Digitization

*WARNING-THIS IS A HUGE (but interesting) POST

There's been something on my mind for the past little while, so I thought I might talk about it today. Basically, digitization is the process of converting analog into digital. For example, vinyl records into CDs, VHS to DVD, etc. But the thing to note is that digitization carries with it many implications. Technology seems to be advancing at a rate too fast for much of society to handle. Personally, I consider myself to be quite tech savvy, but I can't say the same for everyone I know. The problem is the variety of different views on digitization.

There are (and always will be) those people who refuse to accept any change from traditional values whatsoever. They are the ones who halt new technologies from being implemented more efficiently into daily life. They are the ones stuck with the mindset "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." These are the kinds of people that really annoy me. Sure, I know I'm always talking about being happy for what you have, but the importance of progress is well, really important to this thing called growth.

Next up are the people that just don't really care. They are the people that are willing to adapt to new situations but won't push for anything new themselves. They just live and work with the technologies presented before them. I guess you could call them the work force, regardless of their individual occupations. I'm just hoping that more people from the first group might think more like this.

And finally, you have the revolutionaries. These are the technological leaders of society. And I'm not just talking about the big guys like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. I'm just talking about the mindset of looking for new ways to innovate and incorporate technology into society. Now these people have high demands. Most (if not all) of these demands clash with the first group. Now I consider myself to be one of these poeple a lot of the time, and let me tell you, life gets frustrating.

I spend quite a lot of my time at Windsor in the library, not always doing work, but often just socializing with friends. About once every 2 months or so, I see a repairman come and attempt to fix one of the ancient computers being used in the library. And by ancient, I'm saying that it runs Windows 2000 Professional. In the field of computers, a computer running a 10-year-old operating system (OS) is like having a 65-year-old play in the NHL. It's not right. The most frustrating thing about this scenario is that no student in the school population should be using this OS. I can almost guarantee that no student in the school population uses this OS outside of Windsor. My question is, why should a student be exposed to new technologies everywhere except the school? I understand that things like Mathematics and physics won't change and haven't chaged in the past few decaeds, but computer certainly have.

The other limiting factor in the above scenario is money. Computers aren't exactly cheap, I get that. But shouldn't technology be incorporated into the annual budget in this day and age? This is a case where people from the first group of people are in command of the school board and budget. These people grew up in a different time, when computers were in their infancy compared to computers of today. Back then, computers were just a supplement to eduacation. Eg. a graphing calculator makes solving problems easier (don't even get me started on the "standardized" TI-83 and TI-84). With the technology available today, it is an absolute waste to continue using technology the way it has been used in preview generations.

It's just amazing that people don't understand these kinds of concepts. I'll be honest, I have never opened a physical encyclopedia in my life. I had a mini one as a child, but that's it. When I require information, I turn to the internet. There is a colossal amount of information readily available for free online. With that said, the value of information has dropped significantly. This is all the more reason as to why eduction systems need to change and accept these new changes.

Now I also understand that not all is good when it comes to new technologies and the internet. Too much change in too little time can create a counterproductive cultural "shock," if you will. You know in those sci-fi shows, where everyone drives a hovercar? Yeah, that future ain't happening anytime soon. The greater the transition, the longer it will take to fully manifest itself. This is why it's up to my generation to change the way the world thinks. This is why we have to start changing the world for the generations to come.