Quote:
Originally Posted by barryem
I hate to disagree with someone who's agreeing with me, but. 
I don't think it's off-topic at all. "Magnificent Ambersons" is about how society is affected by a huge shift in technology. I suggested it because I think it's good reading to get perspective on this topic.
Our shift to an internet economy is new, of course, but the earlier shift to a car based economy was almost as big a change and understanding the impact of it gives insights into the impact of the present shift. I didn't suggest the book just because it's a good read.
Barry |
The impact of the car on US society is understated in three main areas: worker mobility, sex, and urban "sprawl". The second should speak for itself (parking has multiple meanings now), and the other two created suburbs and greatly diminished railroads.
The internet has had similar less-understood effects. Not just in commerce but also in communications, both public and private, and social interaction. This month alone a governor had to quit and his entire economy is under legal scrutiny, all because he and his associates failed to understand that even "private" internet chats can be opened to the public. (Mind you, being idiot scum had more than a bit to do with it.)
Technogical change is constant and it always come with unexpected second and third order side effects as change ripples out.
One big one I'm eagerly awaiting is StarLink and its brethren.
Internet, part 2.