The App That Does Nothing

tl;dr Ian Bogost (of CowClicker) reviews Dan Kurtz's free ios app. Binky operates as a fidget toy with the social app interactions. One can scroll through random pictures, like them, and swipe them. Typing a 'comment' just reveals the pre-generated comment, word by word. Users are hence able to satisfy a need for endless novelty, without spending mental energy on social calculations attached to liking/commenting on the posts of other people.

I've encountered this at, perhaps, the best time. I just read volume one of the DC comic _Prez_, written by Mark Russell. It's another satire about American social dysfunction, centered on a _Mr Smith Goes To Washington_ narrative. This app would fit right in as a vacuous gimmick mentioned in passing.

Kurtz has not made it a transaction: the app is free and has no ads. And yet, I feel ambivalent. At least typical skinner boxes are limited by my bank account or my sleep needs. I know it's a far cry from plugging a current into my dopamine glands. But I'm of a kind that tries to stay away from unregulated stimulation.