Final EOC: The future of the internet

The future of any technology, especially the internet can be considered in its own right a work of speculation and science fiction destined to become science fact. Even in its infancy, no one, not even the founders and those truly gifted innovators knew what the present state of the internet would be. It continues to surprise us, and I believe always will as new minds continue to explore and discover new ways to put the wonders of the internet to use.
The future is uncertain. Some people believe that we are nearing the end of where our current technology can take us, that there are limits to what we can accomplish in this digital age. “We know even now that we are at some fundamental limits of what the Internet can handle, we have one big expectation—being able to innovate, and it is unclear whether we will be able to do that.” (Scientific American). In any stage of evolution, the organism, in this case the internet, must push itself past certain barriers to reach the next stage in its life cycle. If there truly are limits that we are already beginning to see to the internet’s growth potential, then innovation is the only way to pass this particular barrier until the driving technology behind the internet catches up to the way it is being used. Hence, innovation.
Very unfortunately, the internet seems to be going through its teenage, dramatic years that most people remember from high school in either loved or hated tones. The various companies and elements that own and control the internet seem to be changing the general tone that has made the internet the melting pot community it has become, now dividing it into strange clicks and clandestine factions, vying for control of virtual territory. “Fifteen years after its first manifestation as a global, unifying network, it has entered its second phase: it appears to be balkanising, torn apart by three separate, but related forces.” (The Economist). The forces referred to are Governments, large IT companies, and separate nationalities. Whatever the real future is, it’s one split up into sadly restricted segments that lack the freedom most enthusiasts swear by.
In the book “Future Shock,” by Alvin Toffler, he theorizes that people of the future will suffer from the incredibly fast change in technology, leaving them “future shocked” and disconnected. I see truth in this, though not the only truth. The internet, unless it suffers some massive change in the near future, is poised to almost literally take over people’s lives through unprecedented integration. Not unlike “Future Shock,” I see people becoming too involved in the internet and its web of interactive experiences, and forsaking the tangible experience of real life. Is this a future shock? In a way yes. Life is not simply a virtual ride. It is a real, visceral, tangible experience that needs to go beyond the virtual reality worlds and escapist theologies that guide much of modern life. Get out and experience it. Go beyond the virtual and get into the real.

Week 10 EOC: Things that scare or inspire

War Driving: The age of the wireless revolution is two things: scary and inspiring. War driving, the situation where hackers drive through neighborhoods or business parks with amplified, internet connected laptops and virtually steal personal information (including info, money, files, etc.) by breaking into unprotected wireless networks. Everyone wants to live in a world where they feel safe enough to leave their doors unlocked at night, but now we can’t even leave our wireless networks open. Everything needs to multiple layers of strict security in order to allow us even the barest sense of well being when it comes to using this all important aspect of technology which is the internet. Sad. Very sad.

Groupon: On the other hand, something that is not as scary as it is inspiring in the new digital age of enterprise and prosperity through commerce, Groupon is a phenomenon. After only two years of existence, created by two men nearly on their own, the company is now undergoing negotiations to see for billions of dollars. Yes, billions of dollars. All for the seemingly simple concept of offering discounts on normal services offered for a limited time only. This is inspiring because it shows just how far you are able to get with a good idea and a little bit of ingenuity and drive to succeed. A truly amazing thing.

Evil Twins: Now back to the scary stuff. Everyone loves wifi. And what does everyone love more than wifi? Free wifi. What’s better than rolling into a Starbuck’s or Panera Bread Company, sitting down with the laptop or smart phone and connecting to the internet, reading you email or what have you, all for free? The concept of the evil twin is farily insidious. A, let’s call them “undesireable,” brings in a portable wifi network of his own, and sets it up to look exactly like the popular wifi already in place. He sets up a fake login screen that asks people for their credit card information and boom. He has your credit card and can do what he wants with it. Scary stuff. Unfortunately, the internet and all its wonders can also be really scary.

Week 9 EOC: What is Cyber Mondy

Around the holidays, the busiest and possibly most important day of holiday shopping is what is known as Black Friday. This refers to the Friday following Thanksgiving where retails supposedly place many of their items on significant sales in order to jumpstart the holiday shopping season. As a result of consumerism hungry for good deals for Christmas, the seasonal spirit of on-sale items spread to internet shopping, a now very important and formidable force in shopping. “For the past few years, online retailers have found that sales on the Monday after Thanksgiving have been creeping higher, giving retailers an additional reason to be jolly during the ceremonial kickoff to the holiday season.” (Shop.org).

The term “Cyber Monday” allegedly stems from the aftershock of this beginning holiday rush. During this busiest of shopping days, potential savvy shoppers became disappointed with lack of sales that met their expectations. And after coming empty that weekend, proceeded to go back to work the following Monday and surf the internet to find better deals on the items they had been looking for in the first place. “The name Cyber Monday grew out of the observation that millions of otherwise productive working Americans, fresh off a Thanksgiving weekend of window shopping, were returning to high-speed Internet connections at work Monday and buying what they liked.” (New York Times).

Whatever your opinions of business practices on Black Friday or Cyber Monday, there are a few deals there to be had for the pick/craft consumer. Regardless of the hype associated with the supposed days of deals (since Cyber Monday had now been universally expanded into Cyber Week), it’s definitely working. Many retailers showing lackluster returns during this busy weekend, are now reporting much higher returns due to the renewed online activity. “Number crunchers estimate $1 billion was spent online Monday and $45 billion was spent at retail stores on Friday.” (PC World).
So there you have it. A hoax? A sham to rid us of our money? Perhaps. But you can’t deny that it’s working…and sometimes we even get pretty good deals!