Does GenZ want to live in the past?
It was that good in the 90s, enshittification is only more visible now as you have gotten older and better at identifying it.
The worst damage to computers was done by U.S. Congress in 1972 when they fired ARPA IPTO that invented the Internet and the foundations of everything we now have in enshittified form. The direction was fantastic until then.
The sick sad history of computer-aided collaboration
https://www.quora.com/Who-invented-the-modern-computer-look-and-feel/answer/Harri-K-Hiltunen
(long story)Bullshit. This sounds like a dumbshit conservative article written in hopes to belittle gen z into boomer thinking.
Tell me without telling me that You didn’t understand anything what was written in the article or you didn’t even read the article?
You beat me to the punch. Yes & thank you. -From a fortunate & somewhat observant and empathetic Gen X’er that owns an honest awareness for not only our generational woes, but all the subsequent generations that the Boomers have F’d over as well.
Maybe we (Gen X’ers) feel somewhat, guilty for not going harder. Perhaps by the time we figured our way through the system we were so initially disgusted by, we abandoned our F The Man ideals and took the route of the Happy Days comfortable Boomer route? Please be kind, it’s late here & this is just more of a rant. Perhaps there are some that may feel somewhat similar? Or not. It is a wide spectrum of people we are considering in this conversation.
“to live in the past” is so fucking dumb, it shows that the person who wrote that title and the publisher who approved it thinks depending in AI, not caring about the data collected from you, jumping into whatever new popular thing and never having any critical thoughts about where this is all going is a good thing and the future.
They’re actually living in the now and making choices from that and for the future, they understand the objectively bad practices and shitty behaviour of the late stage capitalism we’re living in.The sad thing is they aren’t really equipped to live in any world but the one being created for them. All the education indicators are trending down. They can’t do much without an internet connection and apps
Tbf non Gen-Z would alao struggle if we’d remove their intermet sevices suddenly.
It feels like everyone in the cushy countries more or less forgot how to exist outside the their world
If this was asked in China, I bet nobody would seriously say “I wanna live in the past”
(at least not in the context of traveling back to the 1950s or something like that…)
I wonder if their being extremely poor in the recent past might have anything to do with that
God dang, Ima try to get this correct. It may be possible that we are trying to create a reality that we will be nostalgic for simply because we created this “content” for the sake of retroactively being attracted to this “content” because it was created and existed in the first place because a friggin’ dumbass created and or initially posted it? F my A. This is stupid & I am part of it. Fuck!
Is this anything new at all?
Even back in the day, you had people wanting to live in the recent past, because the past usually gets romanticised.
So people in the 1960s might have a rosy view of the turn of the century, and want to go back to the 1930 days of art deco and balls, or those today, that might want to return what they believe to be glory days of 1960. Even if it isn’t actually realistic to how you might live in the past. The average citizen in 1930 was not attending balls at a swanky music lounge.
Give it a few decades, we might also have people from 2050 pining for the 2020s, believing it to be just like the advertisements, where we all live in the penthouse level of skyscrapers, overlooking a vast cityscape.
Read the article, just a bunch of morons who have zero self control.
Isaacs specifically pointed to the 1990s as a time with “a lack of phones, more personal experience, but also still some of the ease of modern technology.”
Just this alone shows they have no idea what the 90s were like.
“Waaah my phone does too much, I just want an iPod!”
Delete social media, download Spotify and boom, your phone is an iPod again. Or turn off all notifications on your phone and buy one of those iPod clones.
“Gen Z” acting like the world was better before social media but they have no idea how to function without social media. If they went in the theoretical time machine back to the 90s they’d have a mental breakdown trying to find their way to the local McDonald’s.
“Gen Z” acting like the world was better before social media but they have no idea how to function without social media. If they went in the theoretical time machine back to the 90s they’d have a mental breakdown trying to find their way to the local McDonald’s.
so much this
If I was gen z I would purely hate how I grew up. They got the worst if it. Well, them and alpha.
No wonder so many want to go back, I do as well! Give me all of our civil rights of today (minus US idiocy, I mean actual first world countries ) and take me to 1995-05 somewhere.
As a gen z who likes to call himself a millennial despite not being one, I can say growing up wasn’t the worst. Yes I saw the end of the wild west of the internet, but I got to experience what is in my opinion the greatest console to ever come out: xbox360.
