Description |
1 online resource (xi, 307 pages) |
Contents |
Introduction -- The Internet at the forefront : 1990 through 1995 were revolutionary, with changes surpassing any previous stretch of communications history -- From bonfires and bongos to the Web : people crave and benefit from connections, spurring communications networks to evolve -- Web gems : social, political, and economic expectations inspired intriguing statements about the Internet -- The 'highway' metaphor : finding a way to tell (and sell) how the Internet could be changing lives -- Knocking the Net : some warn the Internet is naughty, anti-nature, and nefarious, even supporters see negatives -- Saddam, O.J., and the Unabomber : Internet developments are tied to the news events and popular culture of the 1990s -- Nothing is certain but death and taxes (and some predictions -- including the death of taxes -- may have been premature, while many other 'deaths' may come to pass) -- Aristotle, Jefferson, Marx, and Mcluhan : predictors use historic perspective to make their points on issues -- Supporters crow about "500 channels!" : everyone warns about "infoglut" : a breathless bromide about a video wonderland is bandied about, while information overload looms larger than ever -- Voices of the Net : zooming in on ten of the many people who made a difference by voicing concerns -- The threat to freedom, to the earth : as communications networks become all-seeing, some thinkers/theorists expect Big Brother or a robot takeover -- The future of networks : the global mind doesn't need humans, but they may be able to use it if they'd like -- Nobody knows you're a dog, or do they? Privacy issues on the Internet -- Hmmm ... will it happen? : these predictions did not come true, nor do they seem likely to come to pass; then again, you never know |
Summary |
In the early 1990s, people predicted the death of privacy, an end to the current concept of 'property, ' a paperless society, 500 channels of high-definition interactive television, world peace, and the extinction of the human race after a takeover engineered by intelligent machines. Imagining the Internet zeroes in on predictions about the Internet's future and revisits past predictions-and how they turned out. It gives the history of communications in a nutshell, illustrating the serious impact of pervasive networks and how they will change our lives over the next century |
Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 269-290) and index |
Notes |
Master and use copy. Digital master created according to Benchmark for Faithful Digital Reproductions of Monographs and Serials, Version 1. Digital Library Federation, December 2002. http://purl.oclc.org/DLF/benchrepro0212 MiAaHDL |
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Print version record |
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digitized 2010 HathiTrust Digital Library committed to preserve pda MiAaHDL |
Subject |
Internet -- Social aspects -- Forecasting
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Internet -- Public opinion -- History
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Information technology -- Social aspects -- Forecasting
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Computer networks -- Social aspects -- Forecasting
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Forecasting -- History -- 20th century
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COMPUTERS -- Information Technology.
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Forecasting
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Information technology -- Social aspects -- Forecasting
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Genre/Form |
History
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Form |
Electronic book
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ISBN |
9780742568662 |
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0742568660 |
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