The end of intimidating techies?
I think I can confidently speak for many people when I say that technically minded people can be quite intimidating to talk to and interact with. You know the type of people, from those that seem to talk in binary or purposefully access that black screen; which I've been reliably informed is called the Command Prompt, can create an app, or rewire a house and set up a home automation system without an engineer present!
Now I'm quite confident on a PC but as soon as I come face to face with a real techie then I can feel quite intimidated by their superior knowledge and my lack of. I've watched people become reluctant to use their machines or exaggerate their ineptitude at the very sight of someone who is highly skilled. Not only can I find techies to be incredibly intimidating to talk to but I can also be so in awe of them that I end up trying to engage in a conversation that is way out of my comfort zone! On the reverse, there are others that are so relieved that these technically minded people exist that they will extort every last skill to get their hardware or software issues resolved! It's similar to when someone reveals that they are a GP at a party and everyone forms an orderly queue to have their itchy patch or that annoying back ache diagnosed.
I grew up when having a home PC was a newish concept and I was fortunate enough to have had parents that saw their future importance and invested in a PC and lessons.. However today the average 7 year old is probably more computer savvy and equipped than many adults! This led me to think about the possibility of the end of this era where techies are no longer intimidating but 'the norm'.
With generations of children growing up with access to multiple devices both at home and school then surely at some point the balance will tip in the techie favour? Combine this with the fact that computing is likely to become a core subject and the teaching of basic programming is starting at primary school, aren't we breeding a new cohort of children that are computer savvy, confident across multiple platforms with a willingness to transfer these skills to new areas without thought or hesitation? This is a very exciting look to the future and I can't wait to see what the next generation will be capable of, but how long will it be before this happens, my guess would be within the next ten, fifteen years. However, with the pace that technology moves at as long as we keep up it maybe sooner that we wave goodbye to the reign of the 'intimidating techies' and usher in the new age of the 'Highly Skilled Everyman.'
Thoughts?
The Curious Fox