The internet is unlike anything we as a species has ever encountered before. It appeared out of the blue, made the world as small as a pack of cards and gave everyone access to all the combined knowledge of humans. Computers in the form we know them today were introduced in the early 80's, and became commonplace in the average home in the 90's. By the mid 90's many home computers became connected to the internet via dial up modems, however this was mostly on demand access. Only 15 years ago did always on broadband connections to the internet become commonplace. I can think of no other system that has appeared only so recently yet influenced our lives so much.
Due to this timeline, we have a population of mostly technologically inexperienced people. That is understandable - most people aged 40 and over would not have grown up with computers, and many between the ages of 30 and 40 may not have had access to computers either. Therefore it would be something they had to learn how to use on their own time - not as part of a school curriculum. This causes a critical concern because whether people like it or not, most of us have access to a computer (be it a PC, Mac, tablet of smartphone) and use it to manage sensitive aspects of their lives, such as banking, business, personal communications etc.
Regardless of age, most people use the internet like we use appliances, or our cars. We use them to provide a service to us, and don't care about its inner workings. Why would you want to understand the Otto cycle in your car? Or how the magnetron works in your microwave oven? Or how the escapement mechanism keeps your mechanical watch ticking? As long as it perform its function, we just don't care. Nor should we. You do not need to understand these things to drive your car or heat a cup of tea. If it breaks, you send it in to be repaired or you replace it. Not understanding the inner workings does not affect us negatively.
My kid just learnt a valuable lesson today - never skimp on quality when it comes to USB memory sticks. Especially when all your homework and assignments are stored on it. And... You did not make a backup (lesson #2).
Her stick stopped functioning today. If you press it upward whilst connected to the computer, the red light comes on but the computer does not recognize any device. To me it was clear that the data pins were broken.
I opened it up, only to confirm my suspicions. So in order to try and rescue the data (for an assignment that is due tomorrow nevertheless), I quickly set up my workstation.
