Computers Have Made Life Easier Just like Any Other Machine - Research Paper Example

Internet in Life Outline A. Introduction i. History of computer. ii. History of internet B. Benefits of the internet I. Social benefits i. Internet and communication ii. Internet and education iii. Internet and entertainment II. Economic benefits III. Political benefits C. Conclusion D. Works cited Internet in life Rosenberg and Tapscott agree that computers have made life easier just like any other machine. Before the development of the internet, the computer was just a device that made work easier since it was faster than typewriters and calculators.. However, using a computer today is fun because of the internet. The internet has become such a necessity that it is almost impossible to figure out how our lives would be without it. Since its invention the whole world has become one big community as people are able to communicate with each other despite the distance between them or the different time zones they are in (Rosenberg 22; Tapscott,60) Parents can follow the proceedings of their children’s graduation ceremony through the internet, doctors can communicate with their patients and business executives can have boardroom meetings with colleagues from all over the world. This paper seeks to critically examine the benefits of the internet in our social lives and in sectors like communication, education, economy and politics. Computers have become one of the greatest innovations the world has ever had. They have changed the way people organise, perform, analyse and store their work. Almost every home in the world has at least one computer. Today, tasks are performed faster and more efficiently since people are using these machines in executing the tasks. According to Swedin, Gottfrid and Ferro, history of the computer dates back to the nineteenth century when Charles Babbage designed the first computer. The World War II and the Cold War led to the development of digital computers as nations sought to tighten their security. The development of interactive interface SAGE in the United States and connecting computers across the country with ARPANET led to the internet. As people evolve, computers and the internet technologies evolve too (7-9) Swedin and Ferro say that the computer does not organise information like the human brain. Many different jobs can be done simultaneously and the device is able to sort out its files so there is no need for book-keeping. Complex accounting formulas are processed within a very short time. The computer is also able to produce very precise images and graphs and all this information can be sent to millions of people across the globe instantly (44) Almasy says that, the internet traces its roots all the way in the 1950’s. In 1973, the U.S. Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) initiated a research program, to connect several research databases across the country. In 1988, the Internet began to get the attention in the popular press after the release of the first computer virus at Cornell University. Almasy also notes that 1991 saw the beginning of the transition of the Internet as we know it today. Websites like AOL, Netscape and Webcrawler were invented in the mid 1990’s. Previously, Mosaic and Netscape were the only browsers in use but majority of Americans were still using old methods of communication like the post office. By the mid nineties, a total of four million people in the United States used the browsers each month. Today, Billions of people use the internet each day, some to search the web and others to send emails. The emergence of social media like Facebook and Twitter has also increased the number of internet users. The internet has become a crucial part of life (Web, 10 December, 2013) The internet has influenced almost all the things done in life today. Houses, furniture, household equipment, dresses and jewellery can be bought online. Not forgetting advertisements that are everywhere on the net. Greenfield discusses the magnitude of how the net has reorganised and reshaped our lives. He has developed a concept he refers to as everyware to show that every sphere of life is controlled by the internet today. Various professionals download software from the net to help make their work easier. For instance, architects download software that guides them in designing houses while language teachers will consider Grammarly when proofreading their work (87-97) According to Kellner the internet has many benefits. To begin with, the net has become a huge part of the social life. The internet has affected the way people communicate with each other. Communication happens simply at the click of a button. Something that happens in Washington, or Baghdad, or Hobart or even Tierra del Fuego or the South Pole, can be instantly communicated around the globe with a few keystrokes. Digital media preparation and presentation can flash photos online in seconds (Web, 10 December, 2013) Harankhedar also agrees that internet has changed communication in the world. There are many social websites where people can communicate with each other, exchange photographs and even date. Jobseekers are able to seek and apply for jobs and facilities like video conferencing provide a means for conducting interviews. These websites provide a platform that is easier and more effective and which facilitates interaction (Web, 10 December, 2013) Pakhare says that the Internet is the greatest means of communication ever invented by man. Any new development only makes it faster and more reliable. Today, it is possible to instigate real-time communication with someone who is in another part of the world. Countries and regions that have been geographically fragmented have now become one big community where man can share any kind of information, thought or ideology with a fellow man. However, just like any other innovation, there are people who have misused the internet. These are hackers, pedophiles and identity thieves. The number of people affected by identity thieves increases each day. Some teenagers and adults have been kidnapped and even killed by people they met online (Web, 10 December, 2013) The internet also plays an important role in education. Students do not have to go to the library anymore. Instructors do