Against Usefulness

4 hours ago

A demonstration of Folk Computer in Brooklyn showed physical programming using paper and interactive tags, where programming becomes a whole-body, collaborative experience.
Folk Computer is an open-source physical computing system developed by Omar Rizwan and Andrés Cuervo, evolving from research at Dynamicland and the lineage of Xerox PARC and CDG.
The history of computing's paradigm shifts highlights the importance of 'useless' research, often funded by patrons, as seen in Xerox PARC, CDG (funded by SAP), and Dynamicland (a nonprofit).
The author argues that independent thinkers, who focus on unfashionable questions and work openly with long time horizons, are essential for creating future paradigms, rather than just optimizing existing ones.
A 'Request for Independent Thinkers' is proposed to identify and support individuals who are obsessed with deep, unconventional questions, build openly, and resist hype, with offers of various forms of support.
The ACM's current focus on convergent topics like agents contrasts with the need for diverse, strange questions to drive the next computing paradigm, as embodied by Folk Computer's innovative approach.

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