[nox101]

Because it's slowing killing the the environment for kids to learn. Parents give kids an iPad, they don't give them a notebook. Kid has hands tied for really exploring programming.

I'd be willing to bet if the same restrictions were in place in the 80s and 90s that 30-50% of the people who are programmers today wouldn't be programmers because they'd never have gotten started.

[threeseed]

There are many excellent web based programming environments that cater for beginners.

As someone who was learning how to develop in the 80s your comment is hilariously ridiculous. It is 1000x easier to learn now with the wealth of tooling, content, AI assistants etc than it was for me trying to learn C++ on a Mac Plus with no internet.

[matwood]

There is Swift Playgrounds, but if you're talking more about general purpose programming - sure. But, I don't think it changes anything. As devices have entered all aspects of our life, the vast majority want to use them as an appliance to take and edit pictures/video, draw, communicate, and play games. To say it's killing the environment for kids to learn feels a bit myopic by implying programming is the only way to learn.

[steve1977]

> Because it's slowing killing the the environment for kids to learn. Parents give kids an iPad, they don't give them a notebook.

That's a fair point. I think we need a law which makes it illegal for parents to give kids an iPad and not a notebook.

[scarface_74]

In the 80s and 90s there were locked down devices - game consoles - and computers.