Economies in Networking Citizens

This week reading is Economies in Networking Citizens (pp. 25-31)

Link >> http://www.demos.co.uk/files/Network%20citizens%20-%20web.pdf

The author said that “Technology is the only part of the answer to why it is that networks have remained in such sharp focus, and have occupied thinking around work and businesses.”The rapid growth of the technology have make network become very important to us. We can easily access to the network because of the new technology like iPad and smart phone at anywhere and anytime. This makes it easier for us to access to the network and make the network become convenient to us. For example, people are frequently updates their status through their mobile phone on Facebook or Twitter to let people know what they are doing. With these reason, network has become very important to business too.

social network

Network changes the way people conduct their business. In the past, people need the physical office to start a business but now, you just need a laptop and access to network and do business online. For example, there are many people selling clothes on the popular social network, Facebook. There are also a lot of organizations or company using Facebook to promote their service or product to millions of the Facebook user. They created a fan page for the company and update their company’s information for their fans in the fan page. They also keep in touch with their customer on Facebook. They can also advertise at the Facebook to create awareness towards their services or product. The labour had change from industry labour to liquid labour which means that the business had change from the factory machine assembly lines to the computer which processing information. Many company or organization had computerized their systems to be more systematic, convenience and flexible. With this, it is easier to find the data in the company when the data is computerized. It will save a lot of time for the staff to look for the data where time is the money for the company.

Besides that, network can help the organization or company in interact with client and customers.  I had just mention that many organization used the popular social network, Facebook to keep in touch and updates with the customer and clients. Network is a must for business especially when dealing with the client at different country. Organization or company need to keep in touch with the client frequently by email or have video conference. Network breaks the physical border in the real world and with this; it’s easier for the organization or company to make business throughout the whole world. The time on network is homogenization which means that the sense of time is less obvious on network. People can send the email or data anytime and can contact the people on the opposite on the earth at anytime.

Interact through Network

Because of the network, business can be done easily and faster. So, network is helps in economic. According to the author, he stated that the last two decades have seen a shift away towards service and knowledge-based work. In this century, the Katerina Rudiger has argued in a report for the Work foundation, ‘this shift to “intangibles” is underpinned by modern economic growth theory, which acknowledge the vital role that technological progress and knowledge play in generating long term growth. Network is full of different types of information and knowledge, it also can stores the organization data and helps to contact and deal with the clients. The employees can find the information on the network easily and make their work easier and can complete it in short time. Network also can help the employees from different department to communicate at anytime and anywhere. This helps to save time and make the work more effective.

There are many people do business through network to cut down the transaction cost. For example, organization or company can promote their service and product through social network which cost nothing like set up a fan page on Facebook. It can make a big impact on the audience and create great awareness. Besides that, people that do the business online also save down a lot of cost because they do not need to setting up an office for business.

As a conclusion, the network helps a lot in business. When the business or transaction had increase, our economic will increase as well. That means network will directly affect the economic. But there are some disadvantages of network in business as well. The network make the work become easier as well as cut down the job opportunities. The technology had replaced the job for us and the many people is losing their job. The author stated that “high-tech manufacturing declined from 443 300 jobs in 1996 to 288 000 in 2006”. It had become an issue in many develop country. What do you think?

I'm unemployed =(

Why networks matter?

First blogs is to blog about Afterword:why networks matter by Manuel Castells.

Power does not reside in institutions, not even the state or large corporations. It is located in the networks that structure society . . .

Afterword:why networks matter by Manuel Castells
 

Links>> http://www.kirkarts.com/wiki/images/5/51/Castells_Why_Networks_Matter.pdf

For me, I used network to find information, for entertainment like playing games, file sharing, and file storage and for social purpose. For example, a popular social networking site, Facebook helps me to get in touch with my primary friends which I had lost contact. I can easily know how my friend is doing, and what are they doing currently because of social network.

With the rapid growth of the technology, network had become more and more powerful, importance and influences the society. For example, the invention of smart phone, PDA, iPad and so on, allow people to connect to the network at anytime and anywhere to communicate, to social with people. Most of the people on the social network especially Facebook 24/7 to update what are they doing, get the update from their friends and its have become an important part of their life. They can’t live without it. The time of people communicate or social with each other through network is way longer than communicate or social face to face. According to Manuel Castells, he stated that we live in a network society, not in an information society or a knowledge society.

Networks are powerful, it allows people to communicate globally and it had become an important part of our life. People can’t live without network. Thru Manual Castells, there are 7 reasons that why network is so powerful.

First, the network society is expanding rapidly and globally. It is so true that we can communicate with each other without boundaries. We can be friends with people from other countries, culture through network, especially social network. You can be friend with anyone from anywhere in this world. Although people are separate with thousands of miles, with the existing of network, they can feel like they are just next to each other.

Second, business runs well with the network. How’s the business run through the whole world? They fly here and there for a weekly meeting? Meeting with clients? Network can help to make this work more convenience and save money. They can hold a meeting through video conferencing, with this; they can have the meetings face to face with their clients from a far distance. This can save the cost on transportation, save the precious time and most importantly can save the environment too.

 

Thirdly, the politician use networks too. There are many politician blogs about the politics and their comments. People know about them by reading the blogs and update with the current politics in our country. The politician also can get feedbacks from the people while they commented on their blogs and so on. They need to be close with the people in order to get the support from people. People can update their information about the politics through other network too. For example, people can get their update on the politics in the news website immediately if something happen.

Forth, people can get any kind of information or comments from the network. People can use the search engine to find all kinds of information at anywhere, anytime thru the network. With the search engine, we can get the information that we needed immediately. According to ebizma.com the top 1 popular search engine is Google. It means that there are most people using google to search for information. The word “google” had replaced the word “search”. Why I said so? It’s because that people will said go “google” it instead of go “search” for it. With the search engine, we can get the information that we needed immediately.

Top 15 Most Popular Search Engines | August 2011

http://www.ebizmba.com/articles/search-engines

Fifth, network is more powerful now comparing the network in the past. Old days, people use networks for mail, discussion group, files transfer and so on but networks now have different uses. People use networks for social networking, gaming, forum, files sharing, e-commerce, search and so on. The networks now have more functions and people can’t live without it. Can u imagine a day or a week without network?

Sixth, media in network. Because of the rapid growth of network and technologies, there are online radio, online TV, online video, online news and so on appear in the network. People can listen to radio or watch TV anytime or anywhere with the access to internet through their smart phone, laptop, PDA, ipad and so on. With this, people do not have to carry a radio or TV everywhere. People also can read the online news to get to know the latest news and information. E-books have become more popular than the traditional books. It is because it is more convenience for people to access to the network to read the book at anytime and anywhere compare to bring the heavy books around. It also save the environment by cut down less trees.

Seventh, network is very powerful. People used it for different purpose and it can satisfy each and everyone. We can see that network is very useful towards each and every of us for different purpose and satisfaction.

Network had change so much in the past ten years. The purpose of using the networks, the people that using the networks is growing rapidly without an end. Can you imagine how’s the network will be in the next ten years? I don’t think anyone have the answer for this because network is so complicated and unpredictable.

In conclusion, network has become part of our life. A day without network is just like a day without any meal. Network has become as importance as our daily meal. We could also say that network has become one of our important “meal” everyday.  This is why networks matter.