Note: This column represents the opinions
of the writer and as such, is not purported as fact
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Boy, have I had enough of all this talk about porn, the erosion of online
privacy, diminishing rights and the like.
When the media gets stuck into reporting "the dark side" of the Net, we
often lose sight of all the amazing benefits that this wonderful medium
offers us.
For example: when I was a kid in the 1960's, getting or making a toll call
was a major event in the household.
Making such a call involved ringing the operator and relating the name,
number and town of the party you wanted to call. They would then perform
some kind of amazing magic and, in just a few short minutes, you'd be
connected.
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Well it wasn't always that easy. Sometimes all the circuits somewhere between
your town and the one you were calling would be busy -- so the operator would
take your number then call you back when one became free and your call could
be connected.
And if you weren't stunned by the sheer awe of such an experience, the cost
of the call would certainly push your blood pressure to its limits.
These days, not only can you direct-dial any town in the country (or virtually
any town, anywhere on the planet) for just a few cents a minute, you can also
use email, instant messaging, texting, chat or voice over IP to talk with
almost anyone, anywhere, anytime -- virtually for free.
And who remembers the encyclopedia sellers that used to knock on the door
during those long summer evenings?
Carrying the first few volumes of their weighty tomes, these guys would come
inside and work hard to convince parents that they owed it to their kids to
ensure they had a set of encyclopedias in the house.
"You don't want to put your kids at a disadvantage in their schooling
do you?" was pretty much the pitch used.
Today, thanks mainly to the Net, these poor souls are just a memory.
I mean, let's face it -- why would anyone pay hundreds (or even thousands)
of dollars for a nicely leather-bound set of books when all that information,
and much more, is available through the keyboard of any Net-connected PC?
But one thing worries me...
Now that we have access to this virtually free global communications and
seeming endless vault of knowledge and information -- why do most people
simply read the news, swap a few emails with friends, download a game
or two, then log off?
It strikes me that far too many of us are simply ignoring the true potential
of the Net.
Let's take one example...
By way of government-funded programmes, the taxpayers of this country are
spending many many millions of dollars every year on promoting the Maori
language and other aspects of Maori culture.
Can I learn Maori over the Net if I want to?
Well maybe I didn't spend long enough searching -- but I couldn't find
any site that offered a free online Maori language course. Why not?
If we can spend tens of millions on Maori TV, why can't we spend a $100,000
or so on creating a resource that can be accessed and used by
anyone, anywhere on the planet who might want to learn the language?
Such a site could contain text, graphics, audio and even some video.
Personally, I'd quite like to learn some Maori -- but I simply don't have
the time to spend at evening classes. Why can't I just log in to a Te Reo
website and learn online?
As I said, this is just one example of how we should be using the Net.
I'm sure there are also a lot of people who'd like to go back and re-learn
their fifth, sixth or seventh form math, chemistry, biology, English or whatever.
Why can't some of our education budget be spent creating such learning
resources online? They would surely be a benefit to students and adults
and a very sensible use of the medium.
Building a "knowledge economy" requires that we make knowledge and learning
freely available to all NZers. What better (and cheaper) way to do it than
through the Net?
I wonder how much online learning resource could have been built if just half
the money spent on ferrying our MPs to Ireland, Finnland, Israel and those other
"knowledge economy" countries had been spent here at home?
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significant amount. It is with this in mind therefore that I'm once
again soliciting donations from anyone who feels they're getting some
value from this daily column and news index. I've gone the PayPal
way of accepting donations because the time involved in processing a bunch
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represent. Just click on the button to donate whatever you can afford.
NOTE: PayPal bills in US dollars so don't accidentally donate twice
what you were intending :-)
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