Even In A Digital Age People Like To Build Stuff -- Like Real, Physical, Stuff

from the tinker-away dept

Mon, Aug 18th 2008 6:51pm — Mike Masnick

Over the past few years, there's been a bit of a renaissance of the "DIY" culture towards building all sorts of "stuff." It's sometimes unfortunate when so much focus in the tech world is just on the latest in what's happening online, in that it ignores all sorts of other interesting things going on. The NY Times is noting a return to having even software and internet developers practice building physical things as well, in part just to get them to start thinking outside the (computer) box when thinking about how to design digital things. Think of it as cross-training for the digital developers mind.

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Filed Under: design, diy, tangible, technology

16 Comments

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Jake, 18 Aug 2008 @ 7:21pm

That's actually a really good idea; a lot of the fundamentals of good mechanical engineering -primarily maximum possible simplicity + fewest possible bits = maximum reliability- also apply to computer code.
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some old guy, 18 Aug 2008 @ 7:43pm

...maximum possible simplicity...

Is there a term for accidentally using perfect opposites to describe something?

...minimum possible complexity...

If not, we really need a term for that. 'You jaked that' just doesnt do it for me.
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tm, 18 Aug 2008 @ 8:03pm

Techie Turned Builder
I definitely consider myself a hard core techie, by almost any definition. But it's strange that one of my most favorite hobbies is building things. Like wood furniture and stuff. I'm just barely old enough to have not grown up with all the technology and stuff. I didn't have a family computer until late Jr. High. Never had an iPod or cell phone until the end of college. However, since I was very young, I was building things.
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Sudsy, 18 Aug 2008 @ 8:15pm

minimum possible complexity
OxyMoron comes to mind...
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Xyro TR1 (profile), 18 Aug 2008 @ 8:31pm

Re: minimum possible complexity
So does plain ol' moron. =)
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Justin, 18 Aug 2008 @ 8:35pm

I always said
Like I always say, I work with my head all day for money. I work with my back all night and all weekend to keep myself sane. When I'm outside of work, the last thing I want to do is more stuff that reminds me of the 9-5. So I built my own desk, built my own desk chair, work on my house, and work on my car. I also get more out of having something tangible to gauge the success of the day. Whereas with technology, you don't always have something physical that can show others how much you accomplished.
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Urza, 18 Aug 2008 @ 8:43pm

Technology may actually be helping this...
Personally, I think technology is part of what makes building real things possible. You don't have to dig around and try to find a good book on the subject, find someone to teach you, or just make random attempts on your own. There are great sources of information on building just about anything online. And especially for new tech, you can find articles appearing in much less time than it would take for good books to be released.
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Dean W. Armstrong, 18 Aug 2008 @ 8:55pm

Soldering Iron grip
I got the sense from the photo accompanying the article that perhaps it was the first time many of them had held a soldering gun, unless they were using it in some creative manner that wasn't soldering.
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Matt, 18 Aug 2008 @ 9:52pm

I'm a developer, and while I find tech projects interesting I don't particularly see the relevance it has on how I code. Granted, this may be because "I don't know what I'm missing" or maybe since I don't work on a device level. Anyway, I'd definitely agree that the Internet has enabled a lot more people to try a lot of new things, one happening to be DIY.
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Anonymous of Course, 18 Aug 2008 @ 10:19pm

It's a change of pace
I really enjoy DIY articles. Some of the crafter types
are pretty damn clever too. A good portion of my non-work
related web surfing is spent at DIY sites.

Seeing clever people overcome the obstacles they encounter
fascinates me. I find the DIY ethic appealing too.

Not strictly DIY but Frighteningly talented.
www.tatjavanvark.nl
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Aug 2008 @ 6:27am

Re:
i think you're nitpicking here. i don't find much of a difference between "maximum simplicity" and "minimum complexity" nor do I have a problem with either.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Aug 2008 @ 6:28am

Re: minimum possible complexity
oxymoron's aren't always false.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Aug 2008 @ 6:31am

Re: Soldering Iron grip
Those aren't soldering iron guns. Those are plain old soldering irons. However, while you were incorrect with the term, you were correct with your observation. That definitely is not the way to hold a soldering iron.
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Paul, 19 Aug 2008 @ 6:33am

Make
I'm a fan of Make magazine.

http://www.makezine.com

It's a really great site and worth the subscription in my opinion. Especially considering all the projects you can find on the Make Blogs, its ridiculous how much you can learn to build there. I also enjoy Instructables.

http://www.instructables.com/
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Scott, 19 Aug 2008 @ 9:36am

I'm a software engineer but I really like to build things. I build things like my home office for doing my software engineering which I blog about at http://www.acuminate.net/. Building something with your hands gives you a lot of pride. Being able to experience your work with all your senses allows you to truly admire your work.
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chris (profile), 19 Aug 2008 @ 12:42pm

oh great. now you will pirate real stuff too.
it's bad enough you internet freaks have to steal all the intellectual property in the world, now you want to steal the real stuff too?

news flash weirdos: you can't make everything yourself. you have to have factories and unions and stuff. you think the RIAA is bad, wait until you start cheating companies like ford and coke, or worse the united auto workers, out of their profits. take my advice, stop making stuff now or you will be sorry.
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