Hello, World! Opinion columns from The Daily Princetonian

Brian Kernighan · 17 Sept 2007

Brian Kernighan did not write this page.

Every claim below was made in this piece, quoted word for word and numbered in the order the piece makes them, so you can read it there rather than take our word for it. The sentence above each quote is our reading of the claim, not their wording. Each quote was checked against a stored copy of the page at build time; where the two differ, the quote is the fact.

Our reading
Classrooms need simple technology that works more than new technology.

Their wordsAs I thought about the panel, it became clear that what we really need is not new technology, but simple old-fashioned technology that works.
Our reading
Understanding how computing works is part of being an educated citizen.

Their wordsWhy should one have to know any of this technical stuff? I think it matters if one is to be an educated citizen.
Our reading
People have handed commercial technology more of their privacy than Orwell imagined.

Their wordsAs an almost accidental byproduct of this progress, we have voluntarily given up an amazing amount of our personal privacy, to a degree that Orwell might well have found incredible.
Our reading
Privacy is given away or sold off cheaply.

Their wordsExperience suggests that most people would be quite happy with such a trade - privacy is good but it is often given away or sold off quite cheaply.
Our reading
Social networks erode privacy because their business model is selling users' data.

Their wordsSocial networking sites are useful, but their business model is to sell detailed information about their users. As a result, our personal data spreads far and wide, our privacy is eroded and our risks increase.
Our reading
Students who use phones and laptops in lectures learn less than those who focus.

Their wordsThere’s little doubt that people who play with their phones and computers while sporadically tuning in to the lecture do not learn as well as those who focus.
Our reading
Reusing a password makes your security only as good as the weakest site.

Their wordsBut it seems that the most common problem is using the same password for more than one site. If you do that, your security is no better than that provided by the site with the weakest controls

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The other pieces are the ones whose claims are worded most like this one's. That measures language, not agreement: they may argue the opposite.