The Digital Divide (Has The Internet Changed How You Communicate?)

The Internet & Web – Critical Thinking

1. 1.       Has the Internet changed the way that you communicate with
   1. a.      your friends and family,

Yes, with the many social networking sites I can stay in touch with friends and family, more easily, information is easier to share, its easier to find old friends and fine new ones. Let’s look at some examples. FaceBook is a useful site in which I can keep up with friends, post pictures, play games, poke, tag, message and connect with old high school chums, people with similar interests. Twitter makes it so I am able to post updates and stay up to day with my friends and music industry people, direct message friends instead of text messaging them, I can post up links to pictures of my son or to links that interest me. MySpace makes me able to promote music, connect with people, and promote events. Flicker is a good site for picture sharing with friends and family. Another site I use is .Ning which you can create your own social network with forums, messages boards, chat and allow people to set up profiles and create you own interactive community. I also, like to blog so I use WordPress because I like its functionality I used to use BlogSpot but its not as user friendly. Paypal is a way you can send money without having to go to a MoneyGram location you can have it sent directly to your bank. With eBay and Craigslist you can find products that are local or bid on a product. In this digital world, between Hotmail, Yahoo, Gmail, iGoogle and all of the other social network sites, I don’t have to write and mail letters, pay for postage or even pick up a phone.

1. b.       work on school assignments,

I like to use the web for its variety or search resources, you can connect with college and school research departments, along with sites like Google, Wikipedia, Webster and other sites we can find a variety of information from personal perspectives to well documented resources.

1. c.      research and compare products?

It’s a good way to find the best price, compare price, and find the cheapest place to find a product. PriceGrabber is a great site for comparing prices from multiples sites. There are many sites for finding good prices on travel, hotel, flight, car rental, etc…

1. d.      If so, how?

You are also able to communicate on a global scale, in countries like Zimbabwe they have embarked on programs of providing all children with their own small laptop so they can learn connect with others through WiFi made available by satellite sites. Also in Kenya they use cell phone to wire money in much the same way as MoneyGram would be used here. The use of the Internet, Smartphone’s, iPhones, etc  have replaced pagers, writing letters, text message and personal face to face communication.

How do you think it will impact these activities in the future?

Between mobile technology that you can use to take with you, remove paperwork, makes things more traceable, with GPS, WiFi, Cell-Phones, we are growing in our connectivity and ability to communicate.

1. 2.       Are you aware of a so-called “Digital Divide“—
   1. a.      The difference between individuals that use computers and those that do not?

The amount of information you’re able to share and people you can communicate with, you have digital people or analog people.

1. b.       Do you think there really is a Digital Divide? Cite examples.

Yes, I’m not sure what its like for people without all the connectivity. If you not digital I’m not sure what your experience is like. Many avoid the web for security concerns.

1. c.      What can be done to bridge this divide? Explore http://digitaldivide.org for further information.

Education and access: making things available to learn, free community courses, public library access. There should be many ways to connect and learn and access. It’s more a matter of desire. For example my father chooses to live in a small town and stay unplugged because he doesn’t want his personal information out there. As for me I’m plugged in and online. Always on my SmartPhone using different apps to connect with Twitter, Facebook, Myspace and Blog RSS readers.

I’m connected and online @ www.twitter.com/JustparaDOX, www.myspace.com/JustparaDOX, www.facebook.com/JustparaDOX, www.JustparaDOX.com, http://hhh4darfur.ning.com and http://paraDOXparaBLES.WordPress.com

~ by JustparaDOX on 2009/09/12.