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People Feel Loyalty To Computers

Posted by timothy on from the cognitive-dissonance-overcompensation dept.

stoobthealien writes "According to BBC News researchers have discovered that people have loyalty to specific computers because of a tendancy to associate "human attributes to them" - and I thought it was just me that speaks to my PC...."

17 of 476 comments (clear)

  1. Unrequited love by rueger · · Score: 5, Funny

    Sadly our computers seem less inclined to share that love...

    "Open the pod bay door HAL...."

    --
    Three Squirrels
    1. Re:Unrequited love by lawngnome · · Score: 5, Informative

      HAL wasnt evil, he just got really paranoid because they gave him a complete set of instructions to carry out the mission in the event that the humans failed and told him to lie about it, which because he was designed to provide accurate information caused the conflict... this is explained in 2010...
      On a side note, is it just me or does the computer nerd that figures this out in the movie have something for hal? that long pause and "thank you hal..." at the end was creepy.

    2. Re:Unrequited love by Simonetta · · Score: 5, Funny

      If she would be willing to open the pod bay door more often, then I'd be happy to activate her more often.

  2. But they're all supposed to be equal... by LostCluster · · Score: 5, Interesting

    In a college computer lab, all of the terminals in a group are supposed to be identical and interchangable. However, it seems like users are building up a trust relationship with the computer they've used sucessfully before rather than wanting to take the chance with a computer they haven't met yet. It's almost as if users are presuming that most unfamiliar computers will fail on them...

    1. Re:But they're all supposed to be equal... by Amiga+Lover · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I think there's a large amount of unconscious thought & actions going on with computer use, which may end up being a large part of what's happening here. Not the least of which is WHERE a machine is. I like corners, so I used to sit in the corner and use the 3 machines around there, but thats just me. Other people liked edges.

      Add to that the subtle signals we pick up when using a machine. Usually there will be little idiosyncrasies in a group situation, where a dozen computers might all sound a little different. whine differently. have their volume set just a little different compared to others, and the ones people are used to, or perhaps even NOTICE this about will be the ones they're drawn to.

      I think the unconscious thought thing applies a great deal to Macs, PCs, Linux boxes. The first time I touched a Linux machine which was supposed to be stable, I locked it up. Why? I don't know. I can only guess that its user (a cousin) had his definition of "stable" defined by the routine of uses he went through every time he booted it, and never came across the particular odd combo I did. I found my Windows machine at the time stable as well (Win 98) but it'd guarantee to lockup within a few hours of use by someone who isn't me. non consciously, I think I'd learned to avoid the things to do that would crash it.

      Bet it's similar with OSX boxes. put a windows or linux user who's never touched one before in front of it and it'll bluescreen, kernel panic or beachball soon after use, until they also built up the internal map of what not to do.

    2. Re:But they're all supposed to be equal... by Spoing · · Score: 5, Informative
      1. In a college computer lab, all of the terminals in a group are supposed to be identical and interchangable. However, it seems like users are building up a trust relationship with the computer they've used sucessfully before rather than wanting to take the chance with a computer they haven't met yet. It's almost as if users are presuming that most unfamiliar computers will fail on them...

      I had the same problem with department groups. By contract with the primary customer, the subcontractors were told "no departmental 'ownership' of machines not in offices". That meant specifically no pictures, no knick-knacks, all documents locked up in another room when the worker goes home. No labels on machines.

      Two things destroyed this idea;

      IT never got out of firefighting mode to impose standards.

      Departments and individuals immediately took the attitude "if I'm not here, others can use my machine" as if that would satisfy the contract requirements.

      Reasons for why this does not work -- and many machines and people ended up being idle -- were basically;

      Without being able to sit down anywhere (possible if IT did make that possible), people stopped trying to use just any machine and focused on one or a small group "in our area".

      People would stop working if a specific -- "my machine" mentioned above -- was not available.

