Here's a hypothetical to help frame my question:<p>Imagine all computer hardware, software, and anything that could be considered a "blueprint" for computer hardware/software/architecture disappeared overnight. The best computer and software engineers in the world come together to build the best computer they can from scratch with no precedent and no previously established standards.<p>Would the computer they made be fundamentally different from the computers we have today? If so, in what way? Would they be better?<p>Or to put it differently: Is the computer architecture we have today adhering to any decades-old precedent and/or concept and/or standard that, in hindsight, was mistaken or ill-advised? If so, how much potential/productivity might we losing?