An Overview

Com 125 has led me to explore and discover more about lots of things that many of us take for granted.

From the difference between the Web and the Internet, which I never thought of looking at as two separate things to the origin of Internet and how it was initially developed for military purposes. The course took me through the journey of how the Web and the Internet evolved into something we find extremely difficult to live without now. It would probably be easy for most of us to recall web 1.0 with its shopping carts and one-directional content, while appreciating how hyperlinks made life so much easier by offering us so many connections to the things we may be interested in.

Then came Web 2.0, which gave everyone a voice. It changed the way people live by giving us new positions and roles to play. None of us were just consumers anymore. We were producers of our own content. We had the power, as prosumers to reach out to the rest of the world without geographical boundaries. There was open accessibility and anyone could join a community, or even be a part of several different online communities. People started blogging and posting their thoughts about various issues online. People shared discussions, new perspectives and picked up new methods to learn. Web 2.0 was interactive and allowed people to gain access to the minds of others, to broaden their horizons and share knowledge and experiences within areas of interest.

With the development of the habit for online interaction, social media and social networking sites also gained popularity at an exponential rate. More recently, the widespread use of mobile devices gave rise to real-time content driven sites such as twitter and Instagram. Social media and social networking sites also became a great way for business owners to reach out to their target audience. Instead of sending emails, now businesses notify interested customers about events, sales and new offerings through their Facebook, Twitter or Instagram accounts.

The development of the Internet has also promoted e-commerce and e-business.  With the Internet, businesses are able to reach a global market, making brands ubiquitous. The popularity of e-commerce and also helped younger entrepreneurs enter the market due to low barriers of entry.

The e-learning lecture also reminded me of my first experience with e-learning when I was in secondary school and how basic e-learning tools such as Channel News Asia’s news in class made learning more interesting by giving it another dimension. It is interesting to consider the potential of e-learning. Institutions may be likely to consider a partial of full transition to e-learning, to save cost and allow for greater flexibility. Second Life also created new possibilities for learning from different locations and learning with fewer distractions. With e-learning, well-established institutions are able to offer courses online to students all over the world without charging exorbitant school fees.

Being a tool which people use on a daily basis, it was also very interesting to learn about how Google works and how Larry Page and Sergey Brin build the Google database through web crawling and indexing. It was also insightful to learn how many Internet tools remove the limitations of real life and allow people to perform without hampering their creativity, such a Google Earth. 

Learning about how to stay safe while using the Internet was very useful. Being more educated about the different threats of Internet security can ensure better user habits and equip us with the knowledge on the available protective software to use.

As mentioned earlier, with the Internet, everyone can have a voice and can reach out to a global audience. Public figures such as politicians can take advantage of Internet tools to easily reach citizens. The most recent breakthrough would be the Hangout with President Obama event on Google+. News also travels especially fast via social media sites over the Internet. This allows people to acquire knowledge first hand, but it also lacks verification. So people should be more discerning about what they read online.

The future of the Internet is moving away from the focus on desktops and laptops to highly portable mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. That could mean more innovations in that area, such as more advanced software and applications.

All in all, the Internet has opened up endless possibilities for all of us regardless of who we are. The Internet gave us the opportunity to be more than one person. It allows us to connect with the people who matter to us, as a friend or a family member and it allows us to share knowledge within our area of expertise with a large audience. It allows us to access the latest news as it breaks on the go. However, as with every breakthrough technology that changes lives, there are always two sides to the coin. As long as we learn to use it the right way, we would be able to reap its benefits while minimalizing negatives.

Digital supremacy and the future of the Internet

There was a time when Microsoft dominated the market when it came to technology. That was a time (in 1988) when Microsoft was valued at $214.3 billion and Google at $185.1 billion, with Apple lagging far behind at $5.54 billion. However, more than a decade later, the order has been reversed. Just last month, Bloomberg news reported that Google has been valued at $249.9 billion, surpassing Microsoft at $247.2 billion, with Apple emerging on top with a value of $585 billion according to mashable.com.

The three companies have a strange relationship, going from business acquaintances to having a common cause, to allies to fierce competitors and back. Apple and Microsoft had bid together against Google for patents covering the mobile business. Then Apple and Google sought to outdo each other with smartphones and tablets powered by newer, faster and more efficient software.

Journey of the three companies

It took a lot of courage and innovation to get Apple to where it is today. Back in 1976, Steve Jobs fought to pioneer the personal computer, despite critics and analysts shaking their heads at his idea. In 2001, retail analysts advised Jobs against his brick and mortar store idea, claiming that it would not work. But Jobs stuck to what he believed in and led it to become the most profitable retailer in America. In 2007, many disapproved of Job’s decision to enter the market for smartphones and Job stuck to what he believed in. Today, the iPhone business is worth more than all of Microsoft. Finally in 2010, Jobs spotted a gap in the market and came up with a devise between the notebook and the smartphone, the iPad, which revolutionized the way people used mobile devices.

Microsoft, by contrast, had gone from the company to beat, to the company trying hard to catch-up. Microsoft seemed mired in its fabulously profitable past. It is no longer a leader or innovator in terms of personal computers, search mobile technology, tablets or anything for that matter. Even when Microsoft launched the Windows Phone 7 again, its bleak sales results opposed the praise from users. Following that, a demo proved to be an embarrassment. The device’s voice-to-text messaging failed and then another glitch forced a Microsoft staffer to reach for a different phone. The largest problem with the company is its dependence on faithfuls such as Windows, Office and servers for its financial performance instead of innovating and pushing boundaries like rival companies, Apple and Google. In this dynamic and ever changing marketplace, Microsoft kept producing repackaged version of essentially the same thing, causing it to miss opportunities and get bogged down by errors which all contributed to its decline.

Google on the other hand constantly searched for gaps in the market to fill. The company first established itself as the top search engine with their web-page ranking technology. Then it progressed to a full range of services targeted at anyone from regular users to corporations and advertisers. Google dabbled in almost every area, from email to advertising to web browsers to social media to smartphone and tablets. Google tried almost anything web or technology related that was lucrative and constantly focused on making things better for its users, thus gaining a steady growth in terms of its user base.

It seems quite clear that based on today's context, success of these companies are measured by the level of innovation and consumer orientation, which Apple and Google does very well. If Microsoft aims to dominate the tech market again, the company really has to change its outlook.

The future of Internet - Going Mobile

Now that the future of technology lies in mobile devices, the three companies have been seen trying to outshine one another with the latest versions of smartphones and tablets.

In fact, recently the iPhone has been taken off its throne as the number 1 smartphone in the world. According to research firm Strategy Analytics, Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S3 became the world's best-selling smartphone model last quarter, pushing aside Apple Inc's iPhone, which has dominated the chart for more than two years.

Mobile Wallets 

With such a steady increase in mobile usage and a trend of hyperconnectivity, it is highly likely that monetary transactions through cloud computing via mobile devices could become a way of life. Perhaps in less than a decade, the use of smartphones as e-wallets that could give users access to digital funds would be commonplace.

A recent new Pew Internet/Elon University opt-in, online survey also supported the theory that mobile wallets may be widely adopted by 2020. The survey involved a diverse, non-random sample of 1,021 technology stakeholders and critics. The survey found that majority of respondents were confident that in less than a decade, most people with smartphones will have embraced and adopted the use of smart devices for purchases they make, nearly eliminating the need in most cases for cash or credit cards. 

With tools such as Google Wallet promising to be as secure as ATM cards (according to Hal Varian, chief economist at Google, every transaction that could be attributed to the user is routed to their personal, secure grid for approval or denial), soon people can enjoy the convenience of leaving the house with just their mobile phones.