Comments on: Our technologies shape us http://fronttoback.org/2008/09/01/our-technologies-shape-us/ Your users experience it that way around. Wed, 27 Apr 2011 12:59:29 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: AJK http://fronttoback.org/2008/09/01/our-technologies-shape-us/comment-page-1/#comment-3258 AJK Tue, 09 Sep 2008 07:42:25 +0000 http://fronttoback.org/2008/09/01/our-technologies-shape-us/#comment-3258 Technology doesn't drive change, it facilitates change. Wording can change the meaning of life dramatically. :) Technology doesn’t drive change, it facilitates change. Wording can change the meaning of life dramatically. :)

]]> By: philbuk http://fronttoback.org/2008/09/01/our-technologies-shape-us/comment-page-1/#comment-3006 philbuk Tue, 02 Sep 2008 20:31:51 +0000 http://fronttoback.org/2008/09/01/our-technologies-shape-us/#comment-3006 Thanks, Nico. I think I actually need to hear more from you on this. Seems you've been thinking about this for longer than me. Working directly with people using technology invariably teaches you the same lesson: you can't force people to adopt anything that they don't want to. So I agree. Technology can't drive/force social change. It can create the means for new behaviours to come into being. But it can only do it one step at a time. Because the way people use technology tends to outstrip the vision of its designers. Thanks, Nico.

I think I actually need to hear more from you on this. Seems you’ve been thinking about this for longer than me.

Working directly with people using technology invariably teaches you the same lesson: you can’t force people to adopt anything that they don’t want to. So I agree. Technology can’t drive/force social change. It can create the means for new behaviours to come into being. But it can only do it one step at a time. Because the way people use technology tends to outstrip the vision of its designers.

]]> By: Nico Macdonald http://fronttoback.org/2008/09/01/our-technologies-shape-us/comment-page-1/#comment-2975 Nico Macdonald Tue, 02 Sep 2008 06:24:15 +0000 http://fronttoback.org/2008/09/01/our-technologies-shape-us/#comment-2975 I often refer to that rather profound Churchill quote (at least the original version), which seems to demonstrate a depth of understanding rarely shown by contemporary politicians. Technologies are often created to solve current problems, but pressage new possibilities, which those with (conscious) insight and creativity exploit. In a roundabout way desktop publishing tools – created to make ink on paper printing more efficient – laid the foundations for online publishing. New tools also allow unconscious phenomena to take form – such as personal publishing, in the form of Weblogging– and these phenomena may even drive the adoption (and adaptation) of technologies. But we need to be wary of the idea that technology simply drives social change, which is the current – and un-Churchillian – view. I often refer to that rather profound Churchill quote (at least the original version), which seems to demonstrate a depth of understanding rarely shown by contemporary politicians. Technologies are often created to solve current problems, but pressage new possibilities, which those with (conscious) insight and creativity exploit. In a roundabout way desktop publishing tools – created to make ink on paper printing more efficient – laid the foundations for online publishing. New tools also allow unconscious phenomena to take form – such as personal publishing, in the form of Weblogging– and these phenomena may even drive the adoption (and adaptation) of technologies. But we need to be wary of the idea that technology simply drives social change, which is the current – and un-Churchillian – view.

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