How Technology Has Changed Communication
With communication lines slowly but surely crisscrossing across all continents, one cannot but ask: how technology has changed communication? How does it affect us? What are the implications? How will the effects be felt? The answers to these questions and others like them lie at the very heart of how technology has changed communication.
Ever since the advent of mobile phones, the ways we communicate with each other have undergone a sea change. For instance, how did telephones change from talking to writing? And how did text messaging evolve from typing messages on a keyboard to actually reading the messages on the phone display in real time? The answer to all of these questions lies in how technology has changed communication. What started off as mere peripheral means for communication soon became one of the most essential tools of communication. In fact, mobile phones, when they first came out, actually replaced fax machines and postal mail services in many instances.
But how has technology changed communication beyond the cellular realm? The same technology that allowed people to talk to each other over great distances at the cost of a regular phone connection now allows people to communicate using the internet. The internet has changed how we communicate and what we do in general. The dawn of digital technology has affected every aspect of human communication.
Back just a few years ago, if you wanted to send a message, you would need to use a fax machine. It literally took hours to compose a simple letter or message. Times have changed. Today, all you need is a computer, a web connection and a good message to send and receive in less than 3 hours.
Digital photography has also changed the face of communication. It took days to develop a photo using film. Today, a picture can be developed in just a few seconds using a cell phone and a high-speed Internet connection. This is how technology has changed our lives.
The invention of email has revolutionized the way we communicate. We no longer need to wait for the post office to deliver a message to a friend across the globe. We can use words, images and attachments to instantly update friends and family members on current events. This is how technology has changed our lives.
Phones and computers have made it possible for us to communicate with our friends and loved ones even when they are thousands of miles away. Before cell phones, long distance communications were almost impossible. But with this type of phone service, long distance calls are not only possible but efficient. And with this type of cell phone service, a conversation that used to take several hours can now be finished in five hours or even less.
How technology has changed communication has come so far that we no longer need books and newspapers to refresh our knowledge. Apps are replacing them. Nowadays, we can access the Internet and do our research from any place at any time. In just a few years, everything we do will be done via our mobile devices. What was once a device reserved for the more intellectual or technologically challenged is now a part of everyone’s daily life.
We no longer have to use headphones to communicate when we are with the office. We can talk to our colleagues sitting right next to us. Now we can watch movies and television shows while eating our lunch at work. The pace of modern technology has completely changed how we communicate.
Of course, we cannot talk about social media without mentioning Twitter, Facebook, and other sites. If you haven’t heard, the recent Harvard study found that people’s use of these social media sites may be linked to an increased risk of depression and other mental disorders. So, how technology has changed communication is clear; it has increased the speed at which information is exchanged, as well as the length of the conversations.
Another obvious example is how text messaging apps and businesses are connected. Texting is the “in” thing to do when it comes to business communication. But the rise of smartphone apps proves that you don’t have to be a tech savvy businessperson to use this tool effectively. There are a variety of apps to choose from.