Our family conscientiously chooses quiet software.
There is no formal definition, but, like Justice Potter, we know it when we see it. Quiet software means no:
- Advertisements
- Calls to action
- Up-sells
- Gambling
- Gamification
- Clickbait
- Un-configurable notifications
- Visually and/or audibly distracting elements
- Exploitative, manipulative, or addictive design patterns
- Exploitative, obtuse, and/or manipulative monetization models
Quiet software is:
- All signal, no noise
- Focused on the task at hand
- Allows us to be present and productive without distraction
This does not mean luddism, and may not look like what you expect.
My Apple Watch is quiet software. It allows me to get silent vibrations for important things like phone calls and text messages from specific individuals without audible disruptions. I can glance at my wrist to see if something is important without having to pull out my phone. A simple, fullscreen watch face displays only the time. A quick scroll of the crown allows for checking the weather and my calendar without distraction. Aggressively limited notifications means a vibration is infrequent and always important.
Plex is quiet software. When we are picking out a family movie, we can scroll through our library without being bombarded with recommendations, advertisements, and violent title cards.
RSS is quiet software. The terminal is quiet software. DIY IoT and cyber-physical systems are quiet software. E-ink devices are quiet software.
AI can be, and assist in the creation of, quiet software. We created multiple self-hosted applications for everything from baby trackers to daily summaries to plant care. Available to anything on our Tailnet, we have optimized for our own needs and preferences. Before, we simply opted out of software, even if the overall impact would have been positive. We decided the cost of the noise was too high, especially for things our children may interact with.
We recently went further by adding AI assistance directly into our workflows. Custom software plus an AI intelligence and parsing layer allows us to programmatically query, and then intelligently summarize, disparate sources of data. We spend even less time on household project management and more time on the projects themselves.
Quiet software is not a niche. It is the software we all deserve. It is the software that allows us to be present and productive without distraction. It is the software that allows us to focus on what matters most. If the market does not provide it, we can build it ourselves.
With AI, we can build it better and faster than ever before.