as using a computer to order groceries for home delivery. And E-mail, news reports, etc.
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As a big DEC fanboi, I often have to quote... "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home." Ken Olsen, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) 1977 (As I did a few moments ago on another thread.) But earlier this month I read a book by John Kemeny -- creator of BASIC. "Man and the Computer", 1972 He makes some predictions through the year 2000. Some pretty much correct, others not so much. Mainly he predicts people using teletypes or terminals at home to dial into their networks to work on a dozen or so central computers. Where he was wrong was that home computers were about to be a reality -- and few people would use a dumb terminal at home. But still, technology aside, he describes such activities as using a computer to order groceries for home delivery. And E-mail, news reports, etc.
I was a DEC fanboi too when my paycheck and wide eyed learning was at stake. Now after retiring after 30 years of running a Mom n' Pop PC support shop, I don't think regular people should have computers at home. Reason being, when the internet became a thing, people who never had one at home, now had to and that caused a whole new host of problems we were loosely responsible for (If we wanted to eat). Microsoft gave them the folder concept with little manila colored folders. Do you think that helped? not one bit. Now the only ones left of the normal walk of life, who buy and have pcs are retirees and still can't connect to a printer nor yet know what an Ip address is. They approach their cars the same way. So it's not the devices, but mankind. We have PTSD about it all now and have become very jaded and recluse and I miss my people.
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I was a DEC fanboi too when my paycheck and wide eyed learning was at stake. Now after retiring after 30 years of running a Mom n' Pop PC support shop, I don't think regular people should have computers at home. Reason being, when the internet became a thing, people who never had one at home, now had to and that caused a whole new host of problems we were loosely responsible for (If we wanted to eat). Microsoft gave them the folder concept with little manila colored folders. Do you think that helped? not one bit. Now the only ones left of the normal walk of life, who buy and have pcs are retirees and still can't connect to a printer nor yet know what an Ip address is. They approach their cars the same way. So it's not the devices, but mankind. We have PTSD about it all now and have become very jaded and recluse and I miss my people.
Ron Anders wrote:
I miss my people
I suppose that's why we're both here on CP.
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Ron Anders wrote:
I miss my people
I suppose that's why we're both here on CP.
Yes.
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As a big DEC fanboi, I often have to quote... "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home." Ken Olsen, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) 1977 (As I did a few moments ago on another thread.) But earlier this month I read a book by John Kemeny -- creator of BASIC. "Man and the Computer", 1972 He makes some predictions through the year 2000. Some pretty much correct, others not so much. Mainly he predicts people using teletypes or terminals at home to dial into their networks to work on a dozen or so central computers. Where he was wrong was that home computers were about to be a reality -- and few people would use a dumb terminal at home. But still, technology aside, he describes such activities as using a computer to order groceries for home delivery. And E-mail, news reports, etc.
PIEBALDconsult wrote:
"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."
Along with that little gem, we have what Microsoft said with Windows 8: People will want a touch-first interface on their desktop PCs.
The difficult we do right away... ...the impossible takes slightly longer.
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PIEBALDconsult wrote:
"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."
Along with that little gem, we have what Microsoft said with Windows 8: People will want a touch-first interface on their desktop PCs.
The difficult we do right away... ...the impossible takes slightly longer.
I still occasionally use a Win 8 system, but I never use the touch screen.
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As a big DEC fanboi, I often have to quote... "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home." Ken Olsen, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) 1977 (As I did a few moments ago on another thread.) But earlier this month I read a book by John Kemeny -- creator of BASIC. "Man and the Computer", 1972 He makes some predictions through the year 2000. Some pretty much correct, others not so much. Mainly he predicts people using teletypes or terminals at home to dial into their networks to work on a dozen or so central computers. Where he was wrong was that home computers were about to be a reality -- and few people would use a dumb terminal at home. But still, technology aside, he describes such activities as using a computer to order groceries for home delivery. And E-mail, news reports, etc.
PIEBALDconsult wrote:
he describes such activities as using a computer to order groceries for home delivery. And E-mail, news reports, etc.
Definitely a visionary! I recall my first use of online services for personal purposes. In ca 1985 the Bank of America offered online banking services via a 300 baud modem ( a story in itself ) on a computer with a break-thru 256k of RAM. It took about 30 minutes to check my balance, more to make a transfer between savings and checking. Prior to that I used an ASR33 with an acoustic-coupled modem to contact the computer (a building-sized thing) at school for a technology demonstration at the County Fair in 1978. That was state of the art then, and the "technology" we were demonstrating was a program to print the daily horoscope of a Fair visitor. But that doesn't count as personal services...
Will Rogers never met me.
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PIEBALDconsult wrote:
"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."
Along with that little gem, we have what Microsoft said with Windows 8: People will want a touch-first interface on their desktop PCs.
The difficult we do right away... ...the impossible takes slightly longer.