      Add to this lack of customer interest and management, and this becomes a bit of meat to fight over when other tensions arise.

      --
      A firewall can not protect you from yourself. Turn off what you do not need. Do not use the firewall to do your work.
  3. Loyalty to machines by wkitchen · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If people can feel loyalty to something as unintelligent as an automobile, then it is not at all unexpected that they feel that way towards their computers.

    1. Re:Loyalty to machines by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny
      Automobiles are like dogs. They let us down sometimes, they misbehave at inconvenient moments, and we're sometimes angry at them for being a nuisance. But for the most part they're loyal to us. And we love them more than the neighbor's even if the neighbor's is prettier.

      Computers are like cats. They're cute when they're brand new and purring along. After six months you realize they're useless and plotting to kill you. You want to kick the stupid thing out the window.

  4. Wow by sydb · · Score: 5, Funny

    This could lead to an over dependence on electronically-generated news and information.

    Ground breaking stuff for slashdot.

    next! <hits CTRL-R>

    --
    Yours Sincerely, Michael.
  5. The real secret by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny
    People given the option of a range of PCs tended to have favourites, with some even prepared to wait in line to use a particular machine.

    Now we know which one had the hidden stash of pr0n!

  6. Computers and Fashion by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    All I know is, my computer has a much better fashion sense than this guy from Penn State...

    (plaid on plaid! I mean einstein could do it, but that ain't exactly the same!)

  7. Don't piss them off.... by ThrudTheBarbarian · · Score: 5, Funny

    Don't anthropomorphize computers. They hate it when you do that.

  8. More Information Is Required by ZPO · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I don't think we have enough information to draw conclusions based on the article.

    - Do the computers that folks were willing to wait for have additional applications loaded?

    - Are they perhaps known to be the most stable ones out of a given set?

    - Did different machines have different monitors, keyboards, and mice?

    - Are they in a location that makes them more desireable (lighting, temperature, lack of people, etc)

    There are plenty of factors that influence choices such as this. Unless they took steps to ensure that the computers were 100pct identical in every way, the conclusions they have reached are suspect. The extrapolations they make about people blindingly trusting computers even more so.

    A computer is a tool. Just like an artisan may have a favorite tool for a task a user may have a favorite computer for a task. I don't see anything too earth-shattering here.

    1. Re:More Information Is Required by LostCluster · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I'd also like to see what would happen if one night the computer room was rearraged quietly. Would people go looking for their "favorite" machine, or just use the one that had inherited the favorite's location?

  9. Re:This is a suprise? by Snork+Asaurus · · Score: 5, Funny
    People feel irrational loyalty to operating systems too.

    In the case of Windows, it's more likely to be Stockholm Syndrome than loyalty.

    --
    Sigs are bad for your health.
  10. Re:People like sitting in the same place by BarryJacobsen · · Score: 5, Funny

    The human does this, naturally.

    And the human speak the English in the person of the third.

    --
    Track your TV Shows with your iPhone - FREE
  11. my computers love me by SanityInAnarchy · · Score: 5, Funny

    I have Linux on all my computers, and they are all very obediant -- not because I've beaten them into submission, but because we are very intimate with one another. They know the darkest websites I visit, and I know their most hackish source code.

    This is what happens when you start giving them names:

    My desktop is called "Morpheus", and my laptop is called "Trinity". My fileserver is "Tank", and my router is "Ninja". I have had a healthy dose of male bonding with all but Trinity, who is the sexiest little notebook I've ever seen. Every now and then, I compile kernels for a little male bonding, or get down and dirty with Trinity's video drivers.

    The only other computer in this house is called "Dad", which is dual-boot Windows/Linux, and I have a more love/hate relationship with it. Dad is like a Jeckyll and Hyde, and will change with a single reboot from the nicest gentleman to the sickest, most twisted machine.

    But really, if your computers don't love you, have you considered that it's because you don't treat them right?

    --
    Don't thank God, thank a doctor!