An anonymous reader writes: This is a letter I sent to the Electronic Frontier Foundation regarding what I perceive as the very real dangers that the current mobile market presents to the industry. Below are the contents:
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Hello, I would like to bring a serious matter to your attention.
Specifically, the user freedom and rights damage, along with
the degradation in choice, power, and usefulness, that the
mobile and cloud movement is slowly eroding. Please take the time
to read this message. It is a plea that you start an aggressive campaign
showing users and the world at large the significant dangers of
this new trend.
Here are the major concerns.
1. Tablets and smartphones prevent user modification and even repair
in many cases, and the arena is heading towards disposable electronics,
which besides the immense waste this could create, it forces users to
spend far more money than they may be able to afford to stay up-to-date
in the modern world.
2. Tablets and smartphones are eroding usability and functionality
with minimalist interfaces, poor input methods, and poor processing power,
which has it's place, but a vast number of journalists are stating that
"The PC is dead", which is becoming a self fulfilling prophecy.
Functionality that was once standard in every OS is now being removed
from desktop operating systems to provide integration with mobile devices,
for example, window management. See Windows 8.
3. Linked to reason #2, if PCs die, many independent app developers and small
software companies will vanish, because the only powerful computers able to compile
code at a tolerable speed and run large applications will be sold at a premium by a
select few companies, at price ranges far outside the average consumer's ability.
App selections will decrease and the world will rely on a few multinational corporations'
software, which may or may not be of acceptable quality. Interpretive languages such
as javascript are also causing performance penalties in app development in the mobile
world. Even if compilers and development tools, full docking stations and mice are
made for these computing devices, they still will provide a fraction of the power that a
desktop will provide for a price not far greater than that of a tablet or smartphone.
4. Operating system choice and upgradability is currently in a state of horrible disrepair
due to the use of non-standardized, often locked firmwares. This forces a user to use whatever
operating system is shipped with their device, even if no upgrades are provided. In some cases,
modifying the software on your device, or swapping it out, could even be illegal.
5. These tablets and other devices are often of poor build quality, and I frequently see
people using devices with badly cracked screens and overused batteries. Manufacturers
are moving towards a "you can't open the case" model, which I find highly disturbing.
This prevents a simple practice as small as replacing the battery yourself.
The point of this article is to show the world the inherent dangers of investing heavily
in tablets and smartphones, and to encourage the world to not count out the still very real
relevance of the PC, even if not a desktop, which will likely remain notably
relevant for a long time to come. Thank you for your time. I sincerely hope you will consider
taking action.
-Subsentient
