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The digital divide is defined by the role computers play within widening social gaps in our society, as the condition of one group having an advantage over another group in regard to computers, technology skills and Internet access. This is usually thought of as being a divide between the white middle class and minority communities; but there is another often overlooked class of nonusers, the middle-aged corporate manager. As computer skills play an increasingly important role in building careers, many have not acquired the necessary technological skills needed to keep up. Being computer illiterate in today’s high-tech business world is almost indistinguishable from being functionally illiterate. And it’s difficult to believe there are successful people in the business world who do not know how to use a computer. Unfortunately, these corporate managers are mistaken in the belief that they can avoid computers and remain successful in the workplace. In the late 1990’s, I was hired by a successful direct sales catalog company to design their sales catalogs. The Director of Advertising was in his mid 50’s and had, over the years, had a successful career. He was in his late 40’s when desktop computers first came into the workplace and he had no interest in learning a new technology. He assumed, that because he had never needed computer technology to succeed in the past that he didn’t need it now. At first he escaped learning computers by joking about the new technology, and later he relied on his employees to write his emails, schedules, spreadsheets etc. Eventually, he became the only company executive who didn’t have a computer on his desk. In his stubbornness not to learn the new technology, he had become a dinosaur. He resisted and resented learning how to use a computer. At the beginning of every year he made a resolution to get a computer and learn all about it; but he never followed through. When he attempted to modify a computer file himself, he would hold the mouse backwards. When he didn’t get the response he wanted, he’d slam the mouse down hard on the desk in frustration. Unfortunately he couldn’t keep up with the technological changes that computers had made in the printing industry either, or how design software meshed with those changes. He would give long lectures on antiquated printing techniques without understanding that his concerns about old-fashioned methods could be alleviated with a push of a menu button. One day the company was sold, and when the new management came in guess what happened? He was forced into early retirement because he lacked the computer skills and the technical knowledge of his industry. Although he had over 25 years with the company, his skill set was inadequate for someone in his position. Today, middle-aged managers who have never had to use computer technology before are being required to learn by their employers. Luckily, today there are many resources available specifically to help mature executives learn the computer skills they need to remain productive in the workplace until their retirement. There are countless Internet resources including “help” forums and computer software learning sites. Continuing education programs at local colleges and universities offer everything from how to use an operating system to advanced spreadsheets and presentations. For those who want to learn at their own pace, in the privacy of their own homes, there are companies that offer self-paced software learning tutorials ranging from learning computers, sending email, using the internet and learning business software programs. As it’s impossible to have a successful career without embracing computers and technology today, the most important thing is to get started. Many successful people, when they come into contact with a new technology for the first time, consider themselves too stupid to deal with it and fear failure. Don’t become discouraged; there is nothing to fear . . . your computer won’t self-destruct if you make a mistake, and soon you’ll become a computer geek like the rest of us. Copyright 2005, Video Professor Inc. All Rights Reserved. Create Digital Backgrounds In Photoshop. - Create Digital Backgrounds in 5 minutes with Photoshop. Video Download! LoreHold eBookDigital Editions. - LoreHold publishes eBook digital editions about Mythology, Legends, Folklore, & Myths. I very much enjoyed my discussion with Roy and I know you will too. For some background: the ACM, which is the world’s largest educational, scientific and professional non-profit association recently released their ACM Tech Pack on Mobility, edited and annotated by Roy Want, Chair of ACM SIGMOBILE, and his Mobility Tech Pack Committee. “The Tech Pack includes original work, must-read texts, and the latest research from the ACM Digital Library and beyond. Mobile Computing is the fastest growing area in computer science, fuelled by the explosive growth of the smart phone and cell phone market, expected to reach 1.7 billion units shipped this year. [2011] The Mobility Tech Pack looks at Visions and Challenges, Mobile Applications and Middleware, and Wireless and Mobile Technologies. The resource taxonomy includes Survey/Overview, System, Experience, Theory, and General topics. Additional materials include valuable community resources and events, as well as supplementary videos, tutorials, podcasts, websites, newsletters and blogs.”
