Ben Compton asks:
"What type of lives do we want to live in the electronically mediated
environment? What type of communities do we want to have in cyberspace?
And finally, how will the answer to both of those questions impact our
organizations and our work life and the way we learn as individuals and as
part of an organization?"
Part of me yearns for the potential electronic-mediated (or digital)
environments offer. Part of me is scared witless. The picture Nicholas
Negroponte paints in "Being Digital" is fascinating. To have a Digital
Assistant do my research, order my groceries, make my appointments, call
the doctor if I'm sick, let my wife's and kids' DA's know if I'll be a few
minutes late, keep tabs on my daughters (and boy will I need that for my
youngest!)... Oh to have something to deal with the details in life that
escape me.
But, then again, virtual mud just isn't as satisfying as the real thing.
Nintendo is fun, but not as fun as rush hour traffic, reaching a real
par-five in two, or finding my way out of a mess of my own creation.
I would look for a digital environment to help me learn and grow. I would
want an easy to understand interface that is responsive to my needs, that
helps me find what I'm looking for, be it information, experts, or
resources. I would want something that challenges and supports my beliefs.
Just somewhere I can go to add value to my life, but not BE the value in
my life. That's reserved for my family, my God, my friends, and my
dreams.
My fear is that we'll come to rely too much on digital environments. It's
hard not to rely on the logic digital environments offer. Yet, like all
electronic mediums, what you see is not necessarily the real or whole
picture. When talking in chat rooms, are you talking to the real person?
Or, is it some alter-ego the person has always wanted to be. Scary stuff.
I don't know if I answered your questions, Ben. Maybe I've just thrown
some virtual mud on our lenses.
Rob Jones
Human Resources - Education & Development
State Farm Insurance Companies
rob.jones.bhcb@statefarm.com
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