Tech Tribalism Is Stupid

It’s certainly not a stretch to say that I love technology. Perhaps I like it more than I even should.

I’ve spent countless hours tinkering with different Linux distributions, self-hosting things that I could’ve simply paid someone a few dollars a month to host, trying different development tools, learning new programming languages, and just generally trying to make computers do things that I find interesting.

This post is not an argument against a passion for technology, it’s an argument against tech tribalism.

Tech Tribalism?

What do I mean by tech tribalism, you ask?

Well, you’ve undoubtedly seen it before.

Linux is the only acceptable operating system. Using anything else is unfathomable.

Windows is garbage and you should never use it.

Macs are for people with too much money and who don’t understand computers.

Android is for people that understand technology.

iPhone is for Apple sheaple.

Real programmers use Vim.

Real programmers use Emacs.

Real programmers use tabs.

Real programmers use spaces.

Real programmers use Linux.

Real programmers, apparently, spend an insane amount of time judging everything other programmers do.

I think you get the gist. In short, tech tribalism is when a preference you have towards a technology becomes a part of your very identity. And, to be clear, I’m not even talking about those that are passionate evangelists for a particular technology. I’m talking about those people who have their heads so far up their own ass that they can’t possibly acknowledge that the technology they’re passionate about might not be right for every person or every use case.

I’m sure we’re all familiar with the type of people I’m talking about.

Tools are Tools

You know what I find particularly bizarre about all of these techno-tribalistic takes? They’re all about tools.

That’s right, at the end of the day, the OS you use, the phone you carry, even the text editor you use, are all just tools you use to get something done. I don’t care if you’re doing low-level operating system development, editing your photography, or just browsing Facebook. At the end of the day, your technology is just a tool.

Sure, you can have strong preferences for the tools you use, but you’d be insane to think that a particular tool is the right one for every job. As a non-tech example, consider a general contractor. They may have a strong preference for, say, Dewalt tools but they’re certainly not going to try to tell you that a drill is the best tool to hammer a nail (and, if they do, please immediately fire this person).

The point is, there is no universal tool. Just because Linux works great for everything you do, doesn’t mean it’s going to be the perfect solution for everything I do. You can have your preference, but let’s not act like any piece of technology is the second coming of Christ.

Just Use What Works for You

The point of all of this is to say that you can just use whatever works best for you and your situation. As an example, for me, Linux is the perfect solution for 99% of my tasks, but I still own an expensive Mac for my photo and video work. I don’t consider myself either a Linux guy or a Mac guy. I’m simply a guy that uses the tool that best fits my current usecase. I’ll gladly share my opinions on the tools I use, but I’m not going to sit here and pretend that my tools are the only possible tools for a given job.

And that’s the way it should be! Use the tools you want. Hell, even share your opinions about the tools you use. Just don’t be one of these obnoxious tibalistic tech-bros that can’t see the forest through the trees.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.