As a software design practitioner, every day we have to think about users, what they are thinking, their environment, their behavior, etc. to speculate and analyze the motivation and purpose behind each group based on these behaviors, so as to achieve design Produce a product that can solve the problem. So I have high respect for this documentary, which can make some people in the industry reflect on what kind of social and moral responsibility they should have as a designer, but I can think of it, it is useless to them .
I remember the first class I took when I was studying interaction design in college, which was to recognize the word Human center design. At that time, I didn’t quite understand the specific meaning of the word, so that the first project did not score very high. With one project after another, and user interviews one after another, I began to realize the true meaning of design. , and this abstract concept of human-centered design, that is:
To help people solve their problem.
After I started working, design no longer only considers users and business, so recently I have been in a kind of self-doubt. I am thinking about our group of designers who are trying to make a better life for mankind, and constantly study human nature. Weakness, used to achieve a commercial purpose, is it a bad guy? But I've also met a lot of great designers who can see that kind of care for their users in their products. Their excellent point is to achieve a balance between business and users. For example, NetEase Cloud Music is a very heartwarming example of "Behind the Scenes Products" I was reading recently.
So when I saw this documentary, I agreed with the last statement: software developers have the obligation and responsibility to assume a positive impact on users, as well as pass on positive values. When we wrote hmw, it was It is not the first principle to be met: how might we make the world better? Similar to the designer's sense of responsibility, it is mentioned in "Interaction Design Meditations" and "Jonathan Biography".
But the usual American style, that is, I like to overextend one thing to reflect that kind of impact. After all, Netflix also has a commercial purpose. So this star is deducted because I feel that he is creating public anxiety about the so-called human rights and freedoms and other pseudo-concepts.
As a group creature, human beings live in one group after another. Only rules can make groups orderly, and as long as there are rules, there must be no so-called complete freedom and control? This is a very ridiculous point. Even without technology, any behavior of human beings is subject to control. A decision of yours, the information you are exposed to, even when there is no Internet, can you do whatever you want? This is exactly what the film said at the end, there is no right or wrong in technology, it is people who are wrong. It is the setter of the rules, and it is a human being with the characteristics of laziness, love of appearance, and greed.
Many people will only say it's terrible, the social network is terrible, she controls our brains, our thinking, our behavior, all of our lives. But when you are more likely to find groups, when you are more likely to be happy, when you have access to more information that you cannot access, you enjoy this kind of time and energy that you should have put in more time and energy. When you can get something, you have to pay something, otherwise there will be no free lunch in the world. So you become a "product" that the platform sells to merchants, which is understandable.
What am I trying to express? In fact, just like what "The Matrix" tells, if your life is an illusion created by a machine, will you choose to fight the machine hard and soberly, or live in the falsehood with a higher happiness index?
But this is a question with no solution and no standard answer, and it has to do with everyone's values. The choice conveyed in the movie: that is, living in real pain is far better than living in a false, controlled and comfortable life. But there is also a more irony, that is, how do you know that you are not in one false world after another? Do you think you are awake? That's just what you think, but it's actually enough. The truth is what you believe and what you love. This is also the theme of the movie.
Therefore, people who pursue absolute truth often have nothingness, because you can't find the answer at all. Heidegger's being may show the invisible control that cannot be touched.
So, living in such a society, how should we prevent ourselves from being tricked, exploited, and used by others as a tool to make money? After all, the heart of harming people is indispensable, and the heart of preventing people is indispensable.
I thought about it for a long time, and I think that in the film, it is mentioned that the so-called algorithm recommends the content you like, which will keep you manipulated, behaved, conscious, and then only watch what he wants us to watch. It is the popular saying of the information cocoon room. I half agree with this point of view. Because in addition to being more receptive to what we like, don't forget that we are also more likely to like the new and dislike the old. If you have been accepting the same type of content, you will also be aesthetically fatigued. Why do idols keep changing, and those who like idols have always been in the same age group, because we are changing, growing, various Complicated situations make it impossible for us to truly accept only one point of view, one information, and one handsome guy. That's why I hate Douyin. He relies too much on algorithms, but is not humane enough, and doesn't know better what I want to watch. For example, I like Qianxi, but if you keep recommending Qianxi, or the same type of handsome guys and beauties, you can keep me interested for a week, but maybe in a month I will get bored. Because I didn't receive more different information. Similar to the pull-to-refresh mentioned, this slot machine-like function, in fact, for me, the constant refresh does not make me feel better, or greedy for something, but makes me irritable and boring.
