Ms. Mary Jade C.

Jakosalem, LPT, MBA

MY DIGITAL LIFE
Digital Technologies
1 TELEPHONE

In the 1950's, telephones represented the cutting edge of technology.

Telephones were expensive to use. Calls were charged in units of three
minutes. The high cost of using a telephone ensured that anyone who had
one tended to use it infrequently, and then only for short calls.

2 COMPUTER

There were very few computers in the 1950's, and those in existence were
treated as objects of wonder with almost mythical powers. They were
nothing like the computers of today. For one thing they were huge, with the
refrigerator-size computer being relatively small for the time. They were also
delicate, and consumed a lot of electricity, wasting much of it as heat.
Digital Technologies
3 NETWORKS AND THE INTERNET

Consider a computer that is connected to the internet – this computer is

part of a complex system consisting of wires and optical fibers,
microwaves and lasers, switches and satellites, that encompasses
almost every part of the world.

The oceans are wrapped in more than a quarter of a million miles of

fiber-optic cable with several strands of glass running through it. Each of
these strands can carry thousands of simultaneous telephone
conversations, a few dozen television channels, or any of a range of other
forms of digital content (such as web pages).

It is one of the greatest technological achievements of the last thirty

years.
Digital Technologies
eoW pHowzzz,,, mzta na u?...,,,
4 RISE OF TEXTING

Unintended uses sometimes develop alongside the intended uses of emerging

technologies in our information society.

A classic example is the text messaging facility on mobile phones, often

referred to as SMS (which stands for short message service).

This was originally a minor feature designed to be used by engineers testing

equipment – it was not expected to be used by phone owners at all.

Yet by 2006, mobile phone companies were earning more than 80 billion US
dollars per year worldwide from SMS messages, making them one of the most
profitable parts of their business (International Telecommunication Union,
2006).
Aspects of an
Information Society
1 FINANCIAL SERVICES

Every time you use a debit or credit card in a shop, the shop till communicates
with a card terminal that transmits your identification details from your card to
your bank or credit card company for verification. Your balance is then
adjusted according to your purchase.

Many banks also provide online banking services, reducing the need for
customers to visit a branch. Automated teller machines (ATM) allow you to
check your bank balance and withdraw cash wherever you are in the world.

In each of the above situations – the machines involved are connected via a
network to a central computer, which has records of your account in an
electronic filing system known as a database.
Aspects of an
Information Society
2 COMMERCE

Advances in digital technologies have led to changes in many areas of

commerce, one being the emergence of retailers such as Amazon, which have
an online shop but no physical one that customers can visit.

However, this growth has resulted in casualties in traditional (sometimes called

‘bricks and mortar’) retailing. High-street shops specializing in items such as
books, DVDs, music and games have all lost business to online retailers. This
has driven some shops out of business, but a number of high-street stores
have also opened successful online stores.

Online retailers have lower costs – they don’t pay expensive high-street rents
and can easily be based in countries with low tax regimes – and they can pass
these savings on to customers.
Aspects of an
Information Society
3 WORK

Manufacturing tasks that used to take days can now be completed in minutes
using computer-operated machine tools working in automated production
lines.

Telephone and online banking mean that banks no longer need large numbers
of counter staff, and the role of travel agents has changed as more people
book their holidays directly from the vendor by going online.

Some companies have responded by reducing their number of employees,

while others have retrained their staff to provide more specialized services to
their customers.

More generally, many people working in an office environment are expected to

learn how to use new software applications in order to do their jobs.
Aspects of an
Information Society
4 COMMUNITIES

Existing communities have created new ways of communicating, and new

online communities have developed.

Social networking plays an increasingly significant role in the lives of many

people.

Online communities appeared on the Web in early 2007. Since then, the social
networking site Facebook has increased in significance and size at the
expense of MySpace, and microblogging sites such as Twitter now known as X
– which allows users to post and read short messages – have appeared and
grown.
Aspects of an
Information Society
5 INFORMATION

The internet has had a huge impact on the availability of information of all
kinds.

Material on the Web reflects widely differing viewpoints, from official news
bulletins to unofficial rumors, and comes from widely differing sources, from
commercial mega stores to community groups.

Since no individual government, company or person has control over it, the
internet has paved the way to unfettered publishing of information of all kinds,
raising questions about the authority and regulation of this information.

Some governments try to exert control over the information their citizens can
access and create, with varying degrees of success.
Aspects of an
Information Society
6 ENTERTAINMENT

Digital broadcasting has changed the way we experience television and radio,
with increasingly interactive and participative programs.

However, it is now much easier for the products of the media industries
established during the twentieth century – film, music and so on – to be
illegally copied and distributed in a form that is indistinguishable from the
original.

Copyright holders are taking steps to prevent this by developing a range of

digital rights management (DRM) techniques that make it much harder to
create copies, as well as by trying to persuade users of the benefits of the
original product.
Aspects of an
Information Society
7 PUBLIC SERVICES

Many countries provide online access to at least some of their government

services.

For example, you might be able to renew or apply for a passport, book a driving
test, claim benefits, or fill in your tax return online.

Local authorities also provide digital information services – you might be able
to reserve or renew a library book online, for instance – and there are
numerous opportunities to learn online.
ANY QUESTIONS?
Ms. Mary Jade C. Jakosalem, LPT, MBA