Week 7: Internet and WWW Technologies

One of the latest breakthroughs in technology that enabled us to live in the society we have today is our entry into cyberspace. However, the opening of the gateway by itself did not really create those wonders. In order to for that sort of space to be put into better use, connections needed to be established between separate locations. This goal could not be achieved without building an infrastructure that would allow more links to be assembled with each other, eventually leading to the invention of the International Network, or the Internet. Although there are more possibilities of connections being established, the linking by itself never simplifies the process of actually reaching towards those locations. When the staffs at the libraries were first introduced to the Internet, they knew that the system currently in use, the Integrated Library System (ILS), had to be fully replaced at some point. The incorporation of the Internet never made anyone’s job at the libraries any easier, mostly because the staff was too accustomed to the older model and the transition seemed like it was too much too soon. That is why there was interoperability to establish a compromise. As the staff was learning to utilize the newer models for conducting their work, the former continued to be implemented as a means to provide a sense of guidance. At this gradual pace, the staff members were learning to be more accepting of using the Internet, as they were also becoming less dependent on the ILS, with predictions it could finally be dismantled without any regard in the long-run. And yet if there was anything that had tremendously simplified the process of reaching the destinations or locating the sources we wish to seek, it was the introduction of the search engine, with Google proving itself as a prolific example. Whatever it is that people are looking for, they have a better chance of obtaining it just by typing in a few words. Because of how the algorithm was set up for the technology, the results being presented are based on how often most users tend to associate the websites with the key words. The most popular websites end up being rendered as the most relevant to the search, which in turn allows those results to be the first being recognized by the user. Although what Google had presented is not perfect, as long as it continues to give the people the kind of quick and genuine results they want (and updates the means to do so as well), there is a always a lesser and lesser likelihood anyone would ever turn away from such service.

Regardless as to what sort of breakthroughs modern-day technology is able to provide for mankind, one of the most noticeable flaws always prevailing in each reoccurring transition is that items continue to remain lost in the shuffle. In reference to “Linked: How Everything is Connected to Everything Else and What it Means for Business, Science, and Everyday Life” by Albert-László Barabási, the sources by Jeff Tyson, Andrew K. Pace, and Sergey Brin and Larry Page have demonstrated the evolution of the connection in their respective order. Everything begins with a vast empty space waiting to be filled. The prevalence of nodes fulfills that purpose, but then there is the issue of trying to establish order. The nodes straighten themselves by creating links with each other. A network is established, but the situation still seems like a mess, because there are links going all over the place. The issue regarding the links can be straightened out through the establishment of hubs. Once the hubs are established, more nodes are able to know right away where to establish their links. However, just because order has been established within the network, it does not necessarily mean the network has been perfected. The first nodes that make their way into the empty space have more opportunities to hone and refine themselves. By the time other nodes also make their way in, the older ones have already enhanced themselves enough to attract more attention. This in turn allows the older nodes to gather more nodes around, thus establishing more links with them and converting themselves into hubs. The nature of such a network seems rather unfair for the nodes that come in too early or too late. If they come in at the same time as some of the older ones and are unable to make the same kind of preparations when a new wave of nodes arrive, then chances are they will be overshadowed by the competitors and ignored by the followers they manage garner. When a new node comes in, there is a chance it will also be ignored. If it manages to achieve some recognition, it will immediately come under the wing of a well-recognized hub. The possibilities for any of the newcomers to become hubs themselves seem rather slim, so long as the old timers have the strongest foundations and are able to overpower the competitors with greater ease. The bottom line is so many nodes pretty much end up being lost in the shuffle, simply because they were never able to establish as many links so successfully. Without those connections, very few, if any, people will ever get an opportunity to witness their potential. Of course, that is under the assumption any of those nodes within the majority might even have any.