[bluefirebrand]

That's fair.

There's probably also an aspect of "The computer used to be a place you would go, now it's a rectangle that comes everywhere with you"

It's definitely less magical when it is everywhere and in everythin

You're not alone in missing the magic though. I miss it too

[jz391]

I think many of us miss that feeling... For me, the level of complexity of the computers in my childhood (TRS-80, Spectrum) made them interesting but still possible to fully understand. I think we have lost that - modern hardware and software has complexity on a scale which makes it impossible to fully follow. After decades of computing, I only have a high-level understanding of many components of a typical PC. So for my son, any understanding of what's going will be difficult...

[joarv0249nw]

I think part of the magic was that I felt I could get to understand how the system works on a deeper level. I wonder if it is now too hard to get to that level of understanding. One would spend most of the time just scratching the almost impenetrable surface of todays systems

[qsera]

Abstract things stimulate the imagination and guide them. That is why reading a book is a lot more enjoyable than watching a movie.

When computers started showing reality, that is true color, high res photos, realistic movies etc, they became less capable of capturing the imagination.