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Linux is one of the last bastions for the tinkerer (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 2 days ago by bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works to c/linux@lemmy.world

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Thought of this the other day. I bet a lot of us are like this, because in today's world a lot of things we used to tinker with are gone (electronics are made to be single use and unfixable, cars are proprietary and can rarely be modified or worked on without many many thousands of dollars now, etc).

Sure, there are still hardcore electronics projects going on and people doing massive restoration projects and such, but i consider them basically geniuses, not just tinkerers who enjoy messing around and learning in their spare time while working 50 hours a week.

Im glad linux gives us a space to exist!

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[–] bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Yes, you can definitely do all those things, but they're far outside of the realm of a normal consumer, and unless you know, to look for those things. It's a lot harder to find.

This feels a little bit like the x k c.D comic where they're talking about how everybody knows the chemical makeup of minerals.

[–] partial_accumen@lemmy.world 5 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Yes, you can definitely do all those things, but they’re far outside of the realm of a normal consumer, and unless you know, to look for those things. It’s a lot harder to find.

I'm confused by your premise then. If you're saying "Today's consumer electronics can't be tinkered because they require specialized knowledge." I'd argue that was always the case. How much tinkering could be done to an Atari 2600 from 1977?

How much tinkering would be done to a VHS VCR from 1989 without specialized knowledge?

These are prime examples of prior generations of consumer electronics.

[–] bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

Its much easier to just look at those devices and guess how they work. Follow traces. Find a broken pin on an interconnect. Replace a rubber band on the drive mechanism.

Also its funny you brought that up because I've always been into atari and still have my 2600, 7800, And pong machine.

You cant do this on basically any device today because of planned obsolescence. Try repairing almost any laptop made today. Or better yet a phone. I fixed every single component on my razr and had it for 6 years. Id still be using it if it was supported and modern life didn't basically require a smartphone.

Same with cars. It really started going downhill in 2015. Cars are basically a rolling Apple product now, totally proprietary and nearly impossible to fix without an ee degree.

Again, your average tinkerer or kid, is locked out of doing so, unless they really show initiative and go down a road of 3d printing and raspberry pis, but id say then youre in full nerd territory.

[–] beetus@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

I feel your premise remains flawed with these examples. The average consumer is not tinkering in the ways you describe, regardless. The average person isn't following traces, looking for broken pins, or guessing how devices work.

You may have an intimate understanding of the technologies of your youth/life but that is not a universal truth amongst people of the time you are referencing.

The same people repairing their VHS in the 90s are replacing their android smart phone screens or batteries today. As the other posters have mentioned, tinkerers today are even creating their own competition products or major revisions thanks to cheap compute modules, arduinos, 3d printers, and cheap electronic parts from China.

Check yourself, you are assuming life was better in the past when the reality is that today features far more opportunity at an affordable cost with copious resources/tutorials for any individual to manipulate their technology.

[–] bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago

You right on some accounts! Don't get me started on things that were better in the past lol, I can go on for days.

Ita true there's still lots to do for those that seek it out! All I was originally saying is I love how linux hasn't been corrupted by enshittification like everything else.

Also if you can fix any smartphone or laptop made today, you must have extremely precision tools avilable to you, because corps have made repair on almost everything impossible now vs how it used to be. I worked in a repair shop, I've experienced it.