Not as good of a lineup as other consoles of the past, but where else am I getting games like the Halo games or Gears of War?
I am the oldest of Gen Z having been born in the late 90s. I got the tail end of what the world was like pre-smartphone and gotta say it was better…
Gen Xer born in 1967 checking in. Totally agree the world pre-smartphone was better. People just seemed to be more aware of their surroundings and each other. I don’t blame Gen Z for getting dumb phones and, like, actually engaging with each other. We abuse our tech, and big tech abuses us.
I’m a mid-millennial, born in the late 80’s. I’ve seen all of the 90’s.
If I was going into temporal witness protection, going back in time to keep me safe from the mob I ratted out…would I want to live in 1995?
2005 is an easier sell. I graduated high school that year, and a LOT changed in those ten years. Would I want to go back to 1995?
I remember 2005 very well and it was so nice lol, but I am very biased for being a kid then.
Nnnnnn…that line “I say ‘your civilization’ because when we started thinking for you it became ‘our civilization’ which is really what this is all about” hits different in 2026. In 1999 it came across as generic movie villain drivel, now it’s headline news.
I’m tired of tech being everywhere from cars to toasters I still prefer analog things that do the job and only that job.
I don’t need my internet connected fridg to tell me what groceries to buy while selling my data to insurance companies
Had a similar experience when SCUBA diving recently. New pressure gauges these days are digital and I still think the analog ones are not only prettier, but also functionally more convenient. You don’t need to be able to read numbers to know you’re getting into the red. Maybe they have some extra feature but I didn’t need it.
i don’t think it’s tech, it’s that tech stopped being something that helps you, now it’s just things that control you, and it’s all so shitty.
being a millennial was nice. almost every new piece of tech was useful and made life easier. but i think it was around 2010ish when it all began going downhill. first, capacitative buttons, then smart everything that didn’t help, just monitor you and sell your data. now so much tech is straight up hostile.
I remember when the first round of capacitive buttons showed up. I can’t find it anymore, but there was an article on a fan site for MP3 players I read in 2010 that showed the comparisons of physical vs capacitive vs touchscreens and capacitive buttons only had negatives. It baffled me when they just never stopped using them on things. That article was burned into my mind and now I see that logic has spilled into a thousand other industries.
Okay so those new buttons only have downsides.
But they are cheaper.
Ooh 🤑🤑🤑 let’s go!!
Yep, it all went to shit about 2010. The Mayans were right.
Mayans predicted the capacitative buttons
New band just dropped.
Hahha
I’m a bit older than you, I enjoyed tech when it was an escape and communication/education tool not a requirement even my local library uses an internet connected touch screen to locate books.
Tech used to promise a better life. Now it requires a subscription and wants your biometrics just to lie about pizza toppings to you. Sounds like gen z is on the right path.
imagine telling someone in the 80s that in the future so communities computers will need your age and will report it to the government.
Tech is still cool, but subscriptions are not. That is why I like self hosting and open source so much.
Tech has also somewhat grinded to a halt IMO. A 8GB raspberry? Not so much better than a 4GB one. ESP32 with dual core? Not so much more to do with than an ESP single core. 3D printers? More reliable. Etc.
I feel like gen z caught the full destruction of 3rd spaces that melenials still caught the tail end of.
I’d love a community space to share my knowledge of pre-zuck-thiel tech with. I feel like the complete destruction of 3rd spaces are part of why there is such poor knowledge xfer between z and millennials
Millennials caught the tail end of physical 3rd spaces, but experienced the golden age of digital third spaces. The internet until the mid 2000s was way more decentralised and chaotic.
Instead of anonymous chatrooms and forums as digital 3rd spaces, Zoomers used less accessible proprietary options such as Discord or Twitch instead.
If you have a Hacker/Makerspace near you, you might want to check that out.
Tech in the 1980’s - 2010’s was hopeful, beneficial, and fairly consumer oriented. Tech today is mostly some sort of scheme for recurring billing while openly assisting the modern surveillance state. It’s no wonder modern tech feels icky.
The thing full of promise turned into the tyrant it swore to never become.
“don’t be evil”
I really don’t think that specific emotion is isolated to gen z.
