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People do what their friends do.

It is easy to fall in love with technology. It is equally easy to fear it.

Technology does not determine practice. How people embrace technology has less to do with the technology itself than with the social setting in which they are embedded.

People’s practices are also shaped by those around them. There are cluster effects to socio-technical engagement. In other words, people do what their friends do.

– Danah Boyd, via apophenia: some thoughts on technophilia.

I read this article more than a week ago and a few of the quotes from it (above) keep coming back to mind. I think there is a lot to be said for the act of creating a comfortable computing environment. I don’t mean cushy chairs and good air conditioning. I mean a supportive, positive space to try, and fail, surrounded by friends. That alone is more likely to promote the use of any technology than good hardware, software, or the cool factor.

Posted in My Thoughts, Quotes.