not have to carry dozens of books to mark assignments. The internet has brought some good in the education sector. Study materials are available on the net ad students can do their projects without necessarily going to the library. Checking exam schedules and results is also done online today. There are virtual universities thus a student can pursue a degree at any university in the world. Harakhedkar observes that the internet is a popular medium among students. College applications are done online through the website of the concerned institution. Students also use the Internet for their projects help and for getting the needed images and graphs (Web, 10 December, 2013) According to Rosenberg, there are also sites like Wikipedia, Coursera, Babbel and Teachertube that are strictly for imparting knowledge on any subject under the sun. Homeschooling is easily done with the internet. Teachers doing homeschooling only need to use video conferencing and the student will feel like it is a real classroom. Graphs, images and drawings can be explained ad illustrated, and the teacher and student can always have a chat. These websites also have the ‘how to it’ notes thus one can get knowledge of doing any task. The World Wide Web has also added new words to the vocabulary, like Google, ‘tweeting’ and blogs (97-98) Rosenberg also says that, the internet is a better teacher than a human being. The internet does not get tired easily hence a student can learn at her own pace. Academically challenged students definitely find a consolation in this. Moreover, the fast ones can do their studies virtually and at a faster rate. The internet will not scorn a student for poor performance or parade the poor fellow before the academic board. Examination results are only known by the computer user hence there is privacy on the net. A human teacher is judgmental and can easily favor a student over another. Not so with the internet! Every internet user can acquire as much knowledge as he wants and the net is not judgmental. (102-117) On the other hand, one has to scrutinize a website carefully to know whether the information given is credible. Students may be tempted to copy and paste what is given without doing their own part of the research. Those that are academically challenged will tend to lean on these websites too much when doing their assignments and projects. Young students can have access to age inappropriate content which will spoil their minds like pornography. The concept of homeschooling can lead to depression due to social isolation. It is easily addictive since it feels like real school but nobody is an island and seclusion can cause depression and obesity easily. There is a lot on entertainment on the internet. Websites like Youtube are equipped with the latest videos from music, movies, documentaries, reality shows and concerts. It is possible to have access to any kind of entertainment including games. One advantage of online entertainment is that one does not have to pay for it, contend with others in long queues or struggle to see what is happening on stage. Anybody can find the latest updates about celebrities and their lifestyles. These celebrities also use the internet to market their projects, movies and music albums. There are numerous games to play without charge and online gaming is becoming popular by the day. Nevertheless, online gambling is on the increase and cases of addiction are rising. Pakhare notes that there is an emergence of psychiatric clinics and medics that specifically attend to addiction problems created by the Internet (Web, 10 December, 2013) Another sector that has benefitted from the internet is the economy. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the internet is very effective in ensuring consumer surplus. Consumers can access different products online from the comfort of their homes, communicate with as many salesmen as possible, send money for the products and wait for them to be shipped for free to their doorsteps. Traditionally, consumers had to move from one store to another comparing product and carry paper money for buying the products. This process was tiresome, time consuming and ineffective. For the last five years, the internet has accounted for twenty one percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This is more than the contribution from sectors like agriculture (77-78) From the OECD it is clear that small, medium and large companies are using the internet as a platform to woo customers and increase their sales. Company websites are updated daily to give information to customers about existing and new products. These companies also rely on social media like Facebook and Twitter to market their goods and services. These advertisements are eve placed on popular blogs and search engines. In addition, business executives can conduct meetings across the globe via video conferencing. There is no need for expensive trips abroad to attend business conferences. Shipping is also easier as companies can transact business online. The environment also benefits from a paperless economy. Companies can also track the number of customers that like their products through tracking the amount of traffic the website has. Businesses like hotels and social joints can easily manage their services by knowing in advance the number of customers to expect (80-82) Nevertheless, doing business online can be risky. There is an increase in online businesses and it is not easy to differentiate the legitimate businesses from illegitimate ones. More people lose money daily while transacting business online. In addition, the avenues for making money online can also be risky as there is no guarantee of payment. It is not easy to track these businesses in cases of breach of trust since some are thousands of miles from home. Advertisements companies do not reap as much as they would like since online advertising is cheap. Small and new businesses prefer online advertising as it is pocket friendly. The government also looses levies it would get from offline advertisements and transactions. The other sector that has greatly benefitted from the internet is politics. McLaughlin says that traditionally, politicians would move from one area to another during the campaign season. Campaigns were very expensive