I remember all the promise and excitement that tech had back in the late 00’s and early 10’s. Things were unique and fun. That’s just not true anymore. Every new software update adds shit that you didn’t ask for and don’t want (AI, ads, removal of user freedom). New hardware releases are either an underwhelming iteration of specs from the previous version, or an unimaginative device that has the same basic look and feel as every other device it’s competing with.
Tech used to be fun and exploratory, now it’s just companies pushing to see how much they can be allowed to exploit you for the least cost.
Technological development reached a plateau, but shareholder value still needed to grow!
Don’t even get me started on the 1990s. Every new processor generation actually felt faster. Web pages had blinking banners because the creator thought it looked cool, not to advertise a personal information vacuum. There was no better introduction to the public’s absolutely awful sense of style. But I went from talking to international friends for $0.50/minute to free, and it was amazing.
personal information vacuum
Introducing the new Dyson vacuum! Maybe this is what they mean when they say it’s got a digital motor.
I’m just going to put this here. There are places feel that way again. tildeverse.org
Thanks for sharing!
Things were unique and fun. That’s just not true anymore. Every new software update adds shit that you didn’t ask for and don’t want (AI, ads, removal of user freedom).
Amen. Every time I hear about a new tech product or startup or conference, now all I see are ads, subscription traps, and generally just people looking for new ways to fuck me.
(And I don’t like to be fucked by anyone except Mrs. Wallace)
Oh boy. If people would just start seeing that open source still gives you exactly this, but you know, Linux is for incels and shit, I much more prefer being spied on by big corp.
Linux and FOSS tech about to become the new mainstream underground punk rock hangout spot.
Always has been.
What’s really just depressing is that these companies are more profitable and worth more than ever before. They don’t need to do this. They are essentially tightening their grip on civilization’s throat to see how hard they can squeeze before we all die, for the love of the game.
It’s also weird because they are opening themselves up to being out-competed by a company that isn’t (as) evil. Being not evil is the most valuable market differentiator right now. Companies like Valve that seem to just be sticking with “we have enough money” are like water in the desert.
valve is not public, rest of big tech is; which means shareholders are god and line must go up whatever the costs involved are, including civilization breakdown & climate change mass extinctions
I feel the same. I quit working in tech. It really has no soul anymore, specially talking to chat bots and agents.
Tech now is building the infrastructure for dystopia and its so obvious.
Are you still working? If so, doing what?
No I took time off work and havent worked since october last year. Its been absolutely amazing. But I did work for 25 years before that so I have built up savings.
I live off savings and the stock market and it works pretty good. But now in starting to be more worried about a global crisis because of oil and fertilizer blockages, which will tank the stock markets if it happens.
So im currently being careful. The coming month will be very interesting. If industries are affected by oil shortages or if food prices are affected by no fertilizer, people will get worried.
Tech used to be fun and exploratory, now it’s just companies pushing to see how much they can be allowed to exploit you for the least cost.
The fun and exploratory tech still exists, its just not sitting as a single product on a store shelf in a plastic clamshell package. The maker space is where all the exciting exploration is happening. If you have an idea the technology likely exists to make it happen, and the cost of the parts won’t break the bank. Lots of reuse of cast off out-of-date tech can be integrated dropping the costs even more. While there are even better solutions, if you’re just getting started pick up an old Arduino or Raspberry Pi (not the new expensive high end models) for under $30. Grow from there to microcontrollers like the ESP32 where it gets even cheaper for about $5 each. Learn to solder! Learn modeling and 3D printing! Use an operating system that lets you control your system instead of one that you just have to accept what they give you.
It really is an amazing time in tech if you stop accepting a products as they are, and instead what you want them to be with your own modifications.
It’s all true and cool if you stumble upon that today, but IMO that’s a bit what OP talks about, esp(or the original 8266), pi and 3d printers were new and fun ages ago. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a fun space but not much has happened the last ten years there (or prove me wrong 😁!)
It boggles my mind how people accept auto- and forced updates these days. I go far, far out of my way to use software where YOU have to go and download an update if you want it.
Modern technology is great. It’s massively cheaper and more performant for orders of magnitude less money.
Consumer technology on the other hand, is cursed.
The problem is that nobody needs to know how to use technology anymore. Every piece of consumer hardware and software is designed so that the company does all of the work for you and then rents you the fruits of the technology. Now you’re eternally dependent on someone else to operate your technology for you because you’re constantly paying the people that are ensuring your technological ignorance.
