Rebuilding computing could really turn out surprisingly difficult: the first time "we" did it, hardware manufacturing was bootstrapped by the type of customer epitomized by "world market for about five computers" and then gently followed the price/demand curve until we reached cheap smartphones. If it had to be repeated, all the potential customers on the beginner-friendly end of said curve will have access to vastly superior legacy hardware. The kind of customer that was amongst the first who could afford computers in the original ramp-up would be the last who could afford increasingly rare remnant hardware after a supply chain collapse (the same problem that makes it impossible to bootstrap a domestic anything industry when you don't already have one, all the deep-pocketed buyers can afford superior imports). Basically "Saddam's PlayStation 2 supercomputer" turned reality.
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Rebuilding computing could really turn out surprisingly difficult: the first time "we" did it, hardware manufacturing was bootstrapped by the type of customer epitomized by "world market for about five computers" and then gently followed the price/demand curve until we reached cheap smartphones. If it had to be repeated, all the potential customers on the beginner-friendly end of said curve will have access to vastly superior legacy hardware. The kind of customer that was amongst the first who could afford computers in the original ramp-up would be the last who could afford increasingly rare remnant hardware after a supply chain collapse (the same problem that makes it impossible to bootstrap a domestic anything industry when you don't already have one, all the deep-pocketed buyers can afford superior imports). Basically "Saddam's PlayStation 2 supercomputer" turned reality.