Information and Communication Technology in Society - Assignment Example

 Topic: Information and Communication Technology in Society Task 1: Searching The internet is one of the many resources that provide bulk information concerning major issues that relate to academics and social life. Through the internet, it is possible to find varying information on a particular subject depending on the author of the material. It therefore requires excellent searching skills of quality assessment so as to access the most comprehensive and valid information, a skill that many young people lack (Looker et al 2009 p 36). For one, information literacy has not improved with the widening access to technology. This is made worse by the time limit which makes it difficult for the young people to afford surfing for a longer time than their money would facilitate (Looker et al 2009 p 44). As such, they search for information quickly so as to save internet expenses thus leaving no space to evaluate the information they find. This leads to poor translation which results to cases of plagiarism especially in higher institutions of learning. While searching for information on the internet using the search engines, it is always useful to use key words that would display specific information required. Research shows that young people are poor in this as they most of the time use long sentences that makes the searching process tedious and inaccurate (Luyt 2008). As such, they waste a lot of time before they could find information due to trial and errors. According to research, young people tend not realize that internet is not just the search engines such as Google, but a collection of many providers. This is due to the fact that they concentrate much of their information seeking on these search engines instead of widening their scope (Dresang 2006 p 25). As such, they get limited knowledge on the constituents of the internet, which could provide more valuable and effective information or which could help them quantify their ability to use the internet. 2: Digital Divide Digital divide is the gap that exists within the society due to the fact that not all persons have been able to acquire the skills to use internet technology (Rooksby 2008 p 181). This results from the difference in income generation between various individuals whereby some have the capability to acquire the necessary equipment which facilitates connectivity. According to research, almost 50% of adults in America alone do not have access to internet technology, a situation that is attributed to financial constraints (Warschauer 2004 p 115). It also shows that those with internet connection have a high chance of getting a job than those without. This gap is evident especially between those in urban areas and those in rural areas. The highest numbers of people who use the internet reside in urban centers while there is limited or no access to internet services in the rural areas. The level of education also determines the access to technology whereby the most educated have easier access to this technology due to their wide knowledge and ability to embrace technology. According to Hoffman and Novak, racial disparity is also a major contributor to digital divide within the American society. From his findings, it was evident that the whites compared to the African Americans had higher access to internet as majority of them owned personal computers in their homes (Alkalimat 2001). However, he continues to say that the technological gap between the two groups is not entirely due to race but due to the financial element, which according to him creates affordability of computers. He however contradicts himself by concluding that based on race, the digital divide cannot be substantiated in cases where students for example from both races have access to home computers (Hoffman et al p 393). From his conclusion, it is true to say that digital divide does exist but the main factors which correlate with it are education, economic status of the sampled group as well as areas of residence i.e. either urban or rural. Task 3: Copyright With internet technology, sharing of files is made easier due to the connectivity which enables one to upload and download materials from the internet. While at it, cases of violating copyright laws become common due to the different attitudes various classes of people have towards the acts. Copying or using information based on another person’s ideas without his authority is a crime that is punishable by law (Morris 2009 p 290). However, people especially the young and the uneducated have been observed as not to care whether the files they are sharing is copyrighted or not. This according to research mostly affects the music industry whereby it denies musicians the chance to excel and benefit from their efforts. This behavior is prevalent among 70% of all internet users who according to research, shares the copyrighted files with other users. The most affected group consists of students and persons who have low income (Darrell 2008 p 300). According to them, it would be uneconomical to buy original data which could be expensive as compared to the copyrighted materials which could be free or cheaper than the original. However, the most learned for example college graduates and the older persons have a negative attitude towards file sharing and copyrighted material. As such, they do not involve themselves in the vice though at times, a small number of this group does it. The weight of this matter cannot be ignored as it requires a lot of attention aimed at changing the attitude of millions of internet users. This can be quantified by the case of Pirate Bay which provided links to other sites such that it made it possible to access materials indirectly from other sites (Disney et al p 7). Unless the demand for pirated materials is contained, such a site cannot go out of business just by suing it. As it happened, the site developers after being sued did not lose their clients but ironically, the business went down for only a few days only to return to its full operations. Task 4: Politics Internet technology has made it possible to transmit information to a wide population that frequently visits various websites in a day. Due to this, it has been noted that politicians are using this media to campaign for support (Weitzner 2008 p 36). The print media such as news papers have lost a significant audience due to internet which can now be challenged only by the television (Owen et al p 50). 