Don’t worry about learning how to store mp3s or manage your music Library! Just pay Spotify, YouTube Premium, or Apple Music $10/mo!
Don’t worry about needing to learn how to backup your data or to store you photos, just give Apple $29.99/mo! Shopping for hardware is hard, learning the difference between a Megapixel and a Megabyte is for nerds! Just buy the iPad, iLaptop, iCamera, iEarbuds, it only costs 50% more than it should!
Dealing with .mp4 and .mkv files, too complicated! Don’t worry about needing to learn anything about movies, Netflix/Hulu/Disney/Paramount/Amazon/AppleTV/etc will gladly take your $20/mo and do everything for you!
Don’t like your computer’s OS being filled with advertising, spyware and AI? Too bad! Your only options are 1. Live in Apple’s Walled Garden, 2. Put your entire life’s worth of private data on the auction block for the lowest bidding advertiser for the benefit of Microsoft’s shareholders or 3. Give your cellphone provider and Google root access to your entire life!
Yes, this is a ‘Just use Linux’ comment.
Modern technology is great. It’s massively cheaper and more performant for orders of magnitude less money.
Performant and cheaper are not inherently good things. LEDs perform a shit ton better than incandescent bulbs and are cheap as hell. But we fundamentally didn’t need more cheap light for 95% of consumer use cases. Now light pollution is climbing exponentially, 10% per year.
Consumer compute was atrocious to start, but reached a useful level where it unlocked a ton of value for people. Graphics at a legible fidelity, replacing paper documents, data over networks, responsive input, portable-ish laptops, etc…
Now we’ve got more compute than we’d ever reasonably need as a species. Landfills full of IoT waste, datacenters filling up with cheap bytes where only 1/10 will ever be read, drones dropping bombs and gearing up to monitor our every move, trillions of Kw/hr spent driving it all every year…
And what novel value has been unlocked by this glut of compute that we didn’t have before? On-demand AI meme videos?
Sure I can spend a few hundred bucks on a personal LED lightshow that would have cost tens of thousands a few decades ago. And sure I can spin up a home lab with more functionality and power than was even available 20 years ago. But what have I actually gained?
And sure I can spin up a home lab with more functionality and power than was even available 20 years ago. But what have I actually gained?
A home lab with more functionality and power than was even available 20 years ago.
Things such as:
Cheap mass storage and a home network connection with upload speeds that make hosting media streaming and ‘cloud’ storage out of your closet an affordable possibility.
Access to large, quality, high resolution displays that don’t cost multiple thousands of dollars.
High performance portable computers that draw significantly less power.
Cheap, high capacity, battery technology to power said devices.
Mobile data networks with orders of magnitude more data bandwidth.
All of this is to say: The ability to own and control all of the technology that you depend on without needing to rent services from a corporation.
I don’t need iCloud, when I have a 2Gb connection attached to a 24TB storage array. I can do better than Spotify, play the music that I want to listen to without serving me ads or providing my private data to be used by some profit-seeking company. I don’t have to give away my privacy to Microsoft just to be able to have a functioning desktop PC. I don’t require Amazon’s storage and processing to have smart security cameras. Google isn’t required for my smartphone to work, my cellular provider doesn’t get to dictate which apps are permanently installed.
All of this is possible now for orders of magnitude less capital and operating expenses than it was 20 years ago.
I don’t need to throw away my computer because Microsoft has decided that it’s much easier to enforce control over their operating system if your hardware prevents you from modifying the software running on your machine. I don’t have a drawer full of old Apple cables which were only created in order to sell you a $2 piece of copper for $39.99. My movie streaming service doesn’t randomly decide that I need to pay another $5/mo or insert advertisements into my TV shows and I am not at risk of having access to my cloud storage permanently revoked because of some clause in a 700 page Terms of Service that changes every other week.
Technology is so much better, more private, safer and more affordable now. As long as you’re willing to learn how to use it.
Unfortunately, the profit is almost entirely in fostering the world’s population into a state of technological dependence on these proprietary services and devices. It’s hard to convince someone to overcome their fear of a terminal when they can pay a monthly fee for the rest of their life in order to avoid it.
