Over the years I've vascilated back and forth with technology and its particular use to me. For a long time a computer was simply a tool to do work, and while that's still partially the case, the world has drastically changed in the last twenty years and as such so has the computing needs of many. Among the many is myself, and let me tell you from the outset that my computer is no longer "just a tool".
In an increasingly pervasive technological society the boon of our interconnectedness is not without cost. Even though computers are more capable than ever at producing usable work there's been a strange shift in the computer's role in this process, where instead of a user controlling the computer the computer now controls the user. This paradigm began rearing its head in my sophmore year in college when I had just begun my first foray into programming - the required language for this class was Matlab. Having purchased my laptop only a few years prior it greatly struggled running even minimally complex or long programs, or when trying to handle large datasets. This seemed pretty crazy to me given the laptop was more or less new, at least from my perspective. Added to this frustration was the absurdity that when I finished college and my "free" trial of Matlab (that I paid for with my tuition) ran out I'd have to buy the software again just to run programs I had already written. This meant I was in effect paying twice for a service and I didn't really own the programs I wrote, because if they're non-runable bricks without Matlab's software, well they're not much good are they? I groaned and complained to classmates and friends and the response was always something akin to "yeah that's just how it is", which I never liked but assumed they were right.
Fast forward to junior year and my classes required increasingly complicated or resource-intensive code which my three year old latop wasn't happy about. In the last year I'd been introduced to Python for the first time via another class and let me tell you I never wrote a single bit of code in Matlab from that day forward, it was like being given keys out of the walled garden (a theme which continues over the coming years). I'd shifted positions at my job and was talking with a co-worker one day about the performance that alluded me, coupled with my continued perplexion regarding technology that shouldn't be struggling to perform basic tasks. He casually mentioned Linux and that if I really wanted to free up system resources I should check it out. Trying to describe what a "distribution" is, that Linux is actually GNU/Linux, that it's free (as in freedom, of course), he assured me my computer would be taking out a new lease on life. Well, this all quickly went way over my head. I'd heard about Linux but assumed it was either dead or dying since my perception was it was "something that existed in the 90s" and/or only total nerds still used it today. Boy was I wrong. I looked a bit into it that day but was quickly again overwhelmed by the choice, verbage, installation process, and perceived lack of programs to get my work done. The biggest hurdle for me was "if I do this, can I still do my school work?"
At the time I had been writing my Python scripts in Atom (which I found had an unnecessarily confusing user interface), so this was my main concern as I could write all my other non-technical documents in either LibreOffice or GoogleDocs. Fortunately I learned LaTeX soon thereafter and ousted Google, but I digress. Needing to determine if I could still accomplish my programming work I learned after some StackOverflow searches I could "just run python code at the command line" which I didn't really understand, but it seemed true. After some more research I deemed this Linux thing capable of supporting my needs, and the Windows and "that's just how it is" veil began to recede.
A few (dozen) YouTube videos later and I settled on Linux Mint as my distribution of choice. I bought a cheap 2TB external harddrive, backed up my files, and plunged in headfirst. I had seen dualboot options, but even after my short time researching what Linux "was about" I great increasingly confident I could leave Microsoft behind and never look back. To my surprise within 40 minutes I had a functional system, well that was easy! Since then I've tried a number of distributions but ultimately settled on Arch due to its DIY spirit and minimal nature, both of which requiring _you the user_ to know what's happening and why.
So, where am I going with all of this? Let's fast forward several years and the innocuous comment my friend made about giving Linux a shot has unfolded into ultimately changing the way I see the world. Now I know that sounds crazy and maybe a bit over the top, but "using Linux" isn't just about using your computer to do stuff. Very quickly you discover the ways software and hardware companies artificially limit the user experience, tailor it to force users into "their way", construct artificial walls that divide people, monitor your every interaction with the software, provide no meaningful means of technical support, and all the while selling your private data to highest bidder. AND users usually have to pay for a subcription. Sounds like a pretty bad deal, no?
The fruits of liberty are something one cannot go back on once they've tasted them. When the previously-alluded veil lifts in one aspect of life, I began questioning many other "just how it is" parts. Extensibility is a phrase I'd never heard before coming to Linux, but it has drastically changed my life. In computing I'm always searching the simplest tool for the job, no more do I want some fancy software that does a dozen things (all poorly). Instead I seek purpose-built and concise tools for the job. In life, the same rules now apply. I'd never been introduced to the value of isolated, yet interconnectable, parts. Decentralization no longer meant "just living off-grid", but instead now alights the possibility of disjointed parts to form a new, self-regulated, whole (_if they want to_). Security also becomes suspect once you realize the size of your digital footprint, and the companies below the surface willing to soak it up. It took some time to implement, but I have gone to great lengths to re-evaluate myriad services and tools I used and instead replaced them with self-sufficient tools I personally maintain.
In the end, my life was fundamentally changed for the better by the off-handed comment: "have you considered Linux?"
They are devices capable of measuring nearly all aspects of your life, including statistics such as: biometrics, usecase habits, psychological evaluation and susceptibility to influence, and location trackers.
If that isn't enough for concern, also consider how much time is spent per-day looking down at your phone instead of looking at those around you. We only get one life and those nearest and dearest to you won't necessarily be here tomorrow.
Computers should be tools, not constant attention sinks.