commit 06ce34fcd99b1d38812408c8f11d859fadf7e151
parent d6d82fd588e10255dbb4e3b256a4ddf036aafc63
Author: kattrali <kattrali@web>
Date: Tue, 28 May 2024 19:37:26 +0200
merging back from getting_started2
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| M | getting_started.mdwn | | | 202 | ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++------------------------------- |
1 file changed, 122 insertions(+), 80 deletions(-)
diff --git a/getting_started.mdwn b/getting_started.mdwn
@@ -1,90 +1,132 @@
-Watdo? Wydo?
-============
-
-This is a frequent question, and not an easy one to answer, but here are some
-suggestions:
-
-* **Branching**: Permacomputing can take many forms. Contexts and situations
-are different. For someone it may be about writing their own FORTH for a chip
-reclaimed from e-waste; for someone else it may be about helping artists
-interested to engage with ecological topics using tools and media in line with
-this intention; for a family it could be about discussing the use/impact of
-smartphones in the household; for another it could be about helping a school
-working with recycled computers; for another it could be about researching how
-to provide less resource intensive tools and systems for their lab; for yet
-another person it may be about engaging with politics and policy making to
-advance tech and enviro regulation in their own institution, town, region, etc.
-Of course overlaps and interleaving in such branching can be very useful!
-
-* **Experimenting**: Do you need to buy it? Could you repurpose an old computer
-or device instead? If you're going to develop something new, what are you gonna
-use to ensure you make something that does not end up being harmful or
-wasteful? Does it need to be a computer anyway? Do you need to acquire new
-skills? How will you acquire these skills? Can you afford to learn such skills?
-Could you figure it out with the help of others? With computation and computer
-tech consumerism taking such a big space in so many activities, it is very
-likely that a domain, a common/everyday tool, a practice, in which you have
-interest, professionally or not, could become your field of experimentation.
-
-* **Publishing**: Regardless what you do, it will be very inspiring to others
-if you document it a bit. Successes *and* failures. It does not have to be
-extensive, but it can be a much more effective way to demonstrate how to
-activate critical practices in relation to computer tech. You can do that on
-your own website if you have one, you can make zines, something individual or
-something with others, and of course [[you could use this wiki|contribute]]!
-More generally publishing does not need to be only about the projects you are
-involved with directly, maybe it is about helping others writing a manual, a
-cookbook, a sampler, something relatable and accessible.
-
-* **Participating**: Some permacomputing activities can make sense as
-individual practices or be related to lifestyle choices and experiments, but
-this is only one aspect. Another equally important point of leverage is to
-discuss these things within your institution, union, building, company, town
-council, to collectively, and also infrastructurally, figure out new ways to
-discus the impact, regulation or guide the usage and re-use of computers. Join
-a union, join an environmentalist group, join a citizen science lab, etc. It's
-also important that users of hardware and software feel confident enough to
-voice their opinion, specially when the development of these projects is done
+What can I do?
+==============
+
+This is a frequent question, and not an easy one to answer.
+
+Permacomputing can take many forms, and every context and situation is
+different. For someone, getting started with permacomputing may be:
+
+* helping a school to work with recycled computers
+
+* learning how to repair and replace components in computing hardware
+
+* discussing the use and impact of smartphones in the household, or data centers
+ in the workplace
+
+* working with local farms and collectives to develop low energy weather
+ prediction
+
+* researching how to provide less resource-intensive tools and systems for their
+ lab or workspace
+
+* getting involved with initiatives to create energy efficient and accessible
+ local libraries of information
+
+* engaging with politics and policy making to advance tech and enviromental
+ regulation in their institution, town, or region
+
+* helping artists interested to engage with ecological topics using tools and
+ media in line with this intention
+
+* writing their own FORTH for a chip reclaimed from e-waste
+
+Each of these can mix and match, and are also examples from the following
+categories of action.
+
+
+Participating
+-------------
+
+Join discussions in your institution, union, building, company, or town council,
+to figure out new ways to discuss the impact and regulation of the usage and
+re-use of computers.
+
+Join a union, join an environmentalist group, join a citizen science lab, etc.
+
+It's also important that users of hardware and software feel confident enough to
+voice their opinion, especially when the development of these projects is done
in a relatively open way. For instance, issue trackers can be important
activation sites to voice struggles beyond reporting technical faults.
-* **Organizing**: Consider starting a local group around permacomputing. You
-don't have and should not try to work on this topic on your own! Talk to local
-cultural organisations, hackerspaces, squats, town councils, schools and
-universities to help organising some events, workshops, skill-sharing sessions,
-show&tell, etc. Try to bootstrap a small permacomputing community. Make use of
-our [[code of conduct|terms]] to get you started with questions of moderation,
-make use of the wiki, communicate on the existing lists, chats, or start your
-own!
