Sunday, February 15, 2004
Source code leak coverage reveals widespread lack of understanding of computers [Bill Thompson writing for BBC News]
As I hope my posts to this blog will indicate, I am an advocate of making things easier to use and letting the user get on with things without worrying about how the technology underneath it all actually works. But Bill Thompson argues (convincingly) that we also need to keep up with the other side of this equation: educating people about at least the rudiments of how new technology works so that they can a) use it better and b) protect themselves when things go wrong.
The backdrop for these remarks is firstly the recent leak of Windows source code, with the press struggling to explain to the general public exactly what source code is, and secondly the big holes that keep appearing in Windows security, again with the press struggling to explain exactly what the problem is. No complex computer system will ever be 100% bug free, and making it easy to use is just part of the solution - proper education about what computers are, how they do what they do, and what steps are needed to cope with potential problems, has become a forgotten priority.
As I hope my posts to this blog will indicate, I am an advocate of making things easier to use and letting the user get on with things without worrying about how the technology underneath it all actually works. But Bill Thompson argues (convincingly) that we also need to keep up with the other side of this equation: educating people about at least the rudiments of how new technology works so that they can a) use it better and b) protect themselves when things go wrong.
The backdrop for these remarks is firstly the recent leak of Windows source code, with the press struggling to explain to the general public exactly what source code is, and secondly the big holes that keep appearing in Windows security, again with the press struggling to explain exactly what the problem is. No complex computer system will ever be 100% bug free, and making it easy to use is just part of the solution - proper education about what computers are, how they do what they do, and what steps are needed to cope with potential problems, has become a forgotten priority.
(c) 2003-2005 Russell Beale
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