Growing up, our family computer was in the dining room and it caused constant fights.

We had one bulky desktop that everyone used for homework, games, and email. My sister and I would battle over AOL time slots, and my dad would get mad when we messed with the settings. Learning to fix those crashes together was our introduction to tech support. Nowadays, with tablets and phones, no one even asks for help until something is completely broken.

3 comments

3 Comments

troyjackson1mo ago

Man, that whole "computer in the public room" thing really shaped us. Ours was in the living room corner, so the screen faced out. You couldn't hide anything, and someone was always walking behind you. It meant every awkward chatroom conversation or weird website was a public event. That forced shared experience is totally gone now with everyone buried in their own private screens. We learned tech by committee, but man, we also learned zero privacy.

spencer_johnson221mo ago

Yeah, troyjackson makes a great point. Makes you realize how our whole search history was basically a family project, with those embarrassing website autofills popping up for everyone. Kinda forced you to learn the internet with zero secrets.

foster.wade1mo ago

Saw a piece about this and it totally backs up what @troyjackson said. We basically had group lessons in not getting a virus from pop-ups.