Some People Have A Technology Inferiority Complex
Whenever Apple launches a new iPhone something interesting happens: Many Android users hang on every word of the unveiling, and quickly take to online forums to denigrate the new Apple device, and let the world know why their Android smartphone is superior. The phenomenon is not limited to Apple vs. Android, or even technology per se, but the inferiority complex and need to lash out against other products seems to be much greater in the world of tech.
Case in point. I recently wrote an article about why the
Surface Pro 3 is the laptop that can replace your tablet, and one reader felt compelled to take the opportunity to slam Microsoft. The entire premise of the post was based on the fact that the Surface Pro 3 does a good enough job filling the role of mobile device, that carrying an additional tablet like an iPad is unnecessary.
A reader chimed in to say, “I respectfully disagree. It’s made by [Microsoft] (they need to stay with software). Terrible price/performance ratio. Their proprietary stuff is losing on all fronts. Linux rules on the server side and they rule on the toys. My box costs less than that running several distros of FREE Linux and any one of these OS’s will blow that thing completely out of the water.”
It is immediately apparent that the reader has a seething dislike of Microsoft, and that he is a fan of the Linux operating system. Fair enough. It’s a free country, and he is entitled to his opinion. The part that doesn’t make sense is why he felt the need to share those thoughts in the comments of this particular article. I’m curious why someone who is inherently anti-Microsoft would invest the time to read an article about the Surface Pro 3 in the first place, and Linux simply doesn’t enter the equation at all.
He begins by stating that he respectfully disagrees—assumedly with the premise that the Surface Pro 3 can replace other tablets like the iPad. But, he then goes on to simply rail against Microsoft as a company, and assert that Microsoft should stick to making software—like the Windows operating system for instance—but follows that by claiming that Linux rules.
Another example is the fact that some Android users seem to pay more attention to Apple than Apple fans, and more than they pay to their mobile OS of choice. When Apple announced the features of iOS 8, or unveiled the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, these Android users with self-esteem issues rush to online forums and comment threads to spew venom about why Apple sucks, or how Android is superior.
It seems like there is some sort of inferiority complex at work—like some people can’t just be content to like what they like, or use what they use, but must also go out of their way to make sure you know that whatever you like, or whatever you use is not as good…at least in their opinion. Why bother? If you know you don’t like iOS, and you’re not even considering switching to an iPhone, why even pay attention to what Apple announces in the first place, and why waste the time and effort hating on whatever is announced?
The first production vehicle in the world to have antilock brakes (ABS) as an option was the 1971 Chrysler Imperial. Do you know what you never see? Chrysler fanatics trolling automotive forums, or commenting on stories about the latest Toyota, or Ford models to remark about why they suck, and how they all just copied ABS from Chrysler. That level of vitriol, and the overt effort of actively trolling opposing interests seems limited to technology.
I write about tech for a living, and I have reviewed a wide range of products and devices. So, I’ve been guilty on some level of comparing and contrasting the capabilities of iOS vs. Android, or Windows vs. Linux, or Microsoft Office vs. Google Docs because I get paid to do so.
With the exception of those instances when I am specifically reviewing some alternative device or platform, though, I don’t pay that much attention to what they have to offer. When I’m in the market to get something new, I weigh the pros and cons of the available options, and make a decision. But, I don’t pay attention to what Google announces about the latest release of Android, or what features are in the new version of Ubuntu Linux if I’m not writing about it because I don’t use those platforms so I don’t care.
Do you use Linux, and you feel like it meets your needs better than Windows? Have you chosen an Android smartphone, and it does what you need it to do? Do you prefer it over iOS or Windows Phone? That’s awesome. Just be at peace with that decision. You don’t need to take every opportunity—or invent opportunities where none actually exist—to let the world know what device or platform you chose, and you definitely don’t need to waste your time or anyone else’s by trolling to let everyone know why the device or platform they chose sucks.
