Age of Global Computerization - Essay Example

Towards the end of the 20th Century, widespread use of computers commenced in Western nations like Europe and North America. At first, computers belonged to the elite members of society. With time, the economics of demand and supply led to the massive production of cheap computers for the general public (Wendy, 98). Today, the use of computers is not restricted to specific corners of the world. Today, even communities in remote African and Asian villages have access to computers. Aside from accessing computers, most people in these villages possess conceptual skills regarding the use of the internet and other popular computer applications (Dike, 01).

This widespread availability and application of computers created a computerized global village. The age of global computerization has benefits and setbacks in relatively equal measures. One benefit involves ease of communication. In the past, the exchange of messages between distant persons would involve traversing long distances between communicating parties, which was not only financially costly but also time-consuming. Nowadays, global computerization enables two parties to conduct their social, economic, or political interactions in an economically efficient manner (Smith and Angelica, 21). Irrespective of their physical locations, business partners or politicians can enter into mutually beneficial agreements through the internet. In this regard, global computerization has led to convenience in the exchange of messages, hence enhancing human activities.

Global computerization is not without concerns of disadvantages. Significant decline in ethics features as one setback of the computerized global village. Admittedly, the widespread use of computers did not cause a correspondingly widespread advancement of ethics (Carr, 28). Traditional settings in either social or economic environments upheld ethical standards because physical interactions remained dominant. Nowadays, there are increasing concerns about the decline in social, economic, and political ethics caused by the use of computers. The proliferation of obscene content online is undermining good morals in societies today (Kling, 73). With the use of computers in schools, it is hard to protect minors from unrestricted harmful content found online.

Economically, the decline in ethics manifests in the form of copyright infringement and plagiarism of intellectual, and economic assets. In traditional economic settings, theft and duplication of private intellectual property were difficult because of physical restrictions (Carr, 35). However, online hacking of restricted sites is on the increase. In the process of hacking, individuals and companies lose substantially. Technically, enforcement of ethics laws in the online community is troublesome compared to traditional settings. In conclusion, it emerges that the world is now computerized. The flow of most data and information occurs online. This age of computerization brings benefits like enhanced communication. Contrarily, global computerization causes setbacks that can be hard to solve. In this regard, global communities need to filter and use the benefits while mitigating the negative effects of setbacks. Read More