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0 pointsjbullock355y ago0 comments

> Many humans are less inhibited when they’re typing than when they are speaking face-to-face.

Spolsky was right about this when he wrote that passage in 2004.

We should take seriously the idea that the lesser inhibition of textual communication has been a drawback on net, at least over the last 17 years.

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dalbasal5y ago

It has been a factor, certainly. Probably both good and bad. Spolsky was a pioneer in his concepts of "social user interfaces," and that really showed when he did stackoverflow.

Lowering inhibitions is a broad statement. You can get more detailed. Inhibition is multifaceted, lots of flavours. We can be less inhibited about sending a quick "I love you," less inhibited about arguing, being mean, etc.

Over the last 17 years, all this stuff has experienced a massive multiplier effect. Both the positives and the negatives are multiplied and as culture grows around the technology everything gets more complex.

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