the future of the computer world (was: Re: Google Gmail mailing list bounces)

[Emanuel Berg]

tomas wrote:

>> ?#2: What do you mean "all the anti-patterns
>> of the pre-Internet age emerge all over
>> again." It sounds interesting anyway so do
>> tell...
>
> You had a fragmented landscape of "online
> services" (AOL, CompuServe etc.) and you
> could only "see" the inhabitants of your
> fragment of the world [...]

Oh, no! That can't happen! I remember years ago
writing many times about the future all
interface-independent use of computer services.
Everyone could use everything, with their own
client(s) - just like I/we do with Gnus for
mail and Gmane, ERC for IRC, Dired for the
filesystem, Emacs-w3m for the web, Emacs for...
uhm, editing files, and so on - because we like
it, we prefer it that way - in much the same
way, I thought in the future, and not a so
distant future, everyone could do the same -
i.e., access any type of service with their own
tools - and if there weren't tools to their
liking, they had suddenly something interesting
to do, much like we do with Emacs (some
configure, some extend, some do [M]ELPA, some
do the real deal, some do a little of
everything). You're saying this is not only
incorrect, but the _opposite_ is happening?

>> ?#1: Do people still use IM? I remember ICQ
>> (I Seek You; Israel 1996 [1]). Those were
>> good days - at least if you only remember
>> the good stuff!
>
> They do use very diverse, monstrous mutations
> of IM, all incompatible with each other:
> whatsapp, instagram, telegram, heck, twitter
> is also a take in the IM theme.
>
> Most of them go through a centralised,
> corporate-controlled, risk-capital fueled
> service. Do I need to say more?

I already know that I don't like it.
But absolutely do say more if you can/would
like to...

>> No doubt they are good guys. Paying for
>> a service isn't something I would never do
>> for principal reasons, it is more like it
>> seems like trouble doing it practically.
>> I mean, how do you do it? Literally?
>
> Bank transfer? Heck -- posteo does care that
> much about your privacy that you even can pay
> in cash (for 12 months in advance).

OK, next time I get into problems with mail
I'll sed 12EUR to DE ... only I can still use
Gnus, right?

:)

-- 
underground experts united
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