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Raw Bytes Computer News KPBX FM 91.1 Radio National Public Radio Network Frank Delaney Producer Broadcast on Thursday Morning 7:35 AM During Morning Edition Support Public Radio ! The Theater Of the Mind |
In computer news this week –
2/3/2005 |
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Appreciating
the World Wide Web’s impact on communications The world
wide web only started around 1991, but has quickly grown to become a primary
communications tool. As with many
things in the computer industry, the creators of the WEB had no idea how it
would impact non-computer related communications. Today when you go to
google.com. you see they have over 8 billion web
pages indexed, and no one knows for sure exactly how many people use the web
for communications. Today
email has become my primary means of communications in both my business and
personal life. My friends and business clients know that the best way to get
me is via email. There are so many advantages of email. You don’t have
to play phone tag with someone – you can send them an email and tell
them specifically what you want to talk to them about – instead of
saying “Hey I need to talk to you – can you call me back?”
and you can send it at any time. If I
actually get a call on my phone, I figure its usually
either someone who doesn’t know me, or a phone solicitor. It’s
estimated by IDC Research that by 2006 the number of daily emails on the
internet will exceed 60 billion, and that half of them will be person to
person non-business related. Related
to these communication are websites. I figure that
my most permanent address is my website, which I will have until I die. My
mailing address might change, my street address, my email address might
change, my phone number might change, but my registered website is permanent.
I
recently realized my appreciation of the web as a communication tool. Way
back in 1985 I produced a blues show for KPBX called the Backwater Blues
show, and I was interested in doing some shows on the great Bluesman Mississippi
John Hurt. Someone
had told me that the Library of Congress had recorded him when he was rediscovered
in 1963, and I was interested in obtaining some specific folk tales he
supposedly had recorded. I had to go to the Spokane library to
even find the address of the Library of Congress Folk Archives Library, and
then I sent them a letter. I was
very surprised to receive a reply in just 2 weeks. Their letter detailed the
recordings and I saw that indeed there were some folk tales about Mississippi
he had recorded in addition to his song repertoire. I then sent them another
letter asking how I could acquire these, but then I didn’t receive a
reply for over a year, apologizing for misplacing my letter, and there were
further complications and miscommunications. It’s
now 20 years later, and I just recently remembered that I still had never
gotten those recordings. On Monday night I did a quick Google search for the
Library of Congress email address for the Folk Archives, and sent them an
email. Tuesday morning when I woke up there was a reply from them, telling me
that I would need permission from a family member for me to get those
recordings. I then emailed Mississippi John Hurt’s granddaughter who I
have been in email contact with for her permission, and it looks like finally
those recordings will be coming my way. Without
the web it took 20 years. Now it took a week. Ah, the world wide web .. For Raw Bytes This is Frank Delaney (C) 2005 MTA Micro
Technology Associates http://www.mtamicro.com/kpbx.html (509)624-7230 |
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