A Luddite writes

Deep down I can't help feeling that computers should be used only for calculating, scientific number crunching if you will. One example might be the calculation of the latest Mersenne prime (2^30,402,457-1 ), another would be the application of Newtonian mechanics to put the Cassini spacecraft in orbit around Saturn after a 7 year voyage, and perform the intricate dance currently underway amongst the 34 moons. Of course, this Luddite view is not really tenable, but deep down I'm convinced that all other uses limit us as much as they empower us.

I am reminded of the "Electric Monk" in Douglas Adams' book "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" (Pan Macmillan, 1988):

"High on a rocky promontory sat an Electric Monk on a bored horse. From under its rough woven cowl the Monk gazed unblinkingly down into another valley, with which it was having a problem. The day was hot, the sun stood in an empty hazy sky and beat down upon the gray rocks and the scrubby, parched grass. Nothing moved, not even the Monk. The horse's tail moved a little, swishing slightly to try and move a little air, but that was all. Otherwise, nothing moved. The Electric Monk was a labour-saving device, like a dishwasher or a video recorder. Dishwashers washed tedious dishes for you, thus saving you the bother of washing them yourself, video recorders watched tedious television for you, thus saving you the bother of looking at it yourself; Electric Monks believed things for you, thus saving you what was becoming an increasingly onerous task, that of believing all the things the world expected you to believe."

In the very old days we occasionally read scientific papers carefully, it took a day or so, and notes were made to suit your style. Maybe a postcard to the author asking for a reprint, and usually we would receive it, often with some exotic stamps. Then we became busier, and so photocopied papers to pretend to read them later. Now we just download a pdf (a copy in effect), with some instantly forgetable file name, and scatter them over our laptops. If you are diligent, you place them in one folder, but read them? No time, too busy keeping up-to-date!

Now with wireless internet you can do this all the time, anywhere!

The Electric Monk is alive and well!