I think you might be looking at it through rosin colored glasses. There are plenty of kids who want to take things apart, and put them back together again. My son has far more interest in playing Populous on my MiniMig than he does on his computer. Mostly because he watched me take a motherboard, and with the handy dandy soldering iron, I removed plugs, rewired them to different places, and made it fit into a case that it was never intended for.
This can be seen all the time. The thing to remember is that just as that kind of curiosity is rare today, it was just as rare when the heyday of home computers was in full swing. The reason it seems to be less now, is that everyone has computers. So, while the percentage of computer owners that want really explore tech is less among tech owners, it is the same as it ever was among the population.
Basically, the pie got bigger. Your piece didn't get smaller.
or more crassly...
Small potatoes makes the steak look bigger.