Humans are very complex and powerful. Although we have weaknesses, our ability to survive is also the strongest, so we must believe that we will not be static forever. Even many people of the older generation always feel that our generation is impetuous and cannot calm down and think deeply, but I also want to ask, can most young people in your society be able to think more deeply? It’s not right. If they were hindered by the lack of progress in technology and the development of society, then it was also technology that caused the characteristics of our group, but technology was too developed.
Therefore, different eras have imperfections in different eras. There is no need to be too sorry. Everything has two sides. It is good to accept the good side and the bad side. But human beings are very greedy and only want to be good. So what we have been fighting against is our own negativity (I feel that The Matrix 3 also talked about it, a really philosophical movie)
For us ordinary people, what can we fight against? Advertising and subconscious manipulation, perhaps unconscious physiological responses, information simplification, emotional barriers, etc., negative things, I think it is very important to have the ability to reflect, do you often think that your behavior deviates from your goals? For example, for single information, my resistance method is not to use the same APP all the time, but to use the APP as a perspective. What we need is multiple perspectives to make the vision wider.
So don't be afraid of the Internet, it has so many benefits. Various search engines collect behavioral data so that we can find the content we want more efficiently. As for the content that I will not actively search, I don't think it is necessary It is necessary to know, we don't have to know all the information, we only need to know the information we care about; the second is to keep the curiosity about life and the spirit of learning and exploration. Information is not independent. If you don't encounter it today, it doesn't mean you won't know it through your friends tomorrow. There is nothing to worry about about information. I feel that the information we are exposed to is different. It is right. You will know if you chat with her tomorrow, or if she reposts, likes and comments, can you also know?
Look, there is nothing to worry about. If you regard the APP as a person, when you feel that he is a caring friend, then you will happily accept his advice, and if you feel his malice, you will stay away. Or are you too stupid to feel the true intentions of others? It's better to know more about yourself, what do you like and dislike, what are your interests, what will help you become a better person, and what are your goals? Can it be identified? Good products bring us a better life. We have to be able to identify bad products. To put it bluntly, we should maintain our love for life and not rely too much on a single person or thing. This is the fundamental factor that makes you paranoid and prejudiced. There is absolutely no benefit to the word addiction. As for control and freedom, it is better to let yourself be a little bit more open, because this is how society is, and only by accepting him and being happy can you feel free.
As for the rest, it should be left to the higher-level people to reflect, after all, society changes according to what they want. And they also live in such a society. If they want a better, more sustainable world.
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September 13, 2021 I have other ideas
Just now I suddenly thought of a very scary thing. If we are bewitched by the convenience brought by this kind of technology, succumb to our own laziness, and always think about saving trouble and convenience, will we eventually become a series of information data when the chip can be implanted in the human body? When we are private, we are also willing to give our life to our free hands. This is a very terrible slave and numb mentality. We have become slaves to "high technology", and we have traded ourselves for convenience...to think about it. So I originally wanted to delete this afterthought. Before, I felt that the word "information cocoon room" was inaccurate. Humans did not enter the information cocoon room, but I couldn't say anything. And the point I expressed earlier, that we should lie down and accept the information conveyed by others, is also problematic. Even if you can't, you should know the current situation. A single spark can start a prairie fire. For ordinary people, it is also necessary to know the rules of the operation of this society. At least when brushing is depressed and painful, not enjoying. This is also a good thing, not a bad thing. If people blindly pursue happiness and happiness, they may enter into the illusion of perception, and it may become a pseudo-happiness. Now I seem to understand a little bit, it's nothing else that traps us, it's our own laziness about the convenience brought by technology, and enjoying this unprecedented convenience. This is the root cause. Compared with how much information, more knowledge, or less knowledge, this is more terrifying. And this is not a simple smart trap to control your mind and behavior. When people believe in machines and data, laziness will come out, and this is the enemy. What we have to resist is the laziness of thinking, laziness of action, laziness of consciousness.
I don't know what's going to happen in the end if it's all about letting "someone else" do/solve the tasks you're supposed to do with your brain and body, and I don't want to understand, but I think it's a matter of overthinking The more afraid of things.
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