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Bekki Doll |
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A cynical yet secular shiny retrogamer, thread ressurector and fan of the word "gay".
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Reged: 01/28/12
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Posts: 771
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Loc: Freeport, PA
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Profiting from users' technological ignorance.
05/19/12 09:19 AM
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Quote:
I was thinking... how are those T.V. scams that run commercials claiming to speed up/fix your computer/registry allowed to be advertised?
That's simple: The average PC consumer knows nothing about how a computer works. Anyone who knows just a little about computers in general is seen as a Gawd within those eyes.
Do you remember when computers were released with full manuals regarding their repair and maintenance? Or the huge honkin' manuals that accompanied operating systems from PC-DOS 3.3x and earlier? The reason why such manuals are no longer printed is that having digital copies entombed upon the hard drive was more cost-effective. And, for those who dig searchable databases, it was not a problem to search and find pertinent info regarding a problem at hand.
The documentation that accompanies MS-DOS 5.0 and MS-DOS 6.0 is such an example. Most of the juicy dox for MS-DOS 6.0 are through HELP that actually calls the QBASIC help system core to display the full reference. The only printed dox is a very slim user guide.
Even with that convenience it's as though the end-user is afraid to "Press F1 For HELP" lest they break something. Or maybe even that the current generation that far gone within their own functional illiteracy that learning the basics of an operating system is a daunting task.
It's as if, "Hey! I read not just the manuals but also third-party supplementary materials! What's THEIR excuse?"
But I'm not complaining: I profit off of their own ignorance as I'm a freelancing PC recovery tech. I do impart upon them the need to learn how their own tools work so that they can have backups of their own data within a secure offline fashion. Or, better yet, me providing tools as well as basic information on how to operate them securely.
Today a computer is nothing more but a mere appliance to be used only to connect to the Internet: It is this generation's sedentary idea of a one-way conduit of "content" and "content". And, goodness knows, a computer can be used for much more than web browsing.
At least a couple people here know the scam at large. And yet all of that trouble could have been saved by the ignorant end user of knowing how their own tools operate as well, including how to backup and secure the data hosted upon those devices. And data storage prices are still plummeting.
--Bekki
Combating functional illiteracy with latex-clad drama since the '80s, because old video games rule!
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