A question of rice

A number of cooking shows/webshows/vlogs I watch, when they make rice, have recently gone on about the 'absorption method' as if it were a new and revolutionary thing. I've been doing some reading and I'm confused.

From what I can glean, (white?) people traditonally cook rice like pasta, in tons of water and strain it before serving.

Where I come from, 'steamed' rice involves bringing rice to a boil in the right amount of water (in Japanese-American households, this is usually 'up to your knuckle'), clamping a lid on, and turning the flame down (or off) for something like 10 or 15 or 20 minutes, then pulling off the lid, fluffing with a fork or rice paddle, and either serving, or putting the lid back on and letting it sit off the heat for a while. From what I can tell, this is the 'absoption method'. It's also the principle behind a rice cooker. You put the rice and water in, you put the lid on, you press the button, and some number of minutes later you have cooked rice, which can be kept warm in the cooker, all without having to fuss with adjusting the heat at the right time.

Steamed rice, apparently, involves boiling rice in some amount of water (not exactly sure how much, sources seemed to disagree) and then somehow loading it into a steamer and setting it over a pot of boiling water to steam. I have never heard of this technique, which strikes me as a waste of time if you've already got the pot of boiling water and the rice going. But whatevs.

My question is the following: Do any of my enlightened friends/readers actually boil and strain rice like pasta? Is the absorption method really new and revolutionary to large segments of people? For that matter, does anyone routinely 'steam' their rice as described above? More importantly is the popularity of the rice cooker incumbent on the convenience of absorption vs boiling and straining? Does that mean Japanese people regularly boil and strain their rice? What about other rice-staple cultures?

Seriously. I want to understand.

I will forgo the 'salt or no-salt in the water' question (I salt mine, but I like my rice to be salted), or the 'butter or no-butter' question (which still confuses me, unless your idea of rice is that a) it's pasta, but b) you don't salt the water, and c) you add butter as a vehicle for salt). Do not get me started.