Computer

Computers these days almost never hold a sentimental value. Unless it’s the rare occasion of a computer being a collector item, they’re everyday tech pieces; which means they are very easily replaced and the new ones are almost always better than the old ones.

I am no exception. I too would take a newer and better computer over my own any day, but with one small difference. To me, all computers in the end are the same as if they’re all little branches of the same tree and as the objects that I probably interact the most with everyday, they remind me of some important values that are of use when interacting with people as well.

As soon as I get my hands on a new computer, before anything else, I start testing as many parts of it as I can. I want to know its limits. I run standard benchmarks and sometimes my own tests like running a game and keeping a close eye on all of the resources being used. This allows me to know what’s the best the computer can do and if there is ever a problem, where is it coming from. While not as easy, the same can be applied to people and if done ideally correct, so many things would be better. If you knew people’s limits and talents, you would always ask the right person for the right thing and the right amount. There would be no disappointment because you would know what they’re capable of and there would be no slacking on their part because you would ask for nothing but they’re best. Alas, there is no all-encompassing standard benchmark for people.

Because of my father being a technology person, I remember using a computer as far back as I can remember anything. I remember I was two to three years and the computers back then froze a lot on a regular basis. I saw my father use the computer and it would freeze for him too, but he never got angry and tried to fix it. That’s when I learned the magical combination that I still use today when the computer freezes: CTRL + ALT + DELETE. About fourteen years later I started programming and the same principle applied. If something doesn’t work and you’re frustrated, don’t lash out at things or people who are not at fault. You make more mistakes than you get things right in programming, but you should always keep in mind that a computer is nothing but logical and it cannot make mistakes on its own. I really cannot take it when people say things along the lines of “oh, computers hate me and I hate them too”. If my code is wrong, I don’t ask “why isn’t it working”, but rather I ask “what did I do wrong”. It’s nice to apply that to the world outside of CPUs and GPUs. It’s better to check what you did wrong and try to fix it than simply get mad and push the blame on something or someone else. Imagine a place where everyone evaluated their own behavior and did their part to make things better. That’s right, you can’t even imagine because a place where no one gets mad and everyone is aware of their mistakes is too good. If only everyone treated others the same way programmers treat their compute

Ironically, spending so much time with computers has made me better with people.