Umberto Eco? :-)

["Vinicius Albuquerque" <vini1974@hotmail.com>]

Esse texto achei interessante mandar, porque foi escrito pelo homem tido 
como o maior intelectual vivo, ou pelo menos como o maior teórico da 
comunicação. Autor tanto de best sellers como "O Nome da Rosa" quanto de 
coisas como "Kant e o Ornitorrinco", achei que seria curioso ter pelo menos 
conhecimento desse interessante exercício de interpretaçào da luta entre 
tecnologias modernas e Idade Média - da qual Eco é um excelente conhecedor.
De qualquer modo, vale a pena pelo inusitado :-)
[ ] 's

Vinicius


The Holy War:
Mac vs. DOS

By Umberto Eco
The following excerpts are from an English translation of Umberto Eco's 
back-page column, La bustina di Minerva, in the Italian news weekly 
Espresso, September 30, 1994.
A French translation may be seen here 
<http://www.pasteur.net/olivier/eco.htm>.

Insufficient consideration has been given to the new underground religious 
war                which is modifying the modern world. It's an old idea of 
mine, but I find that whenever I tell people about it they immediately agree 
with me.

The fact is that the world is divided between users of the Macintosh 
computer and users of MS-DOS compatible computers. I am firmly of the 
opinion that the Macintosh is Catholic and that DOS is Protestant. Indeed, 
the Macintosh is counter-reformist and has been influenced by the 'ratio 
studiorum' of the Jesuits. It is cheerful, friendly, conciliatory, it tells 
the faithful how they must proceed step by step to reach--if not the Kingdom 
of Heaven--the moment in which their document is printed. It is catechistic: 
the essence of revelation is dealt with via simple formulae and sumptuous 
icons. Everyone has a right to salvation.

DOS is Protestant, or even Calvinistic. It allows free interpretation of 
scripture, demands difficult personal decisions, imposes a subtle 
hermeneutics upon the user, and takes for granted the idea that not all can 
reach salvation. To make the system work you need to interpret the program 
yourself: a long way from the baroque community of revellers, the user is 
closed within the loneliness of his own inner torment.

You may object that, with the passage to Windows, the DOS universe has come 
to resemble more closely the counter-reformist tolerance of the Macintosh. 
It's true: Windows represents an Anglican-style schism, big ceremonies in 
the cathedral, but there is always the possibility of a return to DOS to 
change things in accordance with bizarre decisions; when it comes down to 
it, you can decide to allow women and gays to be ministers if you want to.

And machine code, which lies beneath both systems (or environments, if you 
prefer)? Ah, that is to do with the Old Testament, and is talmudic and 
cabalistic.



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