The Digital Classroom of the Future
When Lewis Perleman predicted an imminent future where learning can be done at hyper speed due to the revolution of technology, was he a psychic or was he simply just facing reality? Sometimes, the future is easier to predict if we all could let go of our own biases and denial of unfavorable changes.
In the 70s, Xerox refused to recognize the value behind the experimental Graphical User Interface, designed by their own engineers, because they wanted to believe that graphics should be printed on paper. They wanted to focus on printing products over the abstract idea of graphical UI. This lead to their most innovative engineers migrating to Apple together with their most valuable ideas which helped make Apple a leading technology giant that put Xerox to shame.
In 1975, Kodak was the first company to introduce the digital camera, but because the idea of a filmless camera would hurt their film business, they brushed the idea of digital cameras aside. In the following years, the digital camera industry flourished as the Kodak brand faded into obscurity. This is a fairly frequent pattern, people often deny obvious incoming changes because they hate to face the idea of impermanence. Once people invest into something, that want to believe that whatever it is that they invested in will be set in stone and last forever. Xerox wanted to keep nurturing their printer industry so they missed the opportunity in graphical user interface. Kodak wanted to hang on to their film business so they missed the opportunity to become a leader of digital photography. Many other companies suffered the same mistake. Blockbuster refused to see the imminent future of video streaming, Border book store couldn't predict a future of digital readers, Tower Records failed to foresee the raise of iTunes and digital distribution, to name a few of the many examples.
In reaction to Rosenzweig's Promises and Perils of Digital History, a digital future is only obvious but the perils is on those who are slow to adapt. Although changes can be as tragic as the last samurais taking their meticulously crafted blades to battle against gun powder and lead, time and evolution will only move forward. Technological revolution does not always come with perils, however. While the early years of digital technology kept us tied down and away from a healthy social life, the future of digital technology will be completely free from wires and plugs, allowing people to mobilize and move freely again. Children will once again roam the streets because their entertainment can be unplugged and enjoyed on the go. Professionals can come home and tend to their family because work can be done remotely. Students can travel and explore the world for what it is while streaming lectures and completing courses on the move. With changes comes new problems, but very much like history, for every new problem there will be new solutions and adjustments.
In the 70s, Xerox refused to recognize the value behind the experimental Graphical User Interface, designed by their own engineers, because they wanted to believe that graphics should be printed on paper. They wanted to focus on printing products over the abstract idea of graphical UI. This lead to their most innovative engineers migrating to Apple together with their most valuable ideas which helped make Apple a leading technology giant that put Xerox to shame.
In 1975, Kodak was the first company to introduce the digital camera, but because the idea of a filmless camera would hurt their film business, they brushed the idea of digital cameras aside. In the following years, the digital camera industry flourished as the Kodak brand faded into obscurity. This is a fairly frequent pattern, people often deny obvious incoming changes because they hate to face the idea of impermanence. Once people invest into something, that want to believe that whatever it is that they invested in will be set in stone and last forever. Xerox wanted to keep nurturing their printer industry so they missed the opportunity in graphical user interface. Kodak wanted to hang on to their film business so they missed the opportunity to become a leader of digital photography. Many other companies suffered the same mistake. Blockbuster refused to see the imminent future of video streaming, Border book store couldn't predict a future of digital readers, Tower Records failed to foresee the raise of iTunes and digital distribution, to name a few of the many examples.
In reaction to Rosenzweig's Promises and Perils of Digital History, a digital future is only obvious but the perils is on those who are slow to adapt. Although changes can be as tragic as the last samurais taking their meticulously crafted blades to battle against gun powder and lead, time and evolution will only move forward. Technological revolution does not always come with perils, however. While the early years of digital technology kept us tied down and away from a healthy social life, the future of digital technology will be completely free from wires and plugs, allowing people to mobilize and move freely again. Children will once again roam the streets because their entertainment can be unplugged and enjoyed on the go. Professionals can come home and tend to their family because work can be done remotely. Students can travel and explore the world for what it is while streaming lectures and completing courses on the move. With changes comes new problems, but very much like history, for every new problem there will be new solutions and adjustments.
You are right here that history is littered with companies that failed to innovate, but seeing the future is not something so easy to do. The web environment of today is so much different than that of 1995, but what Rosenzweig and Cohen aimed at laying out in the book was certain more universal features that remained constant. Much like the way that Moore's Law has set the path for Integrated circuit miniaturization.
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