--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Among computer gurus, there was a word…" description: "\"“Among computer gurus, there was a word for people who thought they were off the grid but weren’t. The word was fools. Only the tiniest fraction of tho..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7d/dean-koontz-118_computers_among-computer-gurus-there-was-a-word-fo_1899350.jpg" --- # Among computer gurus, there was a word for people who… ![“Among computer gurus, there was a word for people who thought they were off the grid but weren’t. The word was fools. Only the tiniest fraction of those who believed they were off the grid—including dedicated end-of-the-world preppers—were in fact off it. Those who were truly untrackable, like…” quote by Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7d/dean-koontz-118_computers_among-computer-gurus-there-was-a-word-fo_1899350.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7d/dean-koontz-118_computers_among-computer-gurus-there-was-a-word-fo_1899350.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7d/dean-koontz-118_computers_among-computer-gurus-there-was-a-word-fo_1899350.jpg) > ““Among computer gurus, there was a word for people who thought they were off the grid but weren’t. The word was fools. Only the tiniest fraction of those who believed they were off the grid—including dedicated end-of-the-world preppers—were in fact off it. Those who were truly untrackable, like Jane, and yet remained able by various means to use the Internet undetected were said to be “in the silent corner.” She”” [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People who think they are invisible online are often mistaken; true anonymity is rare and only a few achieve it, like the “silent corner” users. **In simple terms:** Most think they’re off‑grid, but true anonymity is rare. Key Takeaway Beware overconfidence in digital privacy. Themes privacy technology illusion Mood cautious inquisitive Type technological warning When to use this quote - online activism - prepping - cybersecurity Key Concepts anonymity digital surveillance trust Questions to Reflect On - How realistic is true online anonymity? - What steps truly protect digital privacy? A Different Perspective Even the “silent corner” users may be tracked eventually. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believed Grid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believed-grid-2793257/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Grid Weren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grid-weren-2793260/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Internet Undetected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet-undetected-2793259/) [Undetected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/undetected-351460/) [Undetected Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/undetected-said-2793258/) ## Related quotes > [“...it was a miraculous thing to be able to watch the person you love undetected,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/it-was-a-miraculous-thing-to-be-able-to-watch-the-person-you-love/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [As far as we know, our computer has never had an undetected error.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-far-as-we-know-our-computer-has-never-had-an-undetected-error/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People I didn't know formed a circle around me, sheltering me from view. They escorted me safely back to our jurta, undetected. They didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruta-sepetys/people-i-didn-t-know-formed-a-circle-around-me-sheltering-me-from/) [Ruta Sepetys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruta-sepetys/) > [“Only hidden and undetected oratory is really insidious. What reaches the heart without going through the mind is likely to bounce back and put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/only-hidden-and-undetected-oratory-is-really-insidious-what-reaches/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“My own mystery, unplumed, undetected, was sorted into files that were neatly labeled but really didn't say much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/my-own-mystery-unplumed-undetected-was-sorted-into-files-that-were/) [Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/) > [Accordion to a recent survey, replacing words with the names of musical instruments in a sentence often goes undetected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramandeep-singh/accordion-to-a-recent-survey-replacing-words-with-the-names-of/) [Ramandeep Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramandeep-singh/) > [We do not believe any group of men adequate enough or wise enough to operate without scrutiny or without criticism. We know that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-robert-oppenheimer/we-do-not-believe-any-group-of-men-adequate-enough-or-wise-enough-to/) [J. Robert Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-robert-oppenheimer/) > [“seventy to eighty former members of their secret police that the British left behind undetected in Philadelphia.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willard-sterne-randall/seventy-to-eighty-former-members-of-their-secret-police-that-the/) [Willard Sterne Randall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willard-sterne-randall/) > [What is originality? Undetected plagiarism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-originality-undetected-plagiarism/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I need not be visibly odd. I could engage in the protocols that others followed and move undetected among them. And how could I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graeme-simsion/i-need-not-be-visibly-odd-i-could-engage-in-the-protocols-that-others/) [Graeme Simsion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graeme-simsion/) > [This is the one holiday where our full-blown alcoholism could possibly go undetected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-is-the-one-holiday-where-our-full-blown-alcoholism-could/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In today's regulatory environment, it's virtually impossible to violate rules ... but it's impossible for a violation to go undetected, certainly not for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-madoff/in-today-s-regulatory-environment-it-s-virtually-impossible-to-2/) [Bernard Madoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-madoff/) > [Look and you will find it - what is unsought will go undetected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/look-and-you-will-find-it-what-is-unsought-will-go-undetected/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [Originality is undetected plagiarism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ralph-inge/originality-is-undetected-plagiarism/) [William Ralph Inge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ralph-inge/) > [I don't understand why we're all connected wirelessly via a little machine that goes in our pocket, to everybody in the world, and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-m-chu/i-don-t-understand-why-we-re-all-connected-wirelessly-via-a-little/) [Jon M. Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-m-chu/) ## More by Dean Koontz > [“This kind of derangement is emblematic of humankind. Grave faults are said to be only eccentricities, and imperfections are routinely celebrated as mere differences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/this-kind-of-derangement-is-emblematic-of-humankind-grave-faults-are/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“He often remembered his dad's admonition that envy was mental theft. If you coveted another man's possessions, Dad said, then you should be willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/he-often-remembered-his-dad-s-admonition-that-envy-was-mental-theft/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [What really holds their marriage together are mutual respect of an awesome depth, a shared sense of humor, faith that they were brought together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/what-really-holds-their-marriage-together-are-mutual-respect-of-an/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Her mother said that three great powers kept the universe going. The first and the strongest was God. Each of the two additional powers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/her-mother-said-that-three-great-powers-kept-the-universe-going-the/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“I stopped keeping an eye out for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve because, when I was five, my mother told me that Santa was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/i-stopped-keeping-an-eye-out-for-santa-claus-on-christmas-eve-because/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“To one degree or another, I have been happy most of my life, in part because the world has infinite charms if you wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/to-one-degree-or-another-i-have-been-happy-most-of-my-life-in-part/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“This life is just a bootcamp, to test and toughen us, to prepare us for the next life of service in some great adventure.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/this-life-is-just-a-bootcamp-to-test-and-toughen-us-to-prepare-us-for/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“A madman should have a madman’s laugh, not the warm chuckle of a favorite uncle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/a-madman-should-have-a-madman-s-laugh-not-the-warm-chuckle-of-a/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Anger was a reliable defense, but one that allowed no chance of final victory. Anger was a medicine but never a cure, briefly numbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/anger-was-a-reliable-defense-but-one-that-allowed-no-chance-of-final/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Nothing is predetermined for us, and yet all our possible choices are threads in the vast weave of things, so that we have free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/nothing-is-predetermined-for-us-and-yet-all-our-possible-choices-are/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“In fact, time teaches us that the musical score of life oscillates between that of Psycho and that of The Sound of Music, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/in-fact-time-teaches-us-that-the-musical-score-of-life-oscillates/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Some will accuse me of being judgmental. Thank you. And proud of it. You wreck a kid's life, I have no pity for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/some-will-accuse-me-of-being-judgmental-thank-you-and-proud-of-it-you/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Waiting is one of the things that humans beings cannot do well, though it is one of the essential things we must do successfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/waiting-is-one-of-the-things-that-humans-beings-cannot-do-well-though/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Dogs know we need to give affection as much as they need to receive it. They were the first therapists; they've been in practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/dogs-know-we-need-to-give-affection-as-much-as-they-need-to-receive/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) [Explore all 1,233 Dean Koontz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## More Computers quotes > [I don't understand why we're all connected wirelessly via a little machine that goes in our pocket, to everybody in the world, and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-m-chu/i-don-t-understand-why-we-re-all-connected-wirelessly-via-a-little/) [Jon M. Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-m-chu/) > [“Probably it goes without saying, but time machine guys don't get a lot of action. 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They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-sheridan/note-found-in-the-patron-suggestion-box-you-have-signs-up-near-the/) [Gina Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-sheridan/) > [“You weren't born to be a cog in the giant industrial machine. You were trained to become a cog. There's an alternative available to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/you-weren-t-born-to-be-a-cog-in-the-giant-industrial-machine-you-were/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [The corporate state is an immensely powerful machine, ordered, legalistic, rational, yet utterly out of human control, wholly and perfectly indifferent to any human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/the-corporate-state-is-an-immensely-powerful-machine-ordered/) [Charles A. 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The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [“According to this model, human beings are, at least in one aspect, sensation-receiving machines; and although our receptory apparatus is competent to select and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cruce-stark/according-to-this-model-human-beings-are-at-least-in-one-aspect/) [Cruce Stark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cruce-stark/) > [As in any machine, all the wires must be connected to the mains through one main wire. In the same way, you all must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/as-in-any-machine-all-the-wires-must-be-connected-to-the-mains/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) [Browse all 9,389 Computers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Among computer gurus, there was a word for people who thought they were off the grid but weren’t. The word was fools. Only the tiniest fraction of those who believed they were off the grid—including dedicated end-of-the-world preppers—were in fact off it. 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