-
-* **Reading/learning**: The question of literacy in relation to computational
-culture is often reduced to staying in the loop with the latest development of
-the ICT industry and acquiring technological skills. Of course if someone who
-is not a programmer or frequent user of computers want to dive into
-permacomputing related practices, some minimal knowledge and jargon could help
-a lot. But we rarely talk about the other way around. A lot of the radical
-thinking in computer science, software and hardware engineering, seems to be
-too often stuck on the same old 60-70s US countercultural ideas. We think that
-it's important that people with a strong technological background start to
-catch up with decades of the various strands of computational critique
-discussed in feminist studies, gender studies, software studies, cultural
-studies, and also arts and humanities.
-
-Finally, and most importantly:
-
-* **Breaking the monoculture**: Like any other community of practice that
-emerged from contemporary computer tech circles, permacomputing suffers from
-very poor cultural diversity. How can we make this space more accessible and
-inclusive? Like, really. Not just empty words. How can the privileges that some
-of us have to be able to dedicate time on such topics can be generative of
-activities that can contribute to breaking the tech monoculture and how can the
-permacomputing space, including this wiki, can become a platform for less
-privileged groups to be represented *and* supported?
+Experimenting
+-------------
+
+Investigate the places in your life or work involving computer use. How much
+energy does it use, including accessed network resources? Can it be reduced,
+replaced, or removed? What impact does it have on your wellbeing and your
+community? Is there a common task you perform online which could be moved
+locally?
+
+Approach computer use and acquisition with longevity in mind, considering things
+like whether you need to buy new hardware, or could you repurpose an old
+computer or device instead? Does it need to use a computer at all?
+
+When developing something new, what are you gonna use to ensure you make
+something that does not end up being harmful or wasteful? How will you measure
+the impacts of your project, like the resources used to create and run it
+including energy, fresh water, and waste heat?
+
+With computation and computer tech consumerism taking such a big space in so
+many activities, it is very likely that a domain, a common/everyday tool, or a
+practice, in which you have interest, professionally or not, could become your
+field of experimentation. Do you need to acquire new skills? How will you
+acquire these skills? Can you afford to learn such skills? Could you figure it
+out with the help of others?
+
+Reading and learning
+--------------------
+For non-programmers and infrequent computer users, some minimal knowledge of
+computing jargon and practices is recommended. However, the question of literacy
+in relation to computational culture is often reduced to staying in the loop
+with the "latest developments" the tech industry and acquiring technological
+skills, when we need to talk more about the other way around.
+A lot of the radical thinking in computer science and engineering seems to be
+too often stuck on the same old 60-70s countercultural ideas from the United
+States. We think that it's important that people with a strong technological
+background start to catch up with decades of the various strands of
+computational critique discussed in feminist studies, gender studies, software
+studies, cultural studies, and also arts and humanities.
+Organizing
+----------
+
+Consider starting a local group around permacomputing. You don't have and should
+not try to work on this topic on your own! Talk to local cultural organisations,
+hackerspaces, squats, town councils, schools and universities to help organising
+some events, workshops, skill-sharing sessions, show&tell, etc. Try to bootstrap
+a small permacomputing community. Make use of our [[code of conduct|terms]] to
+get you started with questions of moderation, make use of the wiki, communicate
+on the existing lists, chats, or start your own!
+
+Publishing
+----------
+
+Regardless what you do, it will be very inspiring to others if you document it a
+bit, both successes *and* failures. It does not have to be extensive, but it can
+be a much more effective way to demonstrate how to activate critical practices
+in relation to computer techology. You can do that on your own website if you
+have one, you can make zines, something individual or something with others, and
+of course [[you could use this wiki|contribute]]! More generally publishing does
+not need to be only about the projects you are involved with directly, maybe it
+is about helping others writing a manual, a cookbook, a sampler, something
+relatable and accessible.
+
+Breaking the monoculture
+------------------------
+
+Like any other community of practice that emerged from contemporary computer
+tech circles, permacomputing suffers from very poor cultural diversity. How can
+we make this space more accessible and inclusive? Like, really, and not just
+empty words. How can the privileges that some of us have to be able to dedicate
+time on such topics can be generative of activities that can contribute to
+breaking the tech monoculture and how can the permacomputing space, including
+this wiki, can become a platform for less privileged groups to be represented
+*and* supported?
+
+----
Note: the first version of this document was motivated by, and in part inspired
from, discussions and contributions from participants of the LIMITS 2023
workshop. THANKS <3
-
