Monday, January 14, 2008

Human Future in The Internet’s Hands

I enjoyed our last readings. In all, I found that the world is changing (thank to the Net? Perhaps). Lifestyle and way of communication have changed already. People are in the middle of a revolution, which is not only technological. The metamorphosis is reaching unimaginable heights. I would say that the Internet, for now, is like the otherworld, but it is a real otherworld that, even though seems unsubstantial, is there every moment of human life, and people rely on it, and they believe in it. In America, the revolution of Internet is progressing more than in Europe, I guess, probably because in the U.S. its users are more demanding than they are in other countries.

If on one hand, I believe the Internet to be a useful and necessary tool, on the other its immediacy scares me. The urgency of having everything published in a few minutes, and sometimes only seconds, may lead either to a bad journalism or to a bad reading. Again, the relationship the printed-paper (newspaper or book) creates with the reader is destined to succumb to the urgency of the internet.

Few days ago, browsing the site of Amazon, I saw a new device invented by Amazon itself, which, in the size of a paperback, can download from the Net up to 200 books. That is, people who buy the gadget have a special connection to the Net that allows the consumers to download books for less than ten dollars per published work. The device can also download headlines from the major American newspapers, email pictures and documents, etc. I sense this will be another technological piece people will carry in their backpacks and in their purses as it occurred with the cellular phones. Today, everybody has a cellular. Tomorrow, everybody (the readers, at least) will have this precious – it costs $399.00 – gadget. Stay with me on this…

2 comments:

Subversive Me said...

Anna I've seen this little device Amazon has created.

Do you really believe that print media will eventually give way to even more electronic reader devices? The joy of reading for me is holding a book in my hand. But I readily admit that I am more old school than most "techie" people. Good post!

Michelle F said...

I beleive this is a revolution fueled by the internet. Without the internet we obviously would not be so advanced and THAT scares me. As an internet savy student I live, eat, and breathe the internet. I'd be lost without it. And yes that scares me sometimes.