For Want's significant contributions to Mobile and Ubiquitous Computing he was awarded the status of IEEE and ACM Fellow in 2005. Some of his best known projects are: Active Badge, an in-building location system; ParcTab, the world's first context aware computer system; Personal Server, wireless mobile computer interaction through larger nearby infrastructure and computers; and Dynamic Composable Computing (DCC), sharing resources wirelessly to build a logical computer on the fly. With over 65 issued patents, Roy is a recognized top international authority with research interests in: mobile computing, ubiquitous & pervasive computing, hardware design, electronic commerce, smart cards, distributed systems, multimedia systems, location-based services, mobile user-interfaces, MEMS and electronic tagging (RFID). Roy is the ACM SIGMOBILE Chair and Chair [ACM] Mobility Tech Pack Committee. (http://www.roywant.com/cs and http://techpack.acm.org/) Roy received his Ph.D from Cambridge University in 1988. For a complete profile, go to http://www.roywant.com/cs/. You can find out more about Roy's research interests, professional awards, education, experience, skill set, projects, publications (conferences, journals, periodicals, books, book chapters, published reports, articles, editorials, workshop papers, and EIC introductions), professional activities (professional memberships, committees, conference program chairs, conference technical program committee service, selected invited presentations, editorial posts, PhD thesis committees, industry technical awards, and grants), patents, and media coverage. To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link DISCUSSION: Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic:00:44: :18:41: :21:00: :26:18: :29:46: :32:30: :34:34: :38:12: :45:48: :49:51: :52:56: :57:01: :58:49: :01:00:32: :01:03:27: :01:05:33: :01:07:21: :01:08:55: :01:10:21: :01:12:40: :01:13:43: :01:18:30: :01:20:43: :01:23:41: Article Index: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | 52 | 53 | 54 | 55 | 56 | 57 | 58 | 59 | 60 | 61 | 62 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 70 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 77 | 78 | 79 | 80 | 81 |
More Articles:1. Best Practices Plan: Dissemination of a Great Idea By Steve Singleton Good news spreads quickly News of the invention of the wheel must have traveled in every direction as quickly as horse or camel could run. Those who learned of its advantages over the litter and the sledge adopted it right away. And no sooner was it adopted than it began to be adapted: made lighter, stronger, faster. Wheels were soon attached to axles, then to axles with pivots. The idea catches on Then transportation lost its monopoly on the new technology, and wheels helped to make pottery, … Symptoms of STDs in Women 2. Company Liability: Inappropriate Rewards By Rhonda Goetz Sexual Favoritism falls under the Hostile Environment category of the federal law that governs harassment and discrimination in the workplace.The Civil Rights Act of 1964 makes it illegal to discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, age, national origin, and sex. Businesses are required to comply with both federal and state laws governing harassment and discrimination.Sexual Favoritism is not a federal law unto itself (although some states declare it as such), but an aspect of either… 3. The Communications Myth By David Meyer Living in the 21st Century is truly marvelous, isn't it? We live in a world of instant communications where everything we need to know is right at our fingertips. The moment anything of significance occurs it is instantly transferred around the globe making us the most well informed generation in the history of the world.Why is it then that communications is such a problem in the modern workplace? Why do so many employees believe that key decisions of upper management, or even their immediate … 4. Guide for Visionary Leaders and Business Decision-makers. Change and the Cycle of SpecializationRobert E. Cannonwww.cannonadvantage.comGuide for Visionary Leaders and Business Decision-makers. – In the January issue of Taking Aim, I reported on the book Margin. That book triggered some thoughts that had been floating in and out of my consciousness for some time. In fact I had even created the topic “Cycle of Specialization” several years ago, but just couldn’t quite get my thoughts to gel in any cohesive manner. This then is an attempt to put into word… |
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Roy Want is a highly respected research scientist at Google. Prior roles include Senior Principal Engineer at Intel, EIC at IEEE Pervasive Computing, and Principal Scientist at the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC).