Whenever I look at events and revolutions that are shaking up the world, I relive the feeling that systems from an older era are finally approaching their limit. Regardless if we are thinking of issues in business, culture, or politics, it has become more and more challenging to address them through a stream of constant updates, and the limitations of the entire system have become increasingly apparent. When people perceive this to be a minor issue and attempt to find a solution to it, they are led to a myriad of problems entrenched in the entire industry, issues with the legal system, or even problems associated with deep-rooted mindsets, which often result in them ultimately losing sight of the actual site of the problem itself.

Initially, I had thought that it would be all right to simply get hold of a new app, but I realized it has become apparent that an update of the OS itself is required. Updating the OS on your own PC is a tedious process. It is indeed odd to imagine that an OS can be easily updated if the OS is connected to not only companies, businesses, industries, but the entire society. Naturally, if it were that easy, there would be a lot of resulting conflict.

Moreover, when it comes to updating an OS, it is not a matter of simply replacing the old system with a new OS by purchasing new components at a place where they are sold, downloading them, and setting them up all by ourselves. A new OS must undergo a seemingly endless cycle of planning, trials, an implementation phase, verification, further trials, and so on, before gradually taking its form as a finished product. One of the biggest challenges is that the typical process of first taking a good look at everything and drawing up a highly precise design before ensuring that all is perfect and proceeding with implementation does not work in this case. On the contrary, every update has to be performed in the spirit of “let’s try this and see if this works.”

Of course, this means that there is no choice but for us to grapple with the inevitable fact that whenever a problem has been resolved, a new problem may crop up elsewhere, and vice versa. In this complicated world, we need to accept that it is next to impossible to put in all our efforts in the hope of solving every existing problem at one go. Precisely for this reason, we must accept the insecurity of the present moment as we are in a period of performing updates without a definite end in sight.

This is a very uneasy and frightening situation. Because of the unease and discomfort, discontent and contradictions may arise in the absence of certain knowledge regarding the ripple effects of attempted improvements, which will lead to conflict, stand-offs, and the rapid fragmentation of society. Under these circumstances, we will lose sight of the ways and means that are essential for us to lead a better life.

If I remember correctly, the historian and intellectual Ivan Illich had advanced the idea of “conviviality” in the 1970s. Since that time, it has been acknowledged that the OS that drives nations and society today is approaching its limit, and Illich has introduced the concept of “conviviality” to the world as a way of thinking and an attitude that can help us to overcome this limit.

“Conviviality” can be interpreted as independent symbiosis or self-sustaining collaboration. Simply put, it is a call for individuals and communities who are confronted with issues and difficulties to seek out systems, structures, or tools that would enable them to transform or revolutionize the status quo and to maintain the new system in a sustainable manner. In other words, when the government or the industry is unable to solve the problems around us, we will do it ourselves. In the case of OS, the idea of conviviality lies at the heart of the conceptual foundation of Linux.

The idea, then, is to lead an independent and autonomous life as much as possible without relying on external entities. There should be no such thing as having too many systems, structures, or tools that can aid us in this objective, either now or in the future. On the contrary, a society that is abundantly equipped with these systems and tools will create a symbiotic effect which will start to take root throughout the entire society. I believe that will be the moment when we will finally discover the contours of the new OS, which will be completely different from its predecessors.

If the voice for change is loud enough, developers and creators will be obliged to seriously reconsider the question of whose benefit technological progress should actually be for. Meanwhile, the idea that convenience can automatically bring about a richer life is nothing but a logic that has been built into the system of the old OS. All of us ought to sit down and carefully think about how we can safely sustain the livelihood of people and communities around us in the event that this logic falls flat.