Computer Stores and Consumer Destiny

Most visits to computer stores are fraught with frustration, but yesterday I had a rare enjoyable trip. Mostly when I go to computer stores the service people are trying to get me to throw out my old computer and buy a new, better one. Mostly they say things like “it’s going to be out of date in a year anyway.” And I always ask’ what do you mean by better?” “Faster” is usually the answer, and, of course, there is nothing wrong with “faster” except that I don’t need it. What I really want is a computer that will last longer and work. What I want is a computer that won’t break down every few months and need to be entirely replaced. Imagine that—a computer that would last for years and years, like fridges and washing machines. Would it be all that hard? Could it not be that when something in my computer broke that piece was simply fixed or replaced, leaving me still with my old but repaired computer?
Every time a piece of electronic equipment dies and we put it on the growing pile in our house, I think of the mountains of electronic waste that are growing around the world. E-waste is fast becoming the biggest source of garbage in the world. And not only that, much of it is toxic. United Nations estimates say that some 20-50 million metric tonnes of e-waste, including lead, cadmium, mercury and other hazardous substances are dumped every yea. Hence my reluctance to buy new computers all the time. (Well, that and the cost of course). And hence my delight yesterday when I got a call from the computer store telling me that whatever was wrong in my computer had been replaced.
I went to the store to pick up my computer, and as I was turning it on to make sure it really was working, the man behind the counter said “that should last a while”. Imagine my delight. In fact I was so happy at this sentiment that I didn’t even ask him how long “a while” was. I knew I would be disappointed in the answer, and I wanted to savour the moment. It wasn’t the duration that was important; it was his believe that lasting “a while” was a good thing.