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fliptop [soylentnews.org] writes:

Wendell Berry's list from 1987 is more relevant than ever before [honest-broker.com]:

What do you want from new technology?

A flying car? An AI girlfriend (or boyfriend)? A bottomless cup of coffee?

You need to think bigger.

Forget about that AI lover and cup of joe—instead ask youself what a healthy society should expect from new tech. Or a healthy family. Or just a small town girl living in a lonely world….

Wendell Berry provided a list of nine reasonable requirements for new tech back in 1987, and they’re still appropriate today.

Berry’s list is actually more relevant than ever before. And the failure of tech companies to meet his modest demands is now painfully evident to everybody.

It wasn’t always this bad.

[...]

1. The new tool should be cheaper than the one it replaces.
2. It should be at least as small in scale as the one it replaces.
3. It should do work that is clearly and demonstrably better than the one it replaces.
4. It should use less energy than the one it replaces.
5. If possible, it should use some form of solar energy, such as that of the body.
6. It should be repairable by a person of ordinary intelligence, provided that he or she has the necessary tools.
7. It should be purchasable and repairable as near to home as possible.
8. It should come from a small, privately owned shop or store that will take it back for maintenance and repair.
9. It should not replace or disrupt anything good that already exists, and this includes family and community relationships.

[...] The curious fact is that the most up-to-date and forward-looking thing is this whole article is Berry’s list from 1987. Nothing on it is obsolescent or inappropriate or dysfunctional or harmful.

TFA discusses each rule and provides examples how the opposite is what's actually happening today.

Original Submission