Mark Weiser was responsible for the predictions of the first three generations of computers, being the third prediction about ubiquitous computers (1991). However, technologies were acquiring new possibilities, but there was still no forecast to describe the fourth generation. It was then that emerged the concept of collective computing by Gregory D. Abowd (2016). According to him, we are currently in the fourth generation. This generation is mainly based on three technologies: the cloud, the audience (the crowd) and the connection of the connected devices that affect the real and digital world (the shroud).

The cloud

Nowadays the cloud has revolutionized the access to information and data. Devices are connected to each other and share information in real time.

The crowd

The public (audience) currently has an important role. When services are connected to people, the way people analyze or identify that service (via comments and rates) influences users. From a non-commercial (marketing) point of view, it is a great quality filtering tool of how well is product behaving.

The shroud

It is the link between the physical and digital world through technology. Technology captures real information that devices exchange with each other and that affects our real world.
Basically sensors that capture data and transform it into useful information that ends up being used in the real world.

The basic principle is that there are several technological means to absorb information. The human being one of them, in which the human can immediately benefit from its advantages, in several areas that he or she does not have knowledge of. Thus making the human increasingly self-sufficient. These technologies have their advantages, but as such, they can weaken the human-human link, as the human-machine link becomes a dependency.
If today's computers and electronic means were really ubiquitous, which implies being quite efficient, an adult today would not need to spend an average of almost 9 hours a day in direct contact with them. ^[2] This is a fact of the human dependence on technological devices. Humans were supposed to acquire more free time to interact with the real world and not be daily dependent on previously selected information that affects their social role, even directly affecting their skills in the real world.

The great advantage of this concept, is the possibility of accessing information in real time (the shroud) to solve a problem of which the user is not aware of the solution, through a collective effort between the machines (the cloud) and the human (the crowd).

The biggest problem of collective computing lies in the data and the information collected; about privacy and what right companies have to offer a service that ends up making the user dependent on purpose, taking advantage of their data.
The user has the right to keep his privacy, but tech companies are increasingly withdrawing this right, in the sense that they say they offer a “free” service, in exchange for the management of personal data.

“While this capability’s security and privacy implications are daunting, its enormous potential motivates consideration of appropriate social and legal protection measures.”
Gregory D. Abowd