Millennia from now, the golden age; defined as
the age during which a technological paradigm was created, must surely lie in
an earlier, far more definitive era. This was the era during which the tools we
utilize today were conceptualized. Historians would consider the decades during
which the ‘garage’ was home to the giants of tomorrow as the birth-place of
ingenuity in human communication. Cellular technology was recognized and
deployed (clunky car phones and even clumsier mobile sets), computing was
bought to the home (rest in peace Mr. Jobs), and data became an asset in the
purest sense of the word (Intellectual Property was re-defined, and accounting
departments everywhere became unknowing pioneers of IT).
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| IBM always held its faith in open source |
The most important shift in this era occurred
due to the real root cause of our generation’s boom: Office computing and its
standardization.
For a certain period, Apple was the ‘human’
experience company; Microsoft alas was the office solution. It benefitted from
a clear technological vision, aggressive market tactics and ‘creative’ adaptation
of existing technology; offices in advanced economies were being powered up and
becoming engines of communication standards.
Global trading and production were
benefitting from a highly capitalized market. Microsoft, as the information
age’s first real ‘giant’, was a core service provider for this entire chain.
Credit where credit is due, Microsoft and Bill Gate’s vision has a major role
to play in creating the ‘paper-less’ office. Of greater significance, MS and
its associated benefits for data hungry and cash-rich entities meant the need
for faster telecommunication systems was first felt by business.
The sheer volume of data being created as a direct result of standards in business software brought with it the need for what we take for granted today: The internet and its core technology
Next week (or thereabouts); Part 4: Marking the digital territory
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