40% of America’s population has confirmed this through a research conducted by Pew Research Center (Robin et al 2008 p 215). Some of the avenues used are for example Facebook and chat-rooms whereby discussions are initiated for example against or in favor of a certain leader. People who visit the site and who may not have interests in politics may be influenced to contribute to the discussions thereby making them form a liking to political issues. According to Pew Research Center, the 2008 American elections attracted a large audience who frequently visited the internet for updates. Approximately 80% of the internet users took part in active politics whereby they used the internet as a platform to send and receive political messages from their friends through emails, internet messaging and other internet tools that facilitate dialogue (Smith 2009). From these findings, it is possible that the trend on internet usage with regard to politics is dimed to rise. Politicians are also going to utilize this resource to reach the significant number of internet users, an action that will see a downward trend in the television and news paper audience. However, the print and electronic news media have also seen the threat and as such, they have extended their services over the internet to catch the attention of internet users who do not spend much of their time watching or reading news papers. As such, it is evident that the influence that the internet has on people, taking America as a sample, towards politics is strong. Task 5: e-commerce The mode of conducting business has improved over time due to the accessibility of internet to businesses. These improvements are for example online banking, online shopping as well as advertising among other benefits. Through the internet, businesses can reach their potential customers through their websites whereby customers can make enquiries on a particular commodity as well as buy using their credit cards as well as electronic money transfer (Tansey 2002). This has been facilitated by the availability of personal computers in many homes which are connected to the internet. Survey conducted on the impact of internet on the economy show that internet advertising supports entrepreneurship and productivity thus fostering economic growth especially to the small and medium enterprises (Gordon 2009 p 36). Apart from social benefits accrued from internet through telecommuting, it has also enabled quick and efficient delivery of services since it makes it possible for employees to finish their assignments while at the comfort of their personal computers at home. This mode of conducting business has been influential particularly in America where more than thirty million people earn their living through telecommuting. The mode of communication has also shifted from fax and telephone calls in these businesses, to the most efficient and cheapest method of sending and receiving e-mails. Through this service, businesses do not necessarily have to request for hard copies of resumes and application letters from job applicants. Instead, they allow them to apply through e-mails thus saving the cost of drafting invitation letters. Business physical meetings which could lead to wastage of precious time which could be spent on more deserving activities in the business have also been overtaken by the availability of the internet which enhances teleconferencing (Reynolds 2004 p 27). This is a mode of meeting which only requires a full multimedia enhanced computer system with a camera and a sound device and an internet connection so as the meeting can take place. Task 6: Technologies A web 2.0 technology is an application that enhances interactive environment to the users as opposed to non-interactive sites (Vossen 2007 p 6). As such, it allows the user to edit the contents of the site as well as sharing resources with other users. This type of technology could be beneficial on academic levels as it may facilitate dialogue which could help users to discuss and compare their knowledge on the materials they find on the internet. In contrast, non-interactive websites do not facilitate this and as such, a user is only supposed to view the contents of the site whereby he cannot change the contents or review the material (Emsilie 2009 p 388). By allowing space to contribute to the contents of the sites, web 2.0 is beneficial in the academic level as it can assist students to acquire more knowledge on certain aspects of web designing as well as testing their research skills by posting researched data on the sites for approval by other site viewers (Thomas 2008 p 120). This is because the information can be challenged or edited by other users to correct it or to add value to it by providing more information. This mode of internet usage can be useful in trying to come up with solutions to problems of global significance for example in the medical field (Emsilie 2009 p 388). This is due to the fact that there are intelligent persons around the globe who have ideas about new inventions which can be discussed to come up with viable ideologies (Thomas 2008 p 201). Once such an idea is posted on such a site, many more experienced professionals can have the chance of contributing to the development of such ideas. Bibliography 1. Alkalimat A. 2001. eBlack: a 21st century challenge, Retrieved 05, November 2009 From 2. Darrell K. 2008. Issues in Internet Law: Society, Technology and the Law, Amber Book Company 3. Disney H., Pugatch Meir 2009. “Protecting IPRs as a strategic choice for Europe,” The Stockholm Network’s IPR Journal,4(5), 3-12 4. Dresang E. 2006. The Information-Seeking Behavior of Youth in the Digital Environment, Thomson Gale 5. Emsilie M. 2009. “Working IT: Web 2.0 Technology and Work Integrated Learning” The International Journal of Learning, 16.1, 387-394 6. 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