DIY Technology

Open-source software and hardware is making it easier for individuals and groups to assemble customized devices that provide the functions they desire.

Tech enthusiasts are turning to DIY technology in a search for the experiences they desire, a sense of control, and contribution to the larger community. Magazines like Make, and various DIY tech sites provide supplies and instructions to aid creators in their quest.

An increasing number of technology consumers are exploring various degrees of DIY technology, from open source operating systems to custom hardware, displaying a growing comfort with technology, fatigue with closed, one-size-fits-all offerings, and often a desire to innovate or experiment. This is yielding a growing industry for open technology, encouraging makers to tinker with the plumbing of their own devices, applications and services.

Signals:

While homemade technology was popular in Silicon Valley of the 1980s, both hardware and software remained largely controlled until open source operating system Linux emerged in Scandinavia in the 1990s. Thought it remained a somewhat niche environment for the better part of a decade, in the past five years, Linux has become the core of numerous new devices, such a set-top boxes, interactive TVs and other media devices, and OSs, including Google’s increasingly popular Android OS.
Open source hardware, such as the Arduino programmable circuit board, and easily modified devices such as the Chumby multimedia device, have opened up interest in DIY innovation with programmable technology. Maker Fairs, which have become increasingly popular across North America among both technology enthusiasts and a more mainstream audience, provide access to the parts and know-how to create new platforms for interactivity.
Modular approaches to software and pre-fab components such as object libraries for software and simple authoring systems enable less knowledgeable users to configure their own devices.
Modifying or “modding” software and hardware is becoming more acceptable and popular among early adopters. From iPhone “jailbreaks” to mods for Android devices and popular gaming platforms such as the Wii and Xbox are more widely available, enabling those with an interest to add functionality or remove unwanted limitations from devices.

Implications:

Users are starting to have a greater voice in shaping the functions of their devices, and are increasingly pushing innovation from formal sources that feel pressure to accommodate the functionality modders desire.
Bottom-up innovation is becoming a recognized force in technology markets, with important disruptions increasingly coming from informal sources.
Hegemony of a small number of technology companies is weakening. The phenomenal growth of the Android system, available to anyone who wants to make a mobile phone, has put pressure on companies like Apple and Microsoft in a short time since its release.

Countertrends:

Some of the major technology companies have pushed back at openness, creating more restrictive licensing, implementing digital rights management and other measures to ensure control of their technologies and markets.

Extrapolations:

Technology markets, and the content and media that rely on them, will doubtlessly become more fragmented over the next decade, driven in part by a boom in bottom-up innovation and new entrants, but also due to the fight for control of these markets by traditional leaders, driving even more users in search of choice and personalization.