• The Importance of Computers

Businesses today rely on computer technology to assist them in almost every area of corporate life. Computers have invaded grocery stores, fast food restaurants, big businesses and small offices. They process data, store information, work out complex mathematical problems, track inventory, and even control temperature and lighting in office buildings. Reliance on the high-speed digital computer is so complete that the world of commerce would break up to a sudden stop if computers were removed.

The way computers have invaded our society is remarkable. When we buy something at the store, most likely our purchase will be scanned at the checkout counter by a reader of UPC bar codes. When we bring a package to our local post office to mail, the clerk will put it on a scale that is attached to a computer terminal. After the clerk inputs some information by pressing a few bottoms, the computer package will cost to mail. CAT scans help doctors view kidneys, hearts, and other body organs to see if they are healthy. Farmers rely on computers to plan planting and harvesting of crops. Every time you reserve space on an airplane, check your bank statement, or telephone a friend, you are depending on computers.

It is hard to imagine the world without computers. As a result of new technologies, especially in the past years, our modern society was introduced to different ways of communication through the computers. Some of these ways include the Internet and Email.

Computers can communicate using modems and telephone lines as easily as if they were sitting side by side connected to each other directly. Of course, this modern way of communicating with others would not be possible if computers did not exist. Through the email we now have the ability to communicate with anybody throughout the world in matter of minutes. Email has been a benefit to society. Some of the benefits are the time, dependability and the price.

First, the time is a great factor of Email. We have the commodity of going to our computer at any time of the day and email anybody in other city, state of even on the other side of the world. We do not have to wait hours or even days to have our information deliver to the other person. Before email, people had to go to the post office and mail documents or information to other people in the world. There is overnight mail which is expensive and it still is not as fast an email. For example, a couple of years ago if we wanted to keep in touch with an old friend, we had to send each other letters and wait for days before we hear from them. Today, all we have to do is turn on our computers and start typing our experiences and we know that the other person will have the information in matter of minutes. We no longer have to wait days to communicate with our friends. Another advantage of time is communicating for education, business or looking for a job. When we need to let our instructors know that we are not going to be able to make it to class, email is very efficient and fast. Work with computers particularly using the Internet brings students valuable connections with teachers, other schools and students, and a wide network of professionals around the globe

Second, we can depend on email to have information delivered. We know that the other person will receive the message. If we had to send a letter in the mail, it would be hard to be 100 percent sure that the letter will make it to its destination. On the other hand, if the email does not get delivered, we get a message in the computer letting us know that the message could not be delivered.

Third, having access to email is not as expensive as mailing letters to other states and/or countries. We now have to opportunity to get email accounts at no cost to us. In most cases people like to subscribe to companies like America Online or Netscape Navigator. Generally the cost to subscribe is about $15 to $25 per month for unlimited use including email and access to the internet.

What about the internet? Just like email, the internet is another way of communicating with other people any where in the world. But the internet is also more that just communication. Having access to the internet is having access to indefinitely options. The internet gives us the opportunity to do things we would have never imagined. But, is the internet a benefit? And to what point? I believe that having access to the internet has a lot of pros as well as cons.

Some of the benefits of the internet are that it facilitates information on anything. We no longer have to go to the library to do research. A lot of the information that we obtain from the library, we can also get from the internet. Not only can we get information about the first president of the United States, but we can also shop online. Nowadays, we do not need to go out of our own homes to shop for clothing, furniture and other needs. All we have to do is turn on the computer and sing on to the internet. It is as simple as one, two, three.

The internet also has its disadvantages. We expose our children to things that are not good for them. For example, racism. There bigoted, hate-group stuff, filled with paranoia; bomb recipes; how to engage in various kinds of crimes, electronic and otherwise; scams and swindles. It only come from what with get from the computer, but also from the computer itself. The danger that even if hours in front of the screen are limited, unabashed enthusiasm for the computer sends the wrong message: that the mediated world is more significant that the real one"

We have to understand that because of technology we have the advantages of email and internet. If the computers did not exits, it would cost us more money to do things we rely on the computer today. For example, shopping, communicating with people out of town.

What I ask myself today is: If computer has brought us to this point today, what will the future be like? Today, we have cars, computers, televisions, airplanes, telephones. All of these is part of our every day lives and because of technology we have them. What should we expect in the future. Most of what we have today is to our benefit and technology should not be at blame if things go wrong because it is us who misuse technology. It is the human race who go into the computer (the internet) and writes about racism, prejudice, hate-group. It is not the technology that drives the cars under the influence of alcohol and gets into an accident. Technology has only giving us the opportunity for more jobs and for success.

Predicting what lies in the future is virtually impossible, but we do know that whatever it brings, computer technology will be right in the center of it. As computer technology continues to advance and develop for both home and industry, there will be an ever growing need for computer professionals to fill the resulting job openings. Career opportunities in the computer field remain strong, and knowledge of computer technology will continue to become more and more important to workers in every field. "Many jobs obviously will demand basic computer skills if not sophisticated knowledge." (Oppenheimer 273). The more we learn about the importance of computers and the more computer literate we become, the more chances we'll have of advancement in mostly any field.