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Comment on Why Japan's internet is weirdly designed

leftzero@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

Same reason fax is still a thing you need if you want to do anything official or business related, why PC-98 was a thing, why their smartphones are weird, why they invented the term Galapagos syndrome, or why they use laptops that still have compact disk drives and look like this:

No, really, this is a 2025 model.

Japan innovates early. They innovate fast. And then they sort of… stop.

Technology in Japan looks futuristic for a while, then the rest of the world catches up, but, since Japan has already been there for a decade and made different decisions their technology looks… odd, and then the world carries on, while Japan seems stuck in some kind of retrofuturistic limbo.

Of course this is happening with different innovations at different times and paces, so from an outside perspective Japan is always a weird combination of futuristic, weird old alternate future, and just plain weird.

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favoredponcho@lemmy.zip ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yea, visiting Japan does feel like they are stuck in a retro vision of the future where everything by was going to be driven by buttons. There are buttons everywhere, including at your table in a restaurant and on every toilet too. The toilets even have heated seats, bidets, and play music, all driven by buttons. They also have vending machines everywhere, which are covered in buttons. Ordering ramen at a restaurant? Make sure you tap all the buttons at the machine in the front to make your order.

They still haven’t quite adopted the touch screen fully.

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- Sidhean@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Absolutely based. Fuck touchscreens; bring back physical controls.
  
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- RickyRigatoni@retrolemmy.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Good. Touch screens are evil.
  
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- Oberyn@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  
  The toilets even have heated seats, bidets, and play music
  
  Man, I wish my toilet would play the loudest harsh noise music possible so don’t hafta hear my self taking a shit
  
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  - favoredponcho@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Pretty sure that’s why they have it. It’s to courtesy so you don’t hear bathroom noises.
    
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- fibojoly@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Because touch screens aren’t always ideal. Japan is just one generation ahead again
  
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rafoix@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

they’re stuck in their version of the Geocities / dot-com boom era

That’s before everything became total shit.

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