[Uncle Erik]

First, I am not going to single anyone out. I don't want to see anyone singled out here, too.

I came across a thread where someone asked for advice and then threw in the towel because it was "too complicated," he didn't understand it and, though not explicitly stated, implied that he could not be bothered to learn.

This was nothing complicated or controversial. Simple stuff you could show someone in a minute or two.

That "I don't know and can't be bothered to learn" attitude drives me crazy.

Not just here, but it seems to be turning up everywhere. It seems that if someone doesn't already know something that it is not worth learning.

Long, long ago, before Google or the World Wide Web even existed, I found two old chairs that needed to be refinished and reupholstered. I didn't know how. So I went to the public library, found some appropriate books and checked them out. Though I hadn't done it before, they turned out nice and I still have them. Since, I've fixed up lots of other furniture.

Later, my cousin wanted to know how to finish his kitchen. He asked me how, I showed him, and the kitchen is really nice.

My point is that you have to learn things for yourself and it is also a good idea to ask people who know.

Nobody starts out as an expert. But everyone who can do something started out knowing nothing. You have to make an effort. And it's even easier now with an Internet and message boards.

Where has the curiosity gone?

 

[Gatepc]

I have noticed that in a lot of people as well. It really bathers me. I find that with the advent of the internet its easier to learn and satisfy your own curiosity due to the ease of access of this information. I love it because if I ever get bored I just start looking up random things to learn about them.

I myself have really noticed this working in the IT Field. A lot of the stuff we do to keep computers running good are very simple task that anyone can learn in a few minutes. Instead they simply state that its too complicated to learn and that they will just call me back if it breaks again. They usually won't even give it a try.

I do hope that more people starts researching stuff and learning on their own. Information truly is power, without it you can't make informed decisions,purchases, etc. You only hurt yourself when you don't do the research.

Thanks for this post, maybe it will enlighten some, or spark an interest.

 

[RexAeterna]

i think it's mostly laziness and everyone nowadays are spoiled a lot. there is very little disciple,even in adults nowadays. i know i'm making it sound like i'm old(i'm actually only 23) and been around long to say that,but i'm just very observant to figure things out as i move along. also being stubborn/prideful i always learned everything i got interested on my own but was not afraid to ask if i got stuck on something.

i think that's another thing. lot of people are afraid to ask on certain things or afraid how something is gonna turn out. lot of people nowadays are paranoid as well. people are afraid to try new things and don't think for themselves. it's very obvious especially around forum sites and schools. i guess it's just mutiple things nowadays,you have spell checkers,allowed to use calculators anytime,even testing,everything is basically made things easier for us with the tech we have so why bother when we can pay someone else do the thinking for us? i don't know the correct answer to say or how to respond cause i entirely do not know the exact answer. i just know there is lot of reasons why people are the way they are nowadays especially with kids. me personally enjoy learning new things. call me a nerd or geek or whatever,it doesn't bother me.

 

[Currawong]

I remember when I was in university I drove my father's ancient Volvo. Being old, the glove box ended up being loaded up with spare bits -- the usual stuff such as spare lamps, rubber hose and whatnot. I recall one occasion where it spluttered to a stop and I had to get out and replace a fuel line rubber hose on top of the engine (quite dangerous actually). Later I recall watching a documentary about people in remote areas of Australia. A group of Aborigines were driving along when their radiator sprung a leak. They stopped, started a fire, melted down some metal they had on hand and sealed up the radiator leak, then continued on their way.
 
A car magazine writer observed that people were always in a big hurry to get their petrol (gas) at the station, with the attendants trained to work very fast. The writer then drove out to a remote area in the country and, upon having to fill up, found a petrol (gas) station, filled up and got a big shock going in to pay. The owner was an elderly gentleman laying upon a mattress. When he entered, he was told to go to the cash register to to complete the transaction himself. The huge contrast with his regular experience in the city rammed home the point about how impatient everyone has become to get what they want.
 
How often do we see people complaining because some or other small company run by a single person is slow at completing orders or doesn't reply to email immediately? I know I've spent something like 2 years in total waiting for about half a dozen products to be completed (sometimes concurrently admittedly). I've seen members get upset at having to wait two weeks for something and I regularly hear stories from MOTs about receiving angry emails such as "Why aren't you replying to my emails?!?" after as little as a day.
 
A friend of mine who gave up IT to teach guitar instead told me that when his customers got upset at small things, he'd say, in a loud and dramatic voice to them, "Oh my Gosh! Did anybody die?!?" They'd shut up after that. Convenience is making people very lazy.

 

[Kirosia]

People are lazy, self-important, and only desire instant gratification at the touch of a mouse click. The love of process, of learning and doing, and doing again, while yelling and ripping one's hair out, seems to be a forgotten art. Getting from Point A to Point B without first traversing an interdimensional time vortex and fighting vulva-shaped monsters, is just plain boring.

 

[wink]

Kirosia, you're a trip......
 
I just hope you have to fend off a Boltzman brain in your immediate future.. and leave us mere mortals with our mere mortal problems. Klaatu Verada Nicta..

 

[Paganini Alfredo]

I wanna fight a vulva shaped monster

 
I think this instantaneous communication-fangled stuff nowadays is bogus... I can't even find friends the old fashioned way!!! I think since I don't have a facebook account I'm honestly out of touch with the rest of the world. I guess I don't care... but I do. I get lonely sometimes.

 

[Elysian]

I think the OP has a good point, and that the intellectual disinterest is a symptom of the broad impatience which seems to grow on the forums (and in our general culture) day by day.  I can kind of understand it in the younger demographic here, but it still seems prevalent among people with another decade or two of life experience.  I've seen more than a few threads, in just the last few weeks, of people asking for help with their chain, then getting fed up and just demanding that people tell them what to buy within their budget and how to connect it all together.
 
There's a certain popular device here which had a few weeks of delays and some manufacturing hiccups (nothing out of the ordinary for a new product line), and certain people were taking torches and pitchforks to the thread.  I'm sure many more were privately sending angry PM and emails to the MOT.

 

[MorbidToaster]

Working in retail & IT I too see a ton of this kind of behavior. I get customers (in both fields) that just come to me and say fix it or sell me a new one. They don't want anything to do with learning about it and they flip out when I tell them they can build their own for a fraction of the price.
 
I came dangerously close to being one of those lazy people years ago. Really until I started getting into audio. When I started spending my hard earned money on things this expensive I want to know how they work, and how to judge myself (by the numbers) if I can't hear something first.
 
I also did this with computers. It was time for me to finally invest in something to play PC games on and I didn't want to go to Fry's and tell them to build me one or just buy one off the shelf. I learned what I needed and did it myself. 
 
It's really sad coming across people with that kind of attitude and I just try not to associate myself with people like that.
 
I plan to refinish some furniture soon (strangely enough), and that's going to be my next learning experience.

 

[Blue Boat]

Learning new things is always fun, but when you've got other more important issues to attend to...

 

[MorbidToaster]

The problem isn't that people don't want to learn new things they don't care about...it's the people care about something but are too lazy to learn about it.
 
ie. Headphones. Someone comes here wanting to learn about what headphones are better than the typical consumer garbage. Then they turn around after wasting people's time and say it's too much and just go back to their hole. It's insulting to anyone that dedicated their time to trying to help this person.
 
Quote:

Learning new things is always fun, but when you've got other more important issues to attend to...

 
 

 

[Kirosia]

Quote:

Learning new things is always fun, but when you've got other more important issues to attend to...

It's contextual. Someone interested in say, audio, and is deeply pondering whether  to spend $20+ on equipment, should really find the time and patience to educate themselves for their own benefit.