I am not going to be like so many other writers that put off to the last paragraph the answer to a question that starts off in the title block. Nor am I the type of writer who drones on and on about things that have little to do with the topic at hand. With that in mind, here comes the story in the mode of “Say Less, Mean More”
I have been chasing the essence of Simplicity for year and years. Sometimes I think I found it, only to be proven wrong shortly thereafter. Here is what some say is the essence of Simplicity. As usual, I have a different view of the matter.
Some Say The Secret To Simplicity is Analog
Let’s talk about this for a little while. In my early years, by that I mean some time after I graduated from college 56 years ago, the world for most was purely analog. Ones and zeros didn’t mean much to anyone except maybe to those who spent most of their time surrounded by the hum of room size computers and rows and rows of whirling 15 inch tape drives that had less capability than the cell phone almost everyone now carries around in their back pocket. Our world back then depended on cogs, gears, levers, and such. We did have vacuum tubes, capacitors and resisters. Those sort of things powered our stereos, record players and TVs, but had almost no presence in much of anything else.
Then, thanks to the invention of the transistor, a massive change happened. The world, quicker than an eye, became digital. Today almost everything in our lives is driven by digital electronics. Analog systems have for the most part disappeared.
Of course, the analog world was simpler, so some might say the digital world makes simplicity impossible now. I am not one of those who say that. But, is the loss of simplicity due to the overwhelming digital world? Following that line of thought is AI the final death nell? I am convinced that AI, like the Gutenberg press will usher in a world unimaginable to many just a few years ago. The Gutenberg press allowed almost everyone in the world the same access to life changing information that only the ultra-rich had for generations before. AI will put facts and knowledge into the hands of anyone who wants it. Yeah, there are any hurdles to be overcome before can happen. Some how we need to make sure that “truth” dominates AI. Pure fabrication that seem to be dominate now has to be absolutely driven out of the AI sphere. How that will happen is beyond me, but I am convinced that eventually that fabrication will exist in the AI future.
Closing out this thought… NO, as far as I am concerned, analog is absolutely NOT the secret to simplicity. To me the most important thought about simplicity is to find out who you are and not letting anyone mold you into something you are not. But, then again, finding who you are is not a one-time event. You polish that stone by years of experiences, both good and bad.
