Living in IT : How Information Technology has been Useful to me as an Individual

As we enter the 21st century, the interaction between humans and technology is breaking down old barriers and entering a new realm. In this fast-paced world, everyone witnessed impressive evolution in the past few decades, which transformed our lives and helped us evolve with it. The recent rise in technology has increased human reliance on the internet to access news, information, and basic facts and enhanced communication and collaboration in every individual in different places.

As Christian Lous Lange said, “Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master.” 

This quotation made me realize that the internet brings a positive and negative impact in our society and even in people’s lives. 

The Internet provides an abundance of quality information in a very convenient and easily accessible manner. It makes sense to rely on it because it gives an easy way to know and understand some things. On the other hand, technology can give us negative impacts such as eye strain, constant sources of distraction, and technology addiction that can ruin our lifestyle. Technology, or the Internet, is not to blame, but human actions that are wired up in the technology world. If we continue to develop our technology without wisdom, prudence, and knowledge, it will lead to bad habits.

The Internet is an indispensable tool for information acquisition, and to be rid of it is near impossible. The application that I used to write this blog was through the aid of the Internet. These are the followings on how information technology has been useful to me as an individual: 

1. Obtain information

In the digital age, access to the internet has become vital to the free flow of information. As a student, the internet is a treasure trove of information that helps me to widen up my knowledge and ideas in just one tap, watch, and scroll using a device. Way back in my senior high school days as a STEM student, there’s a one important task that I and my classmates need to finish in order for us to graduate. This is the Capstone Project, or what we called “The Final Hardship in IJS.”.

As a student who has a piqued interest in technology, I chose technological study. I wanted to bring a unique and new beacon into the field. My individual study has a title of ‘Developing an Automation System using the Internet of Things (IoT) for Infant Jesus School’. I encountered a lot of obstacles in dealing with this project.

There is not much complete information about our study on the Google search engine and also, there are eleven professionals who declined to be our mentor due to the fact that developing an automation system using the Internet of Things is a complicated project since it is a new project that is being developed in our modern society. We are hopeless in this time but, we still push this project. An Information System Analyst accept our project. He agreed to be our mentor even though there was some hesitation because this project was new to him. But after all, thanks to him!

Through the help of the internet, we find the solution to our problem. We watched a tutorial and step-by-step video in the application called “YouTube” on how to develop an automation system. YouTube is a wealth of educational resources available to users. Video-assisted learning like YouTube has become increasingly popular because it provides individuals with an engaging means of gaining insight into and understanding previously inaccessible or difficult ideas and topics. Having free, high-quality, and instructive videos is a natural complement to contemporary educational settings. As we finished the capstone project, we received an award of “Best in Hardware Product"  thanks to the help of YouTube!

Watching step-by-step tutorials and reading information in different applications helps me to gain and develop new ideas and widen my knowledge—like reading pdf’s, tutorials in crafting, video editing, creating websites, etc.  To conclude, the internet is a very diverse world that has an unlimited source of information for everyone who can access it.

2. Social interaction and Communication

As a Gen Z, my life is not just focusing on academics or studies. I used different social media applications to communicate and interact with my family and friends who live in different places. Social media is a powerful communication medium, with widespread influence over cities as well as remote areas. Social Media helps me in various ways: (1) It monitors the on-going happenings and keeps me updated about the news, trends, and issues around me. (2) The Internet has vastly improved the ability to stay in touch with my family and friends through using social media such as Facebook, Messenger, and Instagram. It’s the perfect forum to share text messages, news, photos, and videos with each other. The internet offers endless sources of entertainment. There are thousands of movies, games, books and music that can I access for free online. (3) Involvement in civic engagement such as raising social awareness, fundraising, and influencing people. It can be a powerful tool for shining the spotlight on social problems, political issues, and other important campaigns. Through different platforms of social media, I can express myself, share thoughts, and connect with people who share the same interests. 

Social media has a good impact on me by exposing me to new ideas and perspectives. It challenged my assumptions and inspired me to learn and explore more. Social media, or the Internet, is a powerful tool, but it can also be dangerous. It can expose you to misleading information, addiction, cyberbullying, and privacy breaches. So, it is important that we should be more responsible, aware, and careful. Don’t let it consume or harm you. Use it wisely and moderately.

3. Buying and Shopping

Information technology gives me an easy way to buy or go shopping online in a matter of a few clicks, which is unparalleled. Online shopping is super convenient and time-saving, as it can be done 24/7 while being at home or from anywhere in the world you feel like. Through online shopping, you can select the item as per your choice without any hassle of going to a mall or a physical store to buy a certain thing. If the things that I need to buy are not available in my area, I can purchase them through online shopping.

For example, this happened last month. I want to buy a book named “The 48 Laws of Power,” but it isn’t available here in my area. I came up with this application known as "Shopee,” and through the search engine and a few taps, my favorite book appeared, which I purchased at a low price in the area of Metro Manila. That was how I got my favorite book without the need to travel to different areas and spend a lot of money. It is convenient and offers a variety of products that you may not be able to find at local stores. Through online shopping, you can find almost any product or item you're looking for. You can get in on the latest international trends without spending money on airfare. It's easier to comparison shop online, where you can access prices, reviews, and product details with a scroll and click.

Information technology helps me in various ways. It offers advantages and disadvantages insights. Internet is like using a sharp knife. If we use it correctly and wisely, it can be a useful tool. But if we use it wrongly, it can cause damage or harm. As a user of the internet or technology, I must use the internet in a wise and responsible way.