[1476] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Consequences of wider internet access and usage
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Charles_K._Kuhlman.MAN@rxg.xerox.c)
Thu Oct 10 11:08:17 1991
Date: Thu, 10 Oct 1991 07:25:41 PDT
From: Charles_K._Kuhlman.MAN@rxg.xerox.com
To: com-priv@psi.com
Cc: edtjda@magic322.chron.com
Reply-To: CK.MAN@rxg.xerox.com
This relates to the latest thread(s) relating to Joe Abernathy and the *outside
world* looking into the Internet.
*What we have here is a failure to communicate*
Most of us have grown up on the Internet. Beginning as 17 or 18 year old
college freshman (and womyn, please), we had many years to develop our network
etiquette. Flames, bad tempers, and general grouchiness are all part of the
net. And we live with them. Along comes what we have been screaming for ---
improved access, more users, etc, etc. And these new users have no idea of what
the net is about, they just see us doing what has taken years of practice. They
don't have the skills necessary to use and manage network communications.
I've written before that a lot of misunderstanding on the net comes from the
lack of verbal and non-verbal clues, facial expression, tone-of-voice, etc,
etc. It takes a lot of time and more than a few flames for those college
freshman (who are geared to learning) to understand and use the unwritten
Internet code-of-conduct. Plus those young-uns are in an environment that has
gurus and experience to burn. And 24 hour access to the net with the
inclination to do so. They can ask questions off-line and depend on their
fellows to guide them through the rough spots until they are able to navigate
and use the net.
Imagine adults, most of whom have their brains set into a pattern that impedes
rapid learning. Now drop them into the Internet. Often with only limited help
available. You get a lot of problems. Especially when those adults are in a
situation where they are;
a) trying to learn the net faster than the K-12 crowd,
b) do their regular jobs (teach, administrate, whatever),
c) maintain educational standards, and
d) satisfy parents and pressure groups.
Not my idea of fun. Those adults might just say *We Quit* and shut off the net
connection.
My note about *who really supports Joe* was not meant to challenge him. I
wanted to hear the other side of the story, from other people. Why didn't I
come out and say so?? I fell back into the old (human) pattern of relying on
face-to-face communications skills. And forgot that I was typing a note to
people who (for the most part) don't know me and can't read between the lines
of my writing. My problem and my apologies.
Joe is right to wonder what is going to happen when newspapers have staff-wide
access to the net. If a respected journalist is bent on raking the muck, you
can appeal to her journalistic standards and request equal time. If a hack
writer (or, shudder, the National Enquirer) does so, look out.
Some cable channels are unavailable in some states because it is a *crime* to
import *pornography* (local definition). These laws were first applied to
print, now to satellite TV. Is the Internet next? Yes, Virginia, we will
probably have to pander to local standards.
What may be needed is for local IP providers to include (about) a years of
training and hand holding on the *Wonders of the Internet* to new sites,
concentrating on the K-12 crowd. Sure, it's going to cost money. But consider
the good press we'd all get. A few $$ spent on net training (we could volunteer
our time) would go a long way towards preventing inappropriate access to the
alt.* groups. And preventing the Baptists or Hubbardites or Journalists or
whomever from zapping what is really a tremendous resource, warts and all.
Routers and T1 links do not a network make. You have to know how to use it or
the hardware investment means nothing. I'm not a human-to-human communications
specialist. This may be a problem for the social anthropology crowd. Those of
us who use the net had better start considering the human factors of wider
Internet access. Hardware is sexy, software gets the job done, but the wetware
is really the only thing that counts.
