[pessimizer]

There's absolutely nothing technical about this. It's entirely political, there's no technology that needs to be developed for this. All you have to do is create laws (or allow monopolies and cartels to impose "standards") that require people to carry their cellphones at all times. Make physical doorknobs illegal (as a security threat, and lack of accessibility for the disabled.) Done.

You don't even need cellphones. Just issue people hard to forge documentation and set up checkpoints. It's the difference between a fence and a shock collar.

Your dream seems to be to set up the infrastructure for universal command and control, then expect it to choose to regulate itself.

[idle_zealot]

> Your dream seems to be to set up the infrastructure for universal command and control, then expect it to choose to regulate itself.

I don't think I said anything of the sort. Just because something is electronic doesn't mean it's centralized and restrictive. My dream is one where technology is an empowering tool accessible to anyone and I'm all for regulation to prevent monopolies or cartels from imposing self-serving "standards" that block out competitors and force people into walled gardens. You seem mostly concerned about authoritarianism. I propose that so long as users are in control of their computers then computer ownership will have a net-positive impact on general freedom. If users do not control their computers then they will have a net-negative impact on freedom. So the crucial aspect is not whether or not phones/computers become required for daily life, but whether users have control over them.

[xg15]

I applaud that goal, but currently I see no trend pointing in that direction - on the contrary, the rise of highly locked down smartphones and IoT devices has shown to everyone interested just how much control you can take away from users without serious complaints, let alone actions.

Even moreso, there are a growing number of stakeholders and even entire business segments, which require locked-down devices for their activities: The entire business of streaming services only works because they get to place an opaque black box in users' homes and can dictate arbitrary rules and constraints for playback.

The entire app ecosystem is only economically viable because the devices make it impossible (iOS) or really inconvenient (Android) to install apps without paying for them. Also, the devices give the user no way to modify the apps, so developers can implement whatever hostile logic they want and users have to put up with it. The ability to do that is a major appeal locked down platforms have for businesses.

(IMO, the imagination of far too many people in the industry is already running wild with all the kinds of crazy rules, restrictions and "business models" you can implement on locked down devices.)

I think we should reverse this trend and install some actual computer literacy in larger parts of society before we make computers mandatory for everyday life - otherwise, the whole thing will end in a dystopia.