The Ascent of Man

The reason for all these dismal predictions is rooted in the beginnings of the computer industry itself. When computers were the size of a city block and required highly trained technicians to run them, the pundits were predicting that home computers were a pipe dream. Computers would never be small enough, they said, nor accessible to the untrained user. And even if a small, easy-to-use computer were to be developed, it would cost so much that only a favored few would be able to buy one. 

When the critics were dramatically proved wrong on all counts, their tone changed from snipe to hype.This hype touted the advent of home computers as the dawn of a new age. Computers were going to radically change our lives; they were going to do everything like FIFA 16 Hack For Android except wash windows and walk the dog. And who knew? Maybe eventually they'd be able to do that, too--in between taking over every other onerous chore and turning all our children into geniuses.These extreme positions have at least two things in common: neither is true and neither does any good. 

Now that we have met the future of personal computers, that glowing optimism has come back to haunt us. The fact is, most of us are still balancing our checkbooks with pencil and paper (or with a $10 calculator). We've got dirty windows, a dog to walk, and a relatively expensive electronic miracle sitting on our desks. And the problem is not with the computer, but what we were led to expect from it.More home computers are used for entertainment than for any other purpose. What's wrong with that? Nothing, except that we all feel a little guilty about it. 

Computers, after all, were meant for more high-minded purposes, like doing taxes and spreadsheets, and saving recipes.Why can't we look at our home computers as the same kind of luxury entertainment device as a TV or VCR? Any of these can have "serious" uses, but no one gets up in arms if you watch Cheers rather than PBS. 

Or if you record the soaps instead of The Ascent of Man. As for walking dogs and all that, who ever expected the TV to do more than sit there until needed? And computers do have at least one advantage over most other electronic devices: When you talk back to them, they actually listen.As for the most prosaic use of computers, it won't hurt to admit that most of them are entertaining, too. Whether you boot up the machine for word processing or Wizardry, chances are you're going to have  a pretty good time.