"It is imperative for many reasons that the appalling gap between public and computer insider be closed. As the saying goes, war is too important to be left to the generals. Guardianship of the computer can no longer be left to a priesthood. I see this as just one example of the creeping evil of Professionalism, the control of aspects of society by cliques of insiders. There may be some chance, though, that Professionalism can be turned around. Doctors, for example, are being told that they no longer own people’s bodies. And this book may suggest to some computer professionals that their position should not be as sacrosanct as they have thought, either."

“I see Professionalism as a spreading disease of the present-day world, a sort of poly-oligarchy by which various groups can bring things to a halt if their particular demands are not met. Such lucky groups demand more in each go-round - but meantime, the number who are permanently unemployed grows and grows.”

“After all, dumbing down Xanadu sure worked well for Tim Berners-Lee!”

“I have long been alarmed by people’s sheeplike acceptance of the term ‘computer technology’ — it sounds so objective and inexorable — when most computer technology is really a bunch of ideas turned into conventions and packages.”

“Most people are fools, most authority is malignant, God does not exist, and everything is wrong.”

“The World Wide Web was precisely what we were trying to PREVENT— ever-breaking links, links going outward only, quotes you can't follow to their origins, no version management, no rights management.”

“A user interface should be so simple that a beginner in an emergency can understand it within 10 seconds.”