This poster in DIN A2 format was included in some of the GI Informatik Spektrum Volume 35/4 editions of August 2012.
Of course, the first thing I did was hang it on a Metaplan board in my office. Now I am eye-to-eye with Steve Jobs whenever I look up from my desk. And he always points toward me in a friendly manner as I sit at my big Apple Pro.
For all those of you who do not know it: the GI is the Gesellschaft für Informatik e.V.. Their slogan is “We Are Informatics“ and the Informatik Spektrum is the official organ of this association and their associated organizations.
I do not know what exactly the GI is. As I understand it, it is the association of German computer scientists. To me, its purpose is not conclusive. It does not seem to be an association of professionals or interests. Wanting to develop some social relevance, it still does not do any lobbying. Perhaps they see themselves more like an academic circle that wants to publish computer science topics and organize events on a regional and national level.
At least, the GI has the domain gi.de. That is doubtless some achievement, since two-letter domains were really hard to come by until recently.
Besides the GI, we also have the GChACM (German Chapter of the ACM) in Germany. That is the regional association of the big (American) ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) with the slogan Advancing Computing as Science & Profession. As it happens, the GChACM has the domain informatik.org.
In their charter, the German Chapter makes it their obligation to promote informatics by translating English articles into German.
Then there is the Bitkom – Federal Association of Information Business, Telecommunications and New Media e.V. It calls itself “Hightech Association” and is perhaps an interest association of enterprises of the IKT industry (IKT = information and communication association). Perhaps it is the lobbyist of informatics enterprises.
I do not know. But that is irrelevant. After all, I am skeptical as a matter of principle when it comes to associations, because I doubt that these institutions can still contribute significantly to either the well-being of their members or the general public.
But back to the poster:
Why does the GI now pay homage to Steve Jobs with a poster saying “We Are Informatics“? To be sure, Steve Jobs was a relevant person. Of course, he, too, had dark spots.
His first product was a device you could use in order to make free calls, because it created a signal that simulated the “service call“ at the telephone company Bell, thus making it possible to call for free. So you see: it was a device the use of which was definitely a crime. As a businessman, it was not a good joke to be working at Pixar at the time. And if you want to believe his biography, his first relationships with women were not something to be proud of, either. When all is said and done, Steve Job was only human, after all. You have to respect him and might either love or hate him.
But was he a computer scientist? And on top of this, was he one who actually fits the bill of the highly academic GI with its attempted social relevance and standards? Or is this poster just elegantly camouflaged advertising of a sponsor named Apple?
But I do not wish to foul-mouth the GI. After all, I am quite happy that the GI, a few decades ago, did not recognize the ideal moment and jump on the bandwagon of “certifications”. Because if they had done that, we would now have a GI that became really prosperous and powerful through standardizing and norming the numerous technologies of the IuK.
In this light, let us happily join in when they cheer: “We Are Informatics“! This is certainly better than the alternative: “We Certify Informatics”
RMD
(Translated EG)
Loading ...