[dekhn]

I don't think many people realize that Woz's dad was an electrical engineer at Lockheed who would bring home computer manuals that Woz would read as a kid.

This seems to be a fairly effective way to create world-changing computer engineers.

[bluedino]

My boss's son is like that. He has brought him into the office since he was a kid, he's 22 now and content to go home and read PLC manuals and such. He doesn't have any social skills and doesn't really interact with anyone except 2-3 people from work, it's kind of sad.

[dalbasal]

Breeding?

[ggm]

Regression tends to the mean. Imagine what Apple might have been if Woz's dad had been in the factory!

[taneq]

'Tends', not 'is guaranteed to go'. Sometimes kids are much smarter than their parents.

[abecedarius]

Regression to the mean works equally in both directions, yes. A tall kid likely has shorter parents (though still above-average), and so on.

[pkaye]

Steve Jobs' father was a machinist for a firm that made lasers.

[ggm]

That mac is awesome -Look in here.. with your one remaining good eye...

[delinka]

Jobs would have found a similarly capable engineer. Apple wouldn't be much different.

Imagine where Woz's life might have taken him had his dad worked elsewhere...

[hedora]

The Apple I was a hobby project developed before Woz met Jobs, if I remember right.

[dangwu]

If you gave computer manuals to kids today, they'd cry and beg for their phones back

[dang]

Please don't take HN threads further into flamewar. Especially not generational flamewar, which is particularly contentless.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

[darkpuma]

When I was a kid, some of my friends would whine whenever their parents took away their gameboy. But I didn't have a gameboy, so I never had the opportunity to whine about it being taken.

[lacampbell]

What's your point? Most kids back then would have cried and begged for their comics back, or for the television to be switched back on.

[dangwu]

I'm disagreeing with OP's suggestion that giving computer manuals to kids is a "fairly effective way to create world-changing computer engineers."

[fao_]

You could give computer manuals, but you have to:

a) praise achievement not intelligence

and

b) Create an interest first. Maybe make it seem like magic or show something that you can do with it.

[lacampbell]

And I think it depends on the kid, and the fact that smart phones exists now makes little difference.

[kart23]

Dont give them a phone in the first place

[option]

its mostly terms of use and legal disclaimers these days /s

[leetrout]

Applies to college age kids as well.

[na85]

Yes, those lazy milennials with their instant grahams and their books of faces