Get on it!

Twelve years ago, while I was stationed in one of the US Marine Corps Commands in Quantico, Virginia as a Communication Center Operator, I was introduced to a computer whose magnitude transcended a normal-sized room but with a computing power that was less than my current mobile phone. It was huge! It filled up an entire room with parts of it scattered in different buildings. It was a computer – a super computer – at its prime. But by our standards now, it was a pea brain of a computer. Off the top of my head, its specifications were about 128 kilobytes (NOT megabytes!) of RAM with four megabytes of magnetic disk space.

Quick comparison

It had 10-inch floppy drives versus today’s 3.5-inches. It had 12-inch reel-to-reel tape back-ups and 12-inch magnetic drive platters that were carried around in protective cases for classified data transfers and card readers. Plus, of course, encryption devices, which had its dedicated casing… If you’re familiar with the CTRl+ALT+DEL reboot feature, well, it took two hours then to do a complete reboot. I do hope today that the system has been removed and/or retrofitted with a redundant server of some sort. But you never know. It might still be around as it worked and served its purpose well. If you want to know what we used it for… You know the drill; I’d have to hurt you after I tell you.

Moving on

This shows how technology has changed drastically. We have moved very quickly from the mid-1940s to today. In some circles that’s five-generations of computer evolution. The pervasiveness of computers in our everyday life is simply mind-boggling! Perhaps we do not realize it, but we carry around computing devices everyday. Let’s see… we have our PDAs, our SMS-capable mobile phones, etc. If you haven’t thought of these things as computers that have more computer power than the PCs of 10 years ago, you’re in for big trouble. My advice? GET ON IT!

What are some indications that tell you that you have to "GET ON IT?"… Well, if you CAN remember all your login names and passwords (and you’re supposed to use different ones to minimize fraud!) you’ve used for different accounts like your e-mail account, online bank account, bills, etc., then you’re not, technologically speaking, "with it." Forgetting your password for an online account is supposed to be an everyday occurrence in these times!

My advice for you to GET ON IT! is not because it’s simply "in" to walk around with some high-tech gadget. I say GET ON IT! Why? Because we absolutely need to get more and more Filipinos to start doing things online whether it is through a PC or a mobile device. When I say "doing things online," I don’t mean Web-surfing, chatting or e-mailing, but doing PRODUCTIVE things online such as banking, shopping and, hopefully soon, stock trading. If we want the Philippines to achieve some recognition worldwide in the area of ICT, we must first show that we’ve embraced technology in our ordinary lives.

One area in which I believe the Philippines can achieve Tier One status is in the area of mobile e-commerce. Mobile e-commerce is gaining ground locally primarily because of the popularity of "texting." After all, the Philippines is known as the "Texting Capital of the World" and the country where Nokia tests its newest mobile devices. We have an edge at the moment in this particular sector. We have a flourishing m-commerce industry marked by innovations and creativity – mobile auctions, mobile instant messaging services, mobile premium services such as ring tones and logos… But watch out! China has vowed to overtake all of Asia in the mobile communications sector by 2003.

In my opinion, one good strategy to maintain and increase our foothold in the area of mobile communications and m-commerce is to simply keep using such devices as much as we can everyday. Reports have it that the average mobile phone user in the Philippines sends 30 text messages per day. So, let us do our share wisely. Let us show that we’re not techno-phobic, that we can embrace the latest technologies, that investments in emerging technologies will not be wasted in the Philippines.

GET ON IT now! Do it for yourself and your country!

Semper Fi!