this post was submitted on 15 Mar 2024
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Even IT work I could just say I make and fix tools. They're different tools, but my job is simply to make sure tools work for people who do other work, or making better tools for them to do their work.
At some point that reductionism might as well be 'I perform labor for wages.' Like if the guy gets follow-up questions, he might ask you for help fixing his tools, and you might pick up a hammer from the wrong end.
But any real effort does boil down to-- how'd that one comment put it? "Whispering to the lightning through the haunted frame." Either there are layers of 'okay imagine this other bizarre technology' or you're just telling this guy that you can grab written words and drag them across the paper.
True, you'd have to explain that it's a very vague explanation, and maybe explain its a niche tool for a very specific labor force. I doubt most people have heard or care to hear a detailed explanation of NED Graphics Design and Repeat, nor its use of HASP keys, but I think saying it's a specific tool for making patterns on clothes and I help make sure the tool works is sufficient. You or the person from a previous time may ask for more details, but especially in older times you could just say I can't tell you more because my employers don't want people to copy tools.
Hiding the exact details of your trade was so common back then it caused problems for apprentices, as they were often expected to learn from watching or laboring a long time rather than directly taught.