as all these tours had to be funded. Voters on the other hand had to rely on mainstream media like television to get information on the contestants. This media was often compromised so no one could be sure about the information relayed. By the end of the elections everybody was tired and exhausted. Today, campaigns are easier with the internet. Politicians can reach out to millions of voters through the social media and political party websites. This kind of campaign is not only fast but cheaper than putting up billboards. Voters too can watch speeches from various contestants on Youtube, track their performance records and even contribute in funding the campaigns (Web, 10 December, 2013) One politician that has greatly benefitted from the internet is USA president Barack Obama. According to World Internet Users Statistics, millions of voters in Illinois learnt more about the president from the internet in 2007. The man was not famous in Washington for he was not a regular there. To win the party nomination, Obama’s campaign team relied heavily on the internet, posting several videos of his speeches on Youtube. Obama also made use of the social media like Facebook to create a good rapport with the citizens. By the time of the elections, the Youtube videos had more than fourteen million views. Had the campaign team run these videos on mainstream media, they would have spent a lot of money. They also fundraised for the campaign via the internet and collected over six hundred million USD. Historically, that was the most successful political fundraising (Web, 10 December, 2013) On the contrary there are disadvantages of relying on the internet for campaigns. McLaughlin argues that, the internet relies on several machines like computers and routers thus politicians must invest in the hardware which is relatively expensive. In developing nations, not all people have access to the internet so the politicians cannot rely on the internet fully. They still have to conduct door to door campaigns. Crimes like identity theft are also likely to affect politics. People can hack into systems and post false information about a candidate. Clearing such a mess is difficult because of the speed of the passing information online. Government censorship like in Russia can also limit user access to the internet. In such cases, the politicians may not benefit much from the internet (Web, 10 December, 2013) In conclusion, the internet is very important in life. It has changed the way people do their businesses. Education is more fun and politics are easier to manage that before. Other sectors that have benefitted from the same include health and agriculture. The internet has been integrated in culture because it is used in all aspects of culture. Is there anybody that has never heard of the internet? Roderick wonders why there is a lot of fuss about the internet in this day and age. Many people in the world use it and those that do not use the net have heard about it. Given a chance, they would not hesitate to use it. The speed, accuracy and efficiency of the internet makes it popular and reliable. Most people think of the net whenever there is need for certain information. Events are also planned using it because it is easier to track the number of attendees. That is why companies and multinationals spend millions of dollars creating company websites and updating them with fresh content each day (128-135) According to Topscott, we are living in the modern period. He supports the digitalised cohort saying that there is no need to discourage anybody from using the internet. Many of the creations in the world today are founded on the internet as a whole so it is important for anyone living in this time to know how to use the internet. This age may not benefit everybody because those who do not know how to use the computer will find using the internet complicated (111) Valovic on the other hand looks at the demerits of the internet. Addiction, boredom, euphoric information and over dependency on the internet are some of these demerits. It is fatal for people to believe that the net is the only credible source of information. The problem with an online addiction is that people may take time to realise it. Psychiatrists have established clinics to deal with psychological disorders resulting from over dependency on the internet. Moreover, it is easy to suffer from depression since using the internet too much causes depression. The internet cannot replace culture. People need to be careful as they use the internet to avoid becoming slaves of technology. Reality cannot be replaced by virtual (90) Work cited Almasy, Steve. "The Internet Transforms Modern Life." CNN. Cable News Network, 10 Oct. 2010. Web. 30 Oct. 2013. Greenfield, Adam. Everyware: The Dawning Age of Ubiquitous Computing. Berkeley, CA: New Riders, 2006. Print. Harankhedkar, Hemangi. "Internet and Its Uses in Our Daily Life." Buzzle.com. Buzzle.com, 17 Aug. 2011 Web. 29 Oct. 2013. Hames, Roderick. "The Internet: What's All the Fuss?" The Internet: What's the Fuss? N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2013. Kellner, Mark. "The Internet Advantage." Signs of the Times. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Oct. 2013. McLaughlin, W. Sean.The use of internet for political action by non-state dissident actors in the middle east. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. OECD, . Oecd Economic Outlook: 67. Paris: OECD, 2000. Print. Pakhare, Jayashree. "Advantages and Disadvantages of the Internet." Buzzle.com. Buzzle.com, 10 July 2013. Web. 29 Oct. 2013. Rosenberg, Richard S. The Social Impact of Computers. Boston: Academic, 1992. Print. Swedin, Eric Gottfrid., and David L. Ferro. Computers: The Life Story of a Technology. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2005. Print. Tapscott, Don. Grown up Digital: How the Net Generation Is Changing Your World. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2009. Print. Valovic, Thomas S. Digital Mythologies: The Hidden Complexities of the Internet. New Brunswick, N.J: Rutgers Univ., 2000. Print. "World Internet Users Statistics Usage and World PopulationStats." World Internet Users Statistics Usage and World PopulationStats